# Feminist school of criminology

Part of a series on :
Feminism :
History
Feminist history
Women's history
American
British
Canadian
German
Waves
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Timelines
Women's suffrage
Muslim countries
US
Other women's rights
Women's suffrage by country
Austria
Australia
Canada
Colombia
India
Japan
Kuwait
Liechtenstein
New Zealand
Spain
Second Republic
Francoist
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Cayman Islands
Wales
United States
states :
Intersectional variants
Fat
Lesbian
Lesbian of color
Radical lesbianism
Separatist
Sex-positive
Transfeminism
Postgenderism
Vegetarian ecofeminism
Socialist
Anarchist
Queer
Jineology
Marxist
Critical theory
Standpoint
Materialist
Ecofeminist
Postcolonial
Global
Transnational
Xenofeminism
Multicultural
Africana womanism
Black
Hip hop
Lesbian
Ratchet
Chicana
Lesbian
Indigenous
Native American
Multiracial
Romani
Womanism :
Other variants
Anti-abortion
Equity
Femonationalism
Maternal
Postfeminism
Reactionary
State
Carceral
Imperial
Embedded
Gender-critical or trans-exclusionary
Victim
White :
Religious variants
Atheist
Buddhist
Christian
Mormon
New
Womanist
Asian
Neopagan
Dianic Wicca
Reclaiming
Ecofeminist
Hindu
Islamic
Jewish
Orthodox
Sikh :
Movements and ideologies
4B movement
Analytical
Anti-fascist
Anti-pornography
Cyber
HCI
Networked
Xeno
Difference
Cultural
Neo
Ecofeminism
Eugenic
Individualist
Liberal
Equality
Social
Labor
Libertarian
Lipstick
Stiletto
Post-structural
Postmodern
Radical
Political lesbianism
Separatist
Technofeminism
Women's liberation :
Concepts
Antinaturalism
Choice feminism
Cognitive labor
Complementarianism
Literature
Children's literature
Diversity (politics)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion
Effects on society
Equality
Female education
Female genital mutilation
Femicide
Femonationalism
Feminism in culture
Feminist movement
African-American women's suffrage movement
Art movement
In hip hop
Feminist stripper
Formal equality
Gender equality
Gender quota
Girl power
Honor killing
Ideal womanhood
Invisible labor
Internalized sexism
International Girl's Day and Women's Day
Language reform
Feminist capitalism
Gender-blind
Likeability trap
Male privilege
Matriarchal religion
Media
Men in feminism
Misogyny
Trans
Oedipus complex
Opposition to feminism
Pro-feminism
Protofeminism
Purplewashing
Racism
Reproductive justice
Sex workers' rights
Sexual harassment
Sexual objectification
Substantive equality
Toxic masculinity
Transmisogyny
Triple oppression
Violence against women
War on women
Women's empowerment
Women-only space
Women's health
Women's rights
Women in the workforce :
Outlooks
Bicycling and feminism
Criticism of marriage
Views on BDSM
Views on pornography
Views on prostitution
Views on sexual orientation
Views on sexuality
Views on transgender topics
SCUM Manifesto :
Theory
Feminist method
Gender studies
Gender mainstreaming
Gynocentrism
Kyriarchy
Male gaze
Matriarchy
Women's studies
Men's studies
Patriarchy
Écriture féminine
Areas of study
Anthropology
Archaeology
Architecture
Art
Art criticism
Literary criticism
Film theory
Science fiction
Biology
Composition studies
Criminology
Pathways perspective
Economics
FDPA
Geography
International relations
Constructivism
Legal theory
Pedagogy
Philosophy
Aesthetics
Empiricism
Epistemology
Ethics
Justice ethics
Existentialism
Metaphysics
science
Political ecology
Political theory
Pornography
Psychology
Therapy
Revisionist mythology
Sex wars
Sexology
Sociology
Technoscience
Theology
womanist theology :
By continent/country
Africa
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Egypt
Ethiopia
Ghana
Mali
Nigeria
Senegal
South Africa
Albania
Australia
Bangladesh
Canada
China
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Republic of Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Haiti
Honduras
Mexico
Paraguay
Trinidad and Tobago
Lebanon
Malaysia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Northern Cyprus
Norway
Pakistan
Philippines
Poland
Russia
Saudi Arabia
South Korea
Sweden
Syria
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Vietnam
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States
History of women :
Lists and categories
Lists
Articles
Feminists
by nationality
Literature
American feminist literature
Feminist comic books
Feminist songs
Conservative feminisms
Ecofeminist authors
Feminist art critics
Feminist economists
Feminist philosophers
Feminist poets
Feminist rhetoricians
Jewish feminists
Muslim feminists
Feminist parties
Suffragists and suffragettes
Women's rights activists
Women's studies journals
Women's suffrage organizations
Categories
Women's rights by country
Feminists by nationality :
Feminism portal :
vte :
Criminology and penology :
Theory
Anomie
Biosocial criminology
Broken windows
Collective efficacy
Crime analysis
Criminalization
Differential association
Deviance
Expressive function of law
Labeling theory
Psychopathy
Rational choice
Risk and actuarial criminology
Social control
Social learning
Strain
Subculture
Symbolic interactionism
Victimology
Secondary victimisation
Victim blaming :
Types of crime
Against
Humanity
Person
State
Class
Blue-collar
White-collar
Cold case
Perfect
Corporate
Hate
International
Juvenile
Organized
Political
Public-order
State
State-corporate
Transnational
Victimless
War :
Methods
Comparative
Profiling
Ethnography
Uniform Crime Reports
Crime mapping
reform
sentencing
Crime statistics
Positivist school
Qualitative
Quantitative
BJS
NIBRS :
Penology
Crime prevention
Corrections
Denunciation
Deterrence
Incapacitation
Sentence
Trial
Prison
Prisoner
Solitary confinement
Punishment
Rehabilitation
Recidivism
Zero tolerance
Criminal justice
Participatory
Restorative
Retributive
Utilitarian
Transformative
Prison reform
abolition
open
Prisoner abuse
Prisoners' rights
Victims' rights :
Schools
Anarchist
Chicago
Classical
Conflict
Critical
Environmental
Feminist
Integrative
Italian
Law and order
Marxist
Neo-classical
Populist
Positivist
Postmodernist
Realism
Left
Right :
Subfields
American
Anthropological
Biosocial criminology
Conflict
Criminology
Culture
Cyber
Demography
Development
Environmental
Experimental
Organizational
Political
Public
Radical criminology :
Browse
Index
Journals
Organizations
People :
vte :
The feminist school of criminology is a school of criminology developed in the late 1960s and into the 1970s as a reaction to the general disregard and discrimination of women in the traditional study of crime. It is the view of the feminist school of criminology that a majority of criminological theories were developed through studies on male subjects and focused on male criminality, and that criminologists often would "add women and stir" rather than develop separate theories on female criminality.
Feminist criminology focuses on women offenders, women victims, and women in the criminal justice system in order to understand the causes, trends, and results of female criminality. Key issues within the feminist school of criminology include the role of sex and sexism in sentencing and imprisonment, the role of victimization in women's lives, and the increase in the number of incarcerated women despite declining crime rates.

