The increasing crime rate all across the world is a great concern for the legal authorities and also the researchers have identified numerous factors behind the increased crime rate. The major dimensions that are considered the real causes behind an increased crime rate includes poverty and inequality. But recently the numerous research studies have identified that inequality is considered to be the main driving factor behind increasing crime rate. This essay also argues that inequality contributes to crime rate as compared to poverty.
It is strongly argued that inequality rather than poverty is the main driver of crime all across the world, and the two forms of inequality includes the social inequality and the economic inequality. For this reason it is important to understand the concept of crime, which states that it is an act of conditional violation, law breaking in a straight forward sense and also these activities include the conditional violation of the criminal law which is agreed upon within the given jurisdiction (Stewart et al., 2002). Similarly by understanding the concept of poverty, the researchers have identified that poverty can be defined as the condition, in which the individuals get short of the resources and they do not have sufficing resources to meet their personal needs. Most of the research studies have conducted an extensive research to define a relationship between poverty and crime. But on the other hand, the other research studies have also identified that there is no link between the poverty rate and crime rate. These research studies are based on the surveys conducted from different imprisoned women, and they have revealed that although they faced poverty throughout their lives but they committed crime because of powerlessness and crime. And the analysis of these research findings shows that they committed crime not because of poverty but they did it as they have experienced violence at their homes, or they consumed drugs for tackling their issues and later got involved in the drug related crimes.
Save your time!
We can take care of your essay
In addition, it has been presented in the different research studies that there is a direct and strong link between income inequality and an increasing rate of crime. The research studies have also discussed that income inequality is a structural violence which is triggered among individuals because of a huge gap in their income level. Also, by analyzing this fact from a socio-psychological point of view, it is considered that income inequality results in the hierarchical societies and the people living in these societies are highly concerned about the attainment of status and it ultimately becomes the goal of their lives (Hipp, 2007). With an increase in the status competition, the gap in the income of individuals make it difficult for them to obtain social status and success including good jobs, nice houses and good education. And it increases frustration of individuals, and the respond to this frustration with violence, and it fuels the criminal acts in the society. The social sciences researchers have also claimed that income inequalities results in the increased crime rate because people who are unable to achieve social status and they are deprived of obtaining resources, considers the violence and crime as a most convenient route to achieve social status and resources. Also the economic inequality is strongly linked with the increased rate of crime and violence.
Moreover, it is also argued that inequality increases the crime rate due to the presence of certain mechanisms, and these may include escalating social tensions to increasing economic returns to criminal activity. A report published by the United Nations Development Programmed, mentioned that the lack of capacity of governments in terms of institutions, police forces and judicial systems as well as a significant increase in the ratio of single household parents also increases the probability and chances of crime in the countries. The institutions are not adequate enough to meet the security challenges and to control the crimes like drug trafficking, human trafficking, theft, robberies etc (Wilkinson, 2002). Also the different researchers have identified that if the inequality has not declined it will increase the homicide rates in the next few years. Also the analysts have stated that if the society is divided between losers and winners, some of these losers may turned into the homicides who get involved in numerous crimes just for the sake of filling income gap and inequality, they are facing while living in
Struggling with online classes or exams? Get expert help to ace your coursework, assignments, and tests stress-free!