Agencies of formal social control Cambridge IGCSE Sociology revision
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In plain words
Behind the polite forms of control stands the state, with the power to arrest, fine and imprison. Five official agencies do this work, and sociologists ask how well each one does it.
8 things to know
- The government controls through law-making. It decides what is legal and illegal, and it directs the other agencies.
- The police enforce the law. They patrol, investigate and arrest. They may use coercion, which is the use of force or the threat of it.
- The courts decide whether a person is guilty. Through sentencing, they decide the punishment.
- The penal system carries out the punishment. It includes prisons and the supervision of offenders. Imprisonment takes away a person's freedom.
- The armed forces defend a country from outside threats. They may also be used inside it during riots, disasters or emergencies.
- Digital surveillance is the monitoring of people through technology, such as CCTV cameras, the tracking of phones and the checking of online activity. People who believe they are watched are more likely to conform.
- Strengths: the rules are clear, the punishments are serious, and fear of them deters many people.
- Limitations: many crimes are never detected. Many prisoners offend again after release. Force can cause anger and resistance. Surveillance threatens privacy, and where the police are seen as unfair, people stop cooperating with them.
Worked example
A city puts CCTV cameras on every street. Discuss whether this will produce social conformity.
- For: people who know they are watched are less likely to offend, and recordings help the police to catch those who do.
- Against: offenders may move to streets without cameras, or cover their faces.
- Against: cameras do nothing about the reasons people offend, and some citizens see them as an invasion of privacy.
- Judgement: surveillance reduces some crime in some places, but cannot produce conformity alone.
Tips and tricks
- Learn the chain: the government makes the law, the police enforce it, the courts judge and sentence, the penal system punishes.
- Coercion means force or the threat of force. It is the thing formal agencies can use that informal ones cannot.
It lands in your notebook with its questions as flashcards.
Agencies of formal social control: 5 questions and answers
These are the quiz’s questions. Do the quiz first, then come back here for the ones that got you.
Which agency makes the law?
Law-making is its method of control.
What do the courts do?
Sentencing is their method of control.
What is digital surveillance?
Being watched encourages conformity.
What is the penal system?
It carries out the sentence the court has given.
High reoffending rates among released prisoners suggest what about imprisonment?Stretch
If prison worked fully, fewer people would return.
Quiz
5 questions
Tap an answer and you’ll see straight away whether it’s right, and why.
Worksheet
3 questions, 10 marks. Write your answers on paper, then check them.
Agencies of formal social control
Cambridge IGCSE Sociology 0495 · 10 marks · papermunch.org
Name ______________________________ Date ______________
What is meant by the term "coercion"?[2]
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The use of force, or the threat of force, to make people obey.
Describe how two agencies of formal social control achieve conformity.[4]
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Any two, each described: the government makes laws that say what is illegal; the police enforce the law by patrolling, investigating and arresting; the courts try offenders and sentence them; the penal system punishes offenders, for example by imprisonment; the armed forces keep order in emergencies.
Explain two reasons why formal social control is not always effective.[4]
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Any two, each explained: many crimes are not detected or reported, so offenders are not punished; many people who are sent to prison reoffend after release; the use of force can provoke anger and resistance; people may not respect laws or police they see as unfair.
Answers: Agencies of formal social control
- 1. The use of force, or the threat of force, to make people obey.
- 2. Any two, each described: the government makes laws that say what is illegal; the police enforce the law by patrolling, investigating and arresting; the courts try offenders and sentence them; the penal system punishes offenders, for example by imprisonment; the armed forces keep order in emergencies.
- 3. Any two, each explained: many crimes are not detected or reported, so offenders are not punished; many people who are sent to prison reoffend after release; the use of force can provoke anger and resistance; people may not respect laws or police they see as unfair.