## History

Criminology is the scientific study of the causes, correction, and prevention of crime and those who commit it. Though this field of study had its origins in the late 19th century, it was not until the late 1960s and 1970s that the feminist school of criminology emerged. A response to the then-current mainstream criminology's focus on male offenders and victims, feminist criminologists sought to bring an understanding of women offenders, women victims, and women working in the criminal justice system.

### Early theories on female deviancy

The earliest theories about women's criminality focused mainly on psychological and physiological traits, rather than social or economic ones. These theories, most advanced by male scholars and criminologists, have been heavily criticized for drawing on assumptions on "the nature of women", and many have since been discredited. Italian criminologist Cesare Lombroso applied phrenology and anthropological criminology to his theorizing on female crime, separating the "normal woman" from the "criminal woman", the latter of whom was seen as less feminine and therefore more likely to be criminal. American sociologist W.I. Thomas advanced the idea that delinquent women engage in sexual deviance (such as prostitution) to manipulate men's sexual desires in order to get what they want. To Sigmund Freud, female criminals were experiencing what he called "penis envy", acting out aggressively and rebelliously in their longing for their penis and manhood.

#### General Strain Theory

Criminologist Robert Agnew attempted to understand the difference between men's and women's crime rates through General Strain theory. He theorized that men and women experienced different types of strain (pressure or stress, be it physical, financial, emotional, etc.) and responded accordingly. While men seemed more prone to react with violent or property crimes, women were viewed to respond with more self-destructive criminality, such as drug abuse.

