09/20/2012

CONTEMPORARY VERSIONS OF ANOMIE-

STRAIN THEORY

THE FUNCTIONALIST APPROACH

Anomie theories and subculture theories related to

structural functionalism

Popular sociological perspective from late 1930s

into 1960s

Functionalist approach draws parallel between

social order and organic life

Society seen as series of integrated parts, each

working to ensure continuation of organism

STARTING WITH SAINT-SIMON

Saint-Simon emphasized importance of moral

order

One of first to view society as functional

mechanism, greater than its component parts

AND THEN CAME AUGUSTE COMTE

invoked an organic analogy of society

Used terms like elements, organs and tissues to

describe society

EVEN CRIME SERVES A FUNCTION

Durkheim said a certain amount of crime was

normal – found in all societies

Crime helped to define/ shape collective

consciousness

Crime and punishment maintained society’s

fundamental values and preserved its moral order

TALCOTT PARSONS

Started the concept of “structural functionalism”

Pre-eminent sociological paradigm during 1940s

and 1950s

The Structure of Social Action (1937)

The Social System (1951)

PARSONS’ FOUR FUNCTIONAL IMPERATIVES

Adaptation = society had to adapt to its

environment to obtain certain resources necessary

for its survival

Goal attainment = society had to define/ prioritize

its goals, and then strive to achieve them

PARSONS’ FOUR FUNCTIONAL IMPERATIVES

cont.

Integration = society had to regulate/ coordinate

inter=relationships of its subsystems

Latency = society had to maintain conforming

behavior by resolving strains, and motivating

individuals to conform

THE FOUR PARTS OF THE SOCIAL SYSTEM

Function was to maintain society (help it to

survive) and to ensure well-being of its members

Family produces children, teaches them

fundamental values (e.g., belief in merits of hard

work, regard for poverty respect for others)

Schools provide basic knowledge and work skills,

and re-enforce fundamental values

THE FOUR PARTS OF THE SOCIAL SYSTEM

cont.

Religion supports basic values, provides spiritual

avenue to cope with social and personal problems

Economy allows individuals to work, earn and

spend

A HAPPY BALANCE

Society/social system strive for balance or stability,

often referred to as equilibrium

Watch words are consensus and integration

MERTON’S ANOMIE AND DEVIANT BEHAVIOUR

If society is functional, then why do we have

problems like social unrest, drug addiction, drop-

outs and crime?

Merton deliberately distanced himself from

Freudian or psychological explanations

Merton used term “anomie” to describe

dysfunction between (or malintegration of culture

and social) structure (Legge & Messner, 2010)

MERTON’S MANIFEST AND LATENT FUNCTIONS

Manifest functions are those that society intends,

and are often set out as formal institutional goals

A manifest (or intended) function of CJS system is

to punish criminals so that they (and others) will over

the laws

Another manifest function of CJS is to rehabilitate

and reintegrate offenders, so that they can once

again become functional members of society

MERTON’S MANIFEST AND LATENT FUNCTIONS

cont.

Latent functions are those that society does not

intend; they are usually informal, and may have

undesirable outcomes.

An unintended or latent function of CJS is

providing its satisfied customers with training ground

for future criminal activity

THE SOCIAL CONTEXT OF SUBCULTURAL

THEORIES

Emerged during 1950s

Relative prosperity, compared to Great Depression

(Dirty Thirties)

Relative peace and prosperity, compared to WW2,

which lasted from 1939 until 1945

THE AFTERMATH OF WORLD WAR TWO 

LIFE WAS GOOD…

WATCHING TV

GANGS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

ALBERT COHEN

Wrote Delinquent Boys: The Culture of the Gang

in 1955

Cohen studied with Robert Merton at Harvard, and

Edwin Sutherland Indiana

A LOGICAL CONNECTION

Connection to Merton’s strain theory, and to

Chicago School’s concern with inner city slums,

social disorganization and delinquent youth gangs

Connection to Sutherland’s theory of differential

association; Cohen saw his work as elaboration on

some of unresolved issues regarding transmission of

cultural values

GANG SUBCULTURES

Gang delinquency most prevalent amongst lower

class males

Non-utilitarian, malicious and negativistic behavior

Short term hedonism, often causing discomfort to

others

STATUS FRUSTRATION

Members of lower class unable to achieve social

status, because they lacked means.

Would come up against middle class standards at

school, and find they couldn’t meet them

REACTION FORMATION

Cohen viewed delinquent behavior as a type of

reaction formation – a hostile reason to an adverse

environment (i.e., to status frustration)

Also viewed delinquency as a collective solution –

delinquent subculture established new cultural

norms, redefined meaning of status, set new types

of acceptable behavior or conduct

PICKING ON THE LOWER CLASSES

Cohen talked briefly about female delinquency as

being sexually-oriented response to status

frustration associated with sexual double standards

Also talked briefly about delinquency on part of

middle class males as a reaction to anxiety about

their masculinity

IS IT REALLY A THEORY?

