- The titles of chapters 2-4 of the textbook refer to communities “as Socially Disorganized,” “as a System,” and “as the Truly Disadvantaged.” Describe the fundamental arguments of each of these approaches to communities and crime. For each approach, discuss the key factors that are expected to affect crime rates, and explain whythe approach expects these factors to affect crime. Be sure that your discussion of these approaches makes it clear how they are distinct from one another.
- In chapter 4 of the textbook, the authors note that the approaches to communities and crime discussed in chapters 2 & 3 (the “Chicago School” perspective) are similar in some ways to the approach described in chapter 4 (the “truly disadvantaged” perspective). However, they place stronger emphasis on the differences between these approaches. Begin your essay with a general description of the “Chicago School” and “Truly Disadvantaged” approaches. In the remainder of your essay, explain what Wilcox, Cullen, and Feldmeyer mean that the truly disadvantaged perspective “offers a distinctly different vision of communities and crime than we had seen up to this point” and that it focuses “more squarely on structural forces” than on cultural explanations (p. 61)