### Early feminist criminological theory

French-Canadian criminologist Marie-Andrée Bertrand and British sociologist Frances Mary Heidensohn are among those acknowledged by most as pioneers in the school of feminist criminology. Heidensohn's article "The Deviance of Women: A Critique and An Enquiry" (1968) is credited as the first critique of mainstream criminology's failure to include women in their studies, stating that "the deviance of women is one of the areas of human behavior most notably ignored in sociological literature" and called for more research to be done on female deviance.
Early works of feminist criminological theory included Freda Adler's Sisters in Crime: The Rise of the New Female Criminal (1975), which linked female criminality to the ongoing feminist liberation movement, theorizing that with more opportunities outside of the home, women were also given more opportunities to participate in deviant behaviors. This theory is sometimes known as the "Emancipation Theory". Rita J. Simon's book "Women and Crime", also published in 1975, echoed this theory. While both influential works in the field, Adler and Simon's theoretical linkage has been criticized by many feminists, including Carol Smart and Meda Chesney-Lind for bringing about a "moral panic" and fear regarding women's liberation by, in Chesney-Lind's words, "threatening those who aspire for equality with the images of the witch, the bitch, and the whore."
Nevertheless, Adler and Simon's concept of the "new female criminal" inspired further research by feminist and non-feminist researchers alike. Most tests by non-feminist criminologist discredited the theory, while others found economic marginalization to be a stronger link to female crime. These results, however, came years after Marxist-feminist Dorie Klein called attention to the lack of economic and social factors considered in feminist criminological research of the time.

### Standpoint epistemology

In order to subvert the gender-blind criminological theory of the time, feminists in the late 1970's and early 1980's utilized the standpoint theory, which asserts that one's perspectives are formed based on their experiences. Research of this nature sought to understand female criminality by examining the lives and histories of women caught up in the criminal justice system. Common themes emerged in many of these women's narratives, including poverty, addiction, homelessness, and sexual abuse. This overarching presence of abuse led to countless studies on the link between victimization and criminalization and the ultimate theory that women's deviant behaviors could be understood as a way of coping with this abuse.
Standpoint epistemologies have been criticized for overgeneralizing women, accepting the above results as true for all women. Other feminist works take issue with the hyperfocus on the role of abuse in women's lives, arguing that these theories put women responsible for how they react to abuse, as well as justify imprisoning women who may have a greater need for treatment to deal with abuse. Activist and scholar Julia Chinyere Oparah adds that standpoint theory "sidesteps the question of why the state responds to abused women with punishment". Regardless of the criticisms, standpoint theory-rooted research is credited as an instrumental tool in shifting feminist criminology away from the mainstream criminology.

## Feminist theories on crime
### Carceral feminism

A carceral feminist is a feminist that relies on the criminal justice system to address social problems and gender inequalities, such as violence against women and sentencing for sexual offenders. Carceral feminists, mainly consisting of radical, liberal, and/or white feminists, believe that a significant impact can be made on violence against women through increased and strengthened legislation, more police presence, and expansion of the penal system, especially in regards to sex offenders.

### Abolitionist feminism

Considered an antithesis to carceral feminism, abolitionist feminism seeks to separate deviant behavior from the established criminal justice system, a system that they believe does little to address the roots of crime in society. Abolitionism is described as challenging "conventional definitions of crime and the law, while defying official views of the meanings and effects of punishment". Abolitionists assert that "crime" as it is understood, only exists within the laws that define it, and those laws are created to imprison and isolate members of the "unproductive" population. Penal abolitionists look to the elimination of prisons to solve this problem, though other abolitionists warn that when crime is only viewed as a product of prisons or institutions, "they stunt abolitionist understandings in manners akin to pushing against a 500 year old tree from its trunk and expecting it to topple over without any account for the roots that hold it firmly in the ground." Abolitionist feminist Viviane Saleh-Hanna furthers this theory by theorizing that crime exists within the intersection of racism, imperialism, and sexism – which Saleh-Hanna refers to as the R.I.P. (Racist-Imperialist-Patriarchy). Saleh-Hanna developed this theory with the implementation of her Black Feminist Hauntology. Hauntology refers to the return or persistence of elements from the past, as in the manner of a ghost, and in this case refers to the haunting of society by policies meant to dehumanize, ostracize, and punish populations of people, specifically the Black community. Systems that sought to criminalize and punish Black people, such as slavery, Jim Crow laws, and mass incarceration are seen in this theory as an ever-returning "ghost" of the Racist-Imperialist-Patriarchy.