Almost all of the work has been on variations in deviance. Like retreaters, rebels reject both existing societal goals and means, but unlike retreaters, rebels work at the macro level to replace those existing societal goals and means with new goals and means. The functionalist perspective on deviance boundless. Yet, despite the prominence of anomie theory in this field, durkheims theory of anomie and crime has not been carefully explicated and elaborated. Because its referents are so diverse including everything from minor working hypotheses, through. K merton, theories of the middle range, clarifying functional analysis, dysfunctions, manifest and latent functions, functional alternatives, mertons theory of deviance and sociology of science. Merton s 1938 classic strain theory and its revisions of cohen 1955 and cloward and ohlin 1960. Merton, in this book, also introduced the notion of theories of the middlerange to sociology. It is of some interest also that, with respect to both substantive theory and its applications, there has been little followup of mertons own leads relative to the implications of anomie theory for intersocietal differences in deviant behavior.
Indeed,his work was pivotal to the emergence of some of these as subfields. In his theory, merton links anomie with deviance and argues that the discontinuity between culture and structure have the dysfunctional consequence of leading to deviance within society. Robert merton 19102003 argued that society may be set up in a way that encourages too much deviance. Learn more about robert mertons strain theory and test your knowledge with a quiz. Theories of deviance and social control chapter summary. Sociological theories of deviance are those that use social context and social pressures to explain deviance. Merton discussed deviance in terms of goals and means as part of his strainanomie theory. P r e s e n t i n gg s ta s another revision at the social psychological level, agnew.
My goal is to examine the grounds on which labelling theory calls itself critical. Merton 19102003 is dated from the perspective of the contemporary pragmatism prevailing in todays academic philosophy of science. Crime and deviance, page 1 crime and deviance introduction crime and deviance is a major topic in sociology but one that many students find difficult. In the 1930s robert k merton wrote an article entitled social structure and anomie.
Richard karp stephen smale recovery from herpes simplex encephalitis. Look at table 2 below to see robert mertons typology of deviance matrix. Merton s theory of anomie is a borrowing but essentially different from that of durkheim. Theories of crime and deviance boundless sociology. Merton sees deviance as the inconsistency of what the society defines as success and the appropriate ways the societal culture deems appropriate to achieve that success. How important and relevant are mertons strain theory and beckers labelling theory in our understanding of deviance. Although merton himself recognized that positive innovations can occur under. Mertons theory on deviance stems from his 1938 analysis of the relationship. He created an american style of sociological inquiry theories of the middle range that linked theories closely with. Our values, beliefs, goals, and identities are developed in the cultural realm. Pdf over the period of three quarters of a century, robert k. The leading theorists in the anomie and strain theory are emile durkheim and robert k. They explain the origins of deviance in terms of the position of individuals or groups in the social structure. In the 1960s, robert merton used the term to describe the.
Deviance is any behavior that violates social norms, and is usually of sufficient severity to warrant disapproval from the majority of society. This is in part because of the fragmentation and diversity of the different. The paper concludes that, ambiguities notwithstanding, for purposes of theoretical integration and substantive insight, strain theory remains an important sociological perspective on deviance, especially when set in the context of merton s broader sociological legacy. Using the sociological perspective, sociologists who study deviance analyze how and why behavior is defined as deviant, as well as social factors that shape conforming and nonconforming behaviors. Apr 16, 2016 the continuing relevance of strain theory. Why, for example, in spite of free and accessible education and free health care, were working class children still failing at school and working class people still. Merton was known until his teenage years as meyer r. According to social control theory, deviance occurs when a persons or groups attachment to social bonds is weakened. Most of the time people internalize social norms because of their attachments to others. Hirschi travis hirschi developed social control theory to explain the occurrence of deviance.
Social theory and social structure robert king merton. Mertons strain theory is an important contribution to the study of crime and deviance in the 1940s it helped to explain why crime continued to exist in countries, such as america, which were experiencing increasing economic growth and wealth. In the late 1930s, he went on to create his strain theory. Merton s strain theory is an important contribution to the study of crime and deviance in the 1940s it helped to explain why crime continued to exist in countries, such as america, which were experiencing increasing economic growth and wealth.
Mertons anomie theory has provided for the development of other theories such as bond control by hirschi, differential opportunity theory by cloward and ohlins and many others that drew on mertons concepts of anomie in their field of work. Merton typology of deviance was based on two criteria. Cole writes that merton s theory specified how a certain type of society and location within that society generates motivation to commit deviant behavior and notes that artomie theory was probably the dominant theory in the area of deviance through the late 1960s. In the course of his simultaneously theoretical and empirical analyses, merton coined such nowcommon phrases as selffulfilling prophecy and role model. But what is the difference in conformity, crime, deviance, and both deviance and crime combined. Read about social thinkers and thinkers of sociology. It focuses on the individual and his or her immediate social environmentalthough the macroimplications of the theory are explored at various points.
