Young argues that late modern society has led to increased crime rates. Some key aspects of late modernity that contribute to higher crime include de-industrialization, the rise of insecure short-term low-paid work, intensified feelings of relative deprivation, and a widening gap between cultural inclusion and economic exclusion. Young claims we have entered a period where crime has become more widespread across all social classes and the public has a lower tolerance for crime.

1. LEFT REALISM: LATE MODERNITY, EXCLUSION AND CRIME (SEE TEXT BOOK PAGE 97)
Late modernity refers to a number of changes in society which include:
1 2 3
All of these, according to Young make the crime problem worse
A further trend is for RELATIVE DEPRIVATION to become generalised
throughout society:
Young (2002) argues that the 1950s and 1960s represented the ‘Golden Age’ of
modern capitalist society because it was a period of:
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1 RESENTMENT OF HIGH EARNERS
2 MIDDLE CLASS RESENTMENT OF THE UNDERCLASS
THE RESULT IS THAT CRIME IS CHANGING – more widespread and
all across the social structure
REACTIONS to crime by the public and state are also changing:
Late modern society is thus a high crime society with a low
tolerance for crime
Since the 1970s we have had:
a)DE-INDUSTRIALISATION
b)RISE OF INSECURE, SHORT-TERM, LOW-PAID WORK
This has led to:
The overall effect has been to increase MARGINALISATION
RELATIVE DEPRIVATION has been intensified by;
i)The rise of INDIVIDUALISM
ii)A widening of the gap between rich and poor
iii)The growing gap between cultural inclusion and economic exclusion:
- Media saturated society
- Greater emphasis on leisure
- But the poor are unable to get the rewards
All this is very similar to Merton’s theory about the American dream – there is a
STRAIN between socialised goals and the legitimate means to achieve them.