Social Structure Theories Social Disorganization Theories Robert Park

Social Structure Theories

Social Disorganization Theories • Robert Park on urban ecology – Urban “zones” – Crime and zones – The cause of crime: “Social Disorganization” • Contemporary SDT: Ecological Theory

Strain Theories • Anomie Theory (aka “Strain Theory”) – Merton’s explanation for crime: different people “adapt” differently; they differ on goals and means to achieve those goals. – Merton specified FIVE modes of adaptation:

Merton’s Modes of Adaptation ACCEPT MODE OF CULTURAL ADAPTATION GOALS? ACCEPT INSTITUTIONAL MEANS? Conformity Yes Innovation Yes No Ritualism No Yes Retreatism No No Rebellion Yes and No

More Strain Theories • Cultural Deviance Theory (Walter Miller) – Different social classes promote different values. – Miller called these values “focal concerns. ” – Among lower-class boys, focal concerns were trouble, toughness, smartness, excitement, fate and autonomy.

More Strain Theories • Theory of Delinquent Subcultures (Cohen) – Cohen theorised that everybody has to be good at something and to receive social support for his or her talents. – “Delinquent subcultures” are criminogenic groups that deviants move into to receive support for their activities, like fighting, taking drugs, or stealing.

One More Strain Theory • Differential Opportunity Theory (Cloward and Ohlin) – Developed to explain gang delinquency and the social origins of gangs themselves. – Suggests that gangs emerge from adolescent play groups. – Suggests that gangs evolve in response to a lack of legitimate AND illegitimate opportunities.

Five Criticisms of Social Structure Theories • Social Structure Theories rely excessively on evidence derived from situations unique to US urban settings. • SST ignore other factors related to US criminal justice and gun-related policies and not social inequality directly.

Five Criticisms of Social Structure Theories (cont. ) • Social Structure Theories cannot account for differences in criminal behaviours among persons with similar degrees of privation. • Social Structure Theories generally ignore crime among the advantaged. • Social Structure Theories do not specify or even recognize the existence of the processes through which criminal behaviours are acquired.