Crime and Inequality Flashcards
Merton’s Theory of Strain
After depression in the US – crimes rates high and higher rates in poorer social groups.
Link between culture and social structure vs aspirations and realities.
he looked at official data and as America got wealthier, crime rates increased particularly among those less well off.
Meritocracy society - (anyone can make it if they try hard enough) Despite working hard, people still couldn’t achieve.
Not everyone can reach the goals as not everyone has the same opportunities.
This creates frustration and encourages those to commit crimes as a way of coping.
Innovation – same goals but give up on conventional ways and do it illegally.
Importance of culturally accepted goals vs means.
Culturally accepted goals:
• Accumulation of wealth
• Society is telling us we want material possessions.
• Cultural value of money
Culturally accepted means:
• Hard work, honesty, deferred gratification, education
• To get as rich as possible it’s not culturally good
enough to win the lottery or rob a bank.
• Get the goods by working hard.
Not everyone has equal access to means
• Limited access to education etc.
• If cultural values become unbalanced and wealth
becomes more important than hard work…and people
can’t achieve it results in strain (or ‘strain to anomie’).
Why does Strain arise?
A culture in a society places a disproportionate emphasis on goals (of wealth) over means (hard work)
• Maintains the goals are available equally to all
• BUT the social structure limits opportunities to achieve the goals through conventional means (hard work)
Contradiction between cultural goals and social structure = ‘Strain’ or ‘anomie’
Capitalism - Shows how social, cultural and economic circumstances can create pressures that encourage crime.
Strain Critique
Struggles to deal with women and why they do not commit crime.
Doesn’t explain the arson and aggression in the London rights, only deals with monetary success. (Robert Agnew - strain access to any goal even beyond economic success - treated with respect, gangs are an unconventional way of dealing with strain.)
Merton cannot explain why some don’t revert to crime – Agnew sets out reasons
- some have poor coping skills, lack of control, some have better resources, past experiences can lead to a cumulative effect.
Merton uninterested in upper-class crime and white-collar crime. At time of riots – exposure of expenses scandal, austerity measures - Agnew states crimes can be committed across all classes & for working classes it can increases the sense of injustice and anger which impacts people.
Case Study: English Riots 2011
Overview
Response from Gov
Austerity measures
Link to Strain
Mark Dougan shot by police leading to mass demonstrations and was seen as a major trigger for the spread of riots.
- Spread in form of looting.
- David Cameron’s response was that riots were out of
choice.
- Inequality was seen as a large factor which was at the same as Austerity, where the public mood was worried and anger.
Of the adults prosecuted:
• 35% claiming out of work benefits (national average <12%)
• Two thirds from 20% most deprived areas in the UK.
• Education – 2/3 special educational needs
• ½ at expected level for math’s and English
• 11% with 5 GCSE’s
The goods that were looted were consumer goods – not about money or survival. Consumerism meant that meant many were cut off from the mainstream/society as they could not afford material items. Cut off from dominant values of society especially those relating to wealth and status.
Subculture Theory - Cloward and Ohlin (1960)
Applied Merton’s theory but link it with gangs. Sometime juveniles will cope with strain through forming or joining gangs or delinquent groups. Create their alternative status system in which they can achieve.
Subculture theories builds on strain theory and while crime is at the core so are delinquent gangs.
What is a sub-culture?
What is a subculture
• Sub-groups which are counterculture and different to the mainstream.
• A collective way of doing things but which have shared values.
• Common values - talking, clothing, acting
Albert Cohen - Delinquent Behaviour
Secretly aspiring to be successful
- gangs are working class and male
- Concentrated in urban slums
Not aspiring to wealth and status but to middle class values. School was dominated by particular ideal of behaviour dominated by middle class standards. The feelings depend on how you are judged by others.
Understanding of how they respond
Withdraw from the game
Set up their own rules where they can succeed within the gang,
But not actually that simple.
Creates a tension and that they don’t care but internally they do care
They try to resolve the tension through reaction formation Takes the form of a display of disproportionate hostility to middle class values. May account for the London riots.
Cloward and Ohlin
Boys aspire to be financially successful but have no legitimate opportunities to get there, so solution is to form a subculture to get rich illegally. Not everyone can be a successful offender.
Criminal Subcultures: Financial gain
- recruit young members, highly organised structure. Similar to East London.
- need to know people and close proximity to gang. Formation of new gang if cannot gain access
- Conflict subcultures - Violence
- not everyone is violent - Retreatism subcultures - Drugs
David Downes - Delinquent solution
- Not about trying to be wealthiest as possible and have middle class values
- Instead, boys are happy with being lower-working classes.
- Differences in clothes, languages are celebration of their working-class life however the problem is they are failing with school and they can’t see a prospect of progress.
Their response is not about trying to get rich but invest in other things to try and have fun. Prioritise subterranean values. Leisure activities - don’t have opportunity if no money so crime is available, free and fun!
Critiques
Subcultural theories are only interested in men.
a. Cloward - girls don’t need to form gangs and for men they have to be successful in our culture.
b. Mainstream culture secretly glamorises machoism and aggression
c. Society doesn’t expect girls to be successful and therefore they have no problem of adjustment like boys having to match up to society’s values.
= Very SEXIST and simplifies gender role models, ambition, family life.
- Drift - Matza 1964
• A very static idea of gangs and their ideals are different from those which aren’t in gangs and they have no sense of life outside of gangs.
• How can they be part of delinquent gangs but also connected to mainstream society?
A- they don’t have different set of values from mainstream society
B- instead at moments they ‘drift’ away from dominant values so they are not only aware but believe in the delinquent values.