In this essay i will analyse the importance and relevance of a structional functionalist view of deviance seen through the lens of strain theory and a symbolic interactionalist perspective through the use of labelling theory. Sociological theories of deviance anomie theory anomie refers to the confusion that arises when social norms conflict or dont even exist. Merton strain theory for merton deviance is the result of a strain between the goals that a culture encourages and how the structure of society allows them to achieve these things legitimately merton argued that in the usa the pursuit of the american dream leads to deviant and criminal behaviour. As french sociologist, durkheim believed that crime has functional or positive consequences, such as fostering flexibility reid, 2012, p. Today, americans consider such activities as alcoholism, excessive gambling. The theory is written at the socialpsychological level. According to merton, there are five types of deviance based upon these criteria.
Merton harvard university t here persists a notable tendency in sociological theory to attribute the malfunctioning of social structure primarily to those of mans imperious biological drives which are not adequately restrained by social control. Merton s strain theory of deviance revisesociology. However, since that time, cole says that the fieid of deviance. Where durkheim states that anomie is the confounding of social norms, merton goes further and states that anomie is the state in which social goals and the legitimate means to achieve them do not correspond. Merton s functional explanation for why some groups turn to deviantcriminal behavior while others do not. The functionalist perspective on deviance boundless sociology. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Merton was proposing a typology of deviance based upon two criteria.
Pdf robert merton presented two, not always clearly differentiated theories in his seminal explorations on the socialstructureandanomie. In his discussion of deviance merton proposed a typology of deviant behavior that illustrated the possible discrepancies between culturally defined goals and the institutionalized means available to achieve these goals. Using the sociological perspective, sociologists who study deviance analyze how and why behavior is defined as deviant, as well as social factors. We use our typology to expand mertons anomie theory of deviance. The only other changes are technical and minor ones. Mertons theory of latent and manifest functions and dysfunction has taken a central role in understanding deviance in society. Specifically, the extent and kind of deviance depend on whether a society provides the means such as schooling and job opportunities to achieve cultural goals.
Merton uses a typology which explains our behaviors through our desire to. But merton is still ahead of his time relative to todays academic sociologists, who construe sociology as social psychology. However, merton never claimed that his typology was a total theory of deviance and many of the criticisms of his work were picked up on and improvements attempted by subcultural theorists. The sociological perspective is a theoretical viewpoint that sociologists attempt to use in order to analyze societies neutrally. Mertons functional explanation for why some groups turn to deviantcriminal behavior while others do not. Some deviance may be necessary for a society, but too much deviance results from particular social arrangements. Although the idea has been, and still is controversial, the suggestion that sociologists develop middlerange theories which come between grand theories and more narrow empirical observations struck a chord with some. Learn more about robert merton s strain theory and test your knowledge with a quiz. This was just one of his theories which gained prominence amongst social science circles and beyond.
Free strain theory essays and papers free essays, term. Merton like so many words that are bandied about, the word theory threatens to become meaningless. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license. According to reid 2012, durkheim was born in 1858 and later died in 1919 p. Structural theories of deviance are similar to mertons theory. In sum, deviance is a violation of a norm, simply not behaving in expected ways given the social circumstances. Merton is theory of deviance mertons theory of latent and manifest functions and dysfunction has taken a central role in understanding deviance in society. They discuss the labeling theory and the impact of. Cole writes that mertons theory specified how a certain type of society and location within that society generates motivation to commit deviant behavior and notes that artomie theory was probably the dominant theory in the area of deviance through the late 1960s. Strain theory how social values produce deviance social. Robert mertons contributions to the sociology of deviance. Merton asserted that societies are composed of two core aspects. Mertons theory of anomie is a borrowing but essentially different from that of durkheim. For me, he was a model teacher and mentor, a trusted colleague, and a close friend.
For example, when a society places cultural value on economic success and wealth, but only provides legally sanctioned means for a small portion of the population to achieve these goals, those excluded. Merton developed strain theory, a concept connected to both the functionalist perspective on deviance and emile durkheims theory of anomie. However, merton never claimed that his typology was a total theory of deviance and many of the criticisms of his work were picked up on and. An analysis of the opportunities for deviant activity is required. In the 1960s, robert merton used the term to describe the differences between socially accepted goals and the availability of means to. Mertons strain theory in the secondary literature has unnecessarily restricted the power and effectiveness of mertons anomie theory. Merton in his theory of deviance, develops different types of individuals or groups who encompass deviant or nondeviant behavior. Robert king merton was an american sociologist who is considered a founding father of. A typology is a classification scheme designed to facilitate understanding. Where durkheim states that anomie is the confounding of social norms, merton goes further and states that anomie is the state in which social goals and the legitimate means to. Second, he presents a strain theory of deviant behavior that holds. Because its referents are so diverse including everything from minor working hypotheses, through comprehensive but vague and unordered speculations. The sociological discipline that deals with crime behavior that violates laws is criminology also known as criminal justice.
He also contributed to the sociology of knowledge, organization theory, deviant behavior, mass. Robert merton was a functionalist who studied why people conform or deviate see merton, robert k. Sociological theories of deviance social sci libretexts. Strain theory states that social structures within society may pressure citizens to commit crimes. The revised edition of 1957 remains intact except that its short introduction has been greatly expanded to appear here as chapters i and ii. Conformity lies in pursuing cultural goals through approved means. Using an integrated typology of deviance to expand mertons. Chapter 7 deviance, crime, and social control quiz. This new printing is not a newly revised edition, only an enlarged one. Not everyone has equal access to criminal subcultures. On sociological theories of the middle range 1949 robert k.
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