The gender of crime : are female any different from male offenders?

Abstract

It is widely agreed by criminologists that the gender gap in crime is universal: men commit more crime than women, however in recent years prisons are showing an increase in women offenders. However despite this fact, women are still in the minority when compared to male offenders. Some scholars argue that male and female offenders have similar low levels of education and unemployment. Most females in prisons are incarcerated for drugs or property offences whilst men are also incarcerated for major crimes such as murder. Women often have histories of being abused and many are dealing with traumatic issues and substance abuse. Although men also suffer from past victimisation of abuse, women's percentage rate is higher when compared to that of males. It is perceived that females benefit from sentencing decisions in that when compared to males, they are given more lenient sentences. This phenomenon is known as a chivalrous attitude when it comes to male judiciary sentencing women. Notwithstanding such increase in female offenders, the prison system still remains predominately male-focused in the sense that correctional programs both in delivery and design are male orientated, and pro grams do not take into consideration the specific needs and risks for women offenders. When leaving prison both male and female offenders may encounter challenges re-entering into the community as they are not always welcome, and once again re-entry programmes focus more on men than women.