Sociological Theories of Crime

Sociological Theories of Crime

Social Disorganization Theory Theory of Anomie (Merton’s Theory) Institutional Anomie Theory Relative Deprivation Theory Theory of Focal Concerns Theory of Delinquent Subcultures (Cohen) Theory of Differential Opportunities

Social Disorganization Theory

Crime is caused primarily by social factors

The city is a perfect natural laboratory (Chicago reflects society as a whole)

Social disorganization definition

Social disorganization is defined as an inability of community members to achieve shared values or to solve jointly experienced problems (Bursik, 1988).

CONCENTRIC ZONE THEORY

Park and Burgess (1920s) They saw cities as consisting of five

zones (CBD - Central Business District, transition, workingman, residential, and commuter)

Their "zonal hypothesis" was that delinquency is greatest in the zone of transition

Shaw and McKay (1930s)

They never said that poverty causes crime

They only said that "poverty areas" tended to have high rates of residential mobility and racial heterogeneity that made it difficult for communities in those areas to avoid becoming socially disorganized

Shaw and McKay's Model

Residential Mobility

Poverty

Racial Heterogeneity

Disorganization Crime

Sampson and Grove (1989)

Residential Mobility

Low Economic Status

Racial Heterogeneity

Family Disruption

Population Density/Urbanization

Unsupervised teen-age peer groups

Low organizational participation

Spare local friendship networks

Crime

Residential mobility

When the population of an area is constantly changing, the residents have fewer opportunities to develop strong, personal ties to one another and to participate in community organizations

Ethnic diversity

According to Shaw and McKay (1942), ethnic diversity interferes with communication among adults. Effective communication is less likely in the face of ethnic diversity because differences in customs and a lack of shared experiences may breed fear and mistrust (Sampson and Groves, 1989).

Family disruption

Sampson (1985) argued that unshared parenting strains parents' resources of time, money, and energy, which interferes with their ability to supervise their children and communicate with other adults in the neighborhood

The smaller the number of parents in a community relative to the number of children, the more limited the networks of adult supervision will be for all the children

Economic status

Areas with the lowest average socioeconomic status will also have the greatest residential instability and ethnic diversity, which in turn will create social disorganization (Bursik and Grasmick, 1993)

Many studies have found that urban neighborhoods with high rates of poverty also have greater rates of delinquency (Warner and Pierce, 1993).

Population density

High population density creates problems by producing anonymity that interferes with accountability to neighbors

Collective efficacy and neighborhood safety

Robert Sampson (1990) Concept of “collective efficacy”

captures “trust” and “cohesion” on one hand and shared expectations for control on the other

Collective efficacy is associated with lower rates of violence

Merton’s Anomie

Anomie is a disjunction between the socially-produced and encouraged ends or goals and the means through which they could achieve these desirable ends

In simple terms, they were socialised into the "American Dream" of health, wealth, personal happiness

American society is structured to ensure that the vast majority of people could never realistically attain these ends through the means that American society provided in legitimate ways - hard work

Strain Theory: R.K.Merton.

Merton’s theory

Because of this tension anomie occurs

In a situation whereby people desired success - yet were effectively denied it - he argued that people would find other, probably less legitimate, means towards desired ends.

Merton’s typology

Merton elaborated five basic responses to the anomic situation which he claimed to see in American society

He classified these types of conformity and deviance in terms of acceptance and denial of basic ends and means

Merton’s typology

Response: Means: Ends:

1. Conformity + +

2. Innovation - +

3. Ritualism + -

4. Retreatism - -

5. Rebellion Rejects means Rejects ends

Merton’s Conformity

Conformity applies to the law-abiding citizen

These people accept both socially-produced ends and the socially-legitimated means to achieve them

Merton’s Innovation

Innovation is deviant behaviour that uses illegitimate means to achieve socially acceptable goals

Drug crimes, property crimes and some white collar crimes would be examples of innovation

Merton’s Ritualism

3. Ritualism might refer to someone who conforms to socially-approved means, but has lost sight of the ends (or has come to accept that they will never achieve them)

Such people are likely to be elderly and they probably enjoy a reasonably comfortable lifestyle.

Merton’s Retreatism

An example of retreatism is someone who "drops-out" of mainstream society. The drug addict who retreats into a self-contained world, the alcoholic who is unable to hold-down a steady job

Merton’s rebbellion

Political deviance is a good example of the rebellion response, whether this is expressed in terms of working for a revolutionary group or through political terrorism

Assessment

Monetary success is the only one motive mentioned by Merton

Some criminals are engaged into deviant activities for no apparent reason (enjoyable)

White collar crime is not explained If the strains of life really operates as

suggested by Merton, why it is most member of society engage in law-abiding activities

Cohen’s “Deliquent Boys” (1955)

Lower class boys want to achieve success and higher social status, just like middle class boys

Hard work, relying on oneself, controlling aggression, using individuals skills to get ahead, etc

Lower class boys cannot compete with middle class kids (verbal and social deficiencies)

They fell despair and anger

Cohen’s Delinquent Boys

Boys can respond in one of three ways “The college-boy” response (conforming

middle class expectations) “The corner-boy” response (angry-smoking,

drinking, hooliganism) The “delinquent-boy” response (like Merton’s

innovation and rebellion, have contradictory values and behaviors to middle class, gain status through deviance)

Cloward and Ohlin’s “Delinquency and Opportunity” (1960)

Anomie because of inability to achieve socially desirable goals

Try to find illegitimate ways of achieving what they want

Lower class juveniles have differential opportunities to achieving success through illegitimate means

Delineated three possible delinquent subcultural responses

Three types of juvenile gangs

The “crime-oriented gang” The “conflict-oriented gang” The “retreatist-oriented gang”

The Criminal Subculture

Legitimate aspirations of juveniles are satisfied in some slum neighborhoods where a criminal subculture already existed

Adult criminals, role models, weapon

Theft, robbery, violence, fraud, extortion

The Conflict Subculture

Poor, disorganized, transient, unstable

Malicious and violent activities that symbolize the protest against the social structure

The activities make it visible to media and public

Interpersonal violence, fighting, gang warfare, physical destruction of property

The Retreatist Subculture

This is the last avenue for boys who experience failure in both legitimate and illegitimate activities

Juveniles who given up on the struggle for success (blame both society and themselves)

Turned to drugs

Assessment

Neither Cohen nor Cloward and Ohlin specified why some lower-class boys choose to identify with a delinquent subculture while others select a college-boy adjustment

Relative Deprivation Theory

Messner and Rosenfeld, 1997 To fell anomie a person should see/feel

deprivation People with the same social standing can

have different sense of deprivation The poorest Americans are far richer in

terms of material possessions that the average citizen of many third world nations

Inner-city inhabitants develop an increased sense of relative deprivation because they can witness well-to-do lifestyle in nearby neighborhoods

People start question their place in the reward structure of society

Sense of injustice is the source of strain that can lead to criminal behavior

Relative Deprivation Theory