Feminist Criminology and Women in Organized Crime: A Theoretical Exercise

Abstract

Since the 1970s, there has been an increase in the number of studies focused on women offenders. However, those associated with organized crime are still rare, despite the evidence of cases of women actively involved in criminal groups and playing particularly prominent roles.This article aims to present an integrated review of the known literature that emphasizes the presence of women as offenders in organized crime groups. To this end, we (i) discuss how academia evolved from an androcentric perspective to a feminist criminology approach, and (ii) outline the role played by women offenders in the context of organized crime and their functions inside the group.

Women in organised crime groups: A social network approach

“…According to Siegel (2014, p. 57), "today, organized crime is increasingly transnational, and the role of women must be analysed specifically in relation to transnational flows, new markets, products and customers, and international migrations". There is no consensus about the role of women in organised crime groups, as perspectives change according to the type of crime and the socio-cultural context (Guerreiro, 2022;Guerreiro, Gomes & Sousa, 2022;Selmini, 2020). Factors such as poverty, educational level, unemployment, and family history are indicators that co-influence criminal involvement (e.g., Cunha, 2002;Fleetwood, 2014;Fleetwood & Leban, 2022;Gomes, 2014;Moore, 2007).…”

“…Group 1 was comprised of 31 individuals, 13 (41.9 %) of which were females; group 2 was also composed of 31 members, of which 8 (25.8 %) were women; group 3 also had 31 members but had even less women on the group -4 (12.9 %); and, finally, group 4 was composed of 7 members, with 3 females (42.9 %). These groups have members with different types of relationships, but most are people known to each other, with family and intimate relationships (Guerreiro, Gomes, & Sousa 2021;Guerreiro, Sousa, & Gomes, 2022). Quantitative data were collected from the court files, using two different collection grids.…”

Criminología de género en la trata de personas en su condición de mujer migrante

“…. Existe una brecha que no es visiblemente clara entre ser víctima del crimen organizado y ser un delincuente, ya que a veces es la única estrategia de salida para escapar de una vida de abuso, sin embargo, los límites borrosos de la victimización y la criminalización deben abordarse y superarse para comprender claramente la participación de las mujeres en el delito, ya la trascendencia de la criminología que abarque el campo del feminismo radica en la mera intención de crear un marco conceptualizado que determine las incontables desigualdades que bifurcan entre sí, ya que así como las desigualdades de poder dan forma a la vida social, también dan forma al comportamiento delictivo (Guerreiro, et al, 2022)(Izcara, 2022)…”