Structural or strain theory – points to lack of

institutional means to achieve culturally valued gals

Process theory – describes process though

which individuals/ subgroups become delinquent

IS IT REALLY A THEORY? cont.

Bridging theory – attempts to bring elements of

structure and process together

Consensus theory – assumes that most of us

aspire to middle class standards/ values, and those

who don’t are delinquent

DIFFERENTIAL OPPORTUNITY THEORY

Developed by Cloward and Ohlin

Rooted in Merton’s strain theory, differential

association and in Chicago School

Cloward was Merton’s student at Columbia; Ohlin

was Sutherland’s student, and got his PhD from

University of Chicago

STATUS DISCONTENTMENT

Cloward and Ohlin talked about “status

discontentment”

What sort of illegitimate means are available if

individuals lack access to legitimate means through

which to achieve culturally valued goals?

How do delinquents choose one mode of adaption

over other?

ILLEGITIMATE OPPORTUNITY STRUCTURES

“Chicago School” addition to Merton’s strain theory

Chicago School said delinquent subcultures

emerge where there are enough youths available to

band together and reject conventional values

Cloward and Ohlin described three different

illegitimate opportunity structures (or delinquent

subcultures) that were differentially available to

would be delinquents

THE CRIMINAL SUBCULTURE

Criminal subculture found in “organized” slums, as

opposed to “disorganized” slums

Pre-existing crime network, focused on profit-

making

Older, more experienced offenders would serve as

role models for younger, wannabe offenders

CONFLICT SUBCULTURES

• Existed in disorganized slums

Discontented youth did not have access to

illegitimate opportunity structures of criminal

subculture

Rebelled against society and middle class values

nevertheless

Characterized by violence, gang fighting, acting

tough

RETREATIST SUBCULTURES

• Described by drug subculture

Required existence of enough youths who had

been double failures

Couldn’t obtain status through legitimate means,

so used drugs to solve status discontentment

THE RETREATIST SUBCULTURE CONT.

CRITICISMS OF ANOMIE/STRAIN THEORY

If blocked opportunities are the cause of crime,

then why aren’t more women criminals?

Too specific to American society and so-called

American Dream

Assumption that everyone has the same interest in

monetary success

Assumption that socially disadvantaged feel

greater degree of anomie-strain because they lack

access to legitimate opportunity structures

(institutional means)

RELATIVE DEPRIVATION THEORY

Studied by Blau and Blau, Robert Sampson,

Agnew and Messner

“Relative” deprivation not the same as “objective”

or “absolute” deprivation; may not be poor, starving,

living on the streets (Passas, 1997)

Feel deprived in comparison to normative

comparison (reference) group

FOLLOWING THE TRAIL (******)

AGNEW PASSAS

MERTION

DURKHEIM

PROBLEMS WITH ANOMIE THEORY

Class bias – pressure toward deviance is felt

primarily by lower classes

Monolithic view of culture – assumes that we all

strive to attain same cultural goals, symbols of

success

AND THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM…

1. Bring in concept of relative deprivation

2. Bring in reference group analysis

REFERENCE GROUPS

Reference groups set standards

Normative reference groups set group norms for

individuals who wish to gain or maintain group

acceptance

Comparative reference groups are groups that

individuals would like to join, or would like to avoid

joining

REFERENCE GROUPS Cont.

Normative reference groups espouse certain

outlooks or values; do not compare or strive to

compete with other groups

Comparative reference groups more likely to lead

to sense of relative deprivation – used as yardstick

for favorable or unfavorable comparisons

Permits study of deviance and criminality in middle

and upper classes

RELATIVE DEPRIVATION—PERCEPTIONS ARE

IMPORTANT

BACK TO DURKHEIM

Even comparatively wealthy people always want

more

Constant raising of minimum expectations

INSTITUTIONAL ANOMIE THEORY

Messner and Rosenfeld (1994), Crime and the

American Dream (Read before doing tutorial quiz)

Basic features of social organization are culture

and social structure

Culture = shared beliefs, norms, goals (e.g., equal

opportunity, individual freedom, etc)

Social structure = roles and social positions

Culture and social structure are united by social

institutions (most organized societies have

economic, religious, education institutions)

INSTITUTIONAL ANOMIE

Unregulated goals and means (deregulated

capitalist economy) without moral regulation (e.g.,

the CJS, political oversight)

Pursuit of monetary goals at all costs; ends justify

the means

Devaluation of institutional balance of power (e.g.,

between economic institutions and political,

educational family and religious institutions)

Leads to corporate crime, white collar crime,

employee theft, etc

PRESCIENCE

ANOTHER SPLENDID EXAMPLE