Explaining Female Crime

Adler (1975)

As women become liberated from patriarchy, their crimes become more frequent and serious, similar to males - liberation has led to changes in women's offending behaviour as the structure of society has changed.

Traditionally 'male' roles - increased legitimate opportunities (work) and illegitimate activities (crime). Women no longer commit traditional 'female' offences (eg. shoplifting and prostitution) but now commit typically 'male' offences such as violence and white collar crimes.

Adler claims that is is women's self confidence and assertiveness, and the fact they now have greater opportunities in legitimate structures (eg. now women are filling more senior positions they have more chance to commit fraud).

The overall rate of female offending and female share of offences have gone up. eg. Between the 1950s and 90s, the female share of offences rose from 1 in 7 to 1 in 6 women. Adler also argues that the pattern of female crime has shifted: she cites studies showing rising levels of female participation in crimes previously regarded male, eg. embezzlement and armed robbery.

Recently, there has been media talk of a growth of 'girl gangs'. Denscombe's (2001) study of Midlands teenagers' self-images found that females were as likely as males to engage in risk taking behaviour and girls were adopting more 'male' stances, eg. the desire to be in control and look 'hard'.

It can be argued that Adler overestimates the extent to which women are now liberated and the extent to which women are now able to engage in more serious crime.

The women's liberation movement only began in the 1960s - thus, it began after women crime rates began to rise so it could be argued that there are other factors to suggest a rise in female crime.

Working class women are the least likely group to be influenced by women's liberation. Chesney-Lind (1997) - in the USA, the poor and marginalised women are more likely than liberated women to be criminal.

Chesney-Lind found women branching in to more typically male offences, such as drugs. However, this is usually because of their link with prostitution - a very 'unliberated' female offence.

There is little evidence that the illegitimate opportunity structure of professional crime has opened up to women. Laidler and Hunt (2001) found that female gang members in the USA were expected to conform to conventional gender roles in the same way as non-deviant girls.

It draws our attention to the importance of investigating the link between women's position in society and patterns of female offending.

Parsons traces gender differences in crime to gender roles in the conventional nuclear family. These give girls access to an adult role model but boys reject feminine models of behaviour, distancing themselves by engaging in 'compensatory compulsory masculinity' through acts of delinquency.

Socialisation can be more difficult for boys as men have less of a socialising role than women. A Cohen says that this lack of a male role model leads to boys turning to male street gangs as a source of masculine identity, where they can prove their masculinity through delinquent acts.

The New Right believe matrifocal lone parent families have the same effects.