Robert K. Merton “Strain Theory”
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Robert K. Merton
“Strain Theory”
Individual Level
Gap between economic aspirations (which all are encouraged to pursue) and structural reality (limited opportunity)
Policy Implications?
Increase opportunity
for lower class youth
“Mobilization for Youth” Program
MERTON II
Culture
THE “American Dream” mentality
Social Structure
Unequal distribution of means for achieving the “American Dream”
Problems?
Preoccupied with Lower Class
Addresses only “Economic Crimes”
Everyone focused on the MICRO level theory
Messner and Rosenfeld (1995)
CRIME
AND THE AMERICAN DREAM
“The Road not Taken”
Focus on Anomie at Macro level
Why is U.S. so crime-prone?
Culture = American Dream
Social Structure = more than $
The Culture: Elements of the “American Dream”
Achievement
Individualism
Universalism
The “fetishism” of money
These elements encourage “Anomic conditions”
THE AMERICAN DREAM PRODUCES ANOMIE
MERTON: Pursuit of financial success is “limited only by considerations of technical expediency.”
Lombardi: Winning isn’t everything, it’s the
only thing
.
Social
Structure
More
than Distribution of Wealth
Social institutions as the building blocks of society (make up social structure).
Functions?
Allow us to adapt to the environment
Mobilize and deploy resources to achieve collective goals
Socialize members to accept society’s normative patterns
Institutions in U.S.?
The Economy
The Polity
The Family
Education
Key Issue for M & R
These institutions sometimes have conflicting goals and values.
All societies can therefore be characterized by their distinctive
arrangements of institutions
The U.S.? Economy Dominates: we are a “
MARKET SOCIETY
”
The “
Market Society
” as a play on words
A capitalist economy is referred to as a free market or “market”
economy
.
The term “market
society”
suggests that the
entire society
is dominated by the free market economy.
Indicators of “Economic Dominance” or a “Market Society”
Devaluation
of non-economic institutional functions and roles
Accommodation
to economic requirements by other social institutions
Penetration
of economic norms
into other social domains
Implications of Economic Dominance
Weak institutional controls
Family and School are handicapped in efforts to promote allegiance to social rules
Single parent families
Poorly
funded schools
“Weak institutions invite challenge”
Culture, Social Structure, and Crime Rates
Empirical Validity of IA theory
New theory--only 2 good tests thus far
Both
support IA
, but have limitations
Chamlin and Cochran
State level variations in non-economic institutions modify the effect of poverty on economic crimes
Messner and Roesnfeld
The “decommodification index” across countries
predicts homicide rates
Policy Implications of IA
The two main causes of crime are:
American Dream ethos (cultural)
Economic Dominance of other institutions (structural)
Change “money fetish?”
Time for America to “grow up”
Push culture towards valuing “spousing, parenting”
Strengthen non-economic institutions?
Family, School...
EXAM I “IMPENDING DOOM”
Concern = few assignments thus far
Format = “Short Answer Essay”
More than: Describe Merton’s theory
For Each Theory
Central Concepts (and how they relate)
Empirical status (and how you might measure concepts)
Criticisms
Policy Implications
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