Deviant adaptations to strain Flashcards
Overview
Merton uses strain theory to explain some of the patterns of deviance found in society. Unlike later theorists, Merton was not a sub-cultural theorist. This is a point of difference between him & Cohen: Merton focused on individual rather than group responses to strain.
Merton argued that an individual’s position in the social structure affects the way they adapt or respond to the strain of anomie. There are five different types of adaptation, depending on whether an individual accepts, rejects or replaces approved cultural goals & the legitimate means of achieving them.
Conformity
Individuals accept the culturally approved goals & strive
to achieve them legitimately, despite the limited likelihood of success for
many in society. The middle-classes have better opportunities to
succeed but this adaptation was still typical of most people.
Innovation
Individuals accept the goal of money success but use
‘new’, illegitimate means such as theft or fraud to achieve it. This was
more common in lower social classes because they had less chance of
succeeding than higher classes due to blocked opportunities. Therefore,
those at the lower end of the class structure were under greatest
pressure to innovate.
Ritualism
Individuals who immerses themselves in the daily routine &
regulations of their job but has lost sight of the goal of material success.
E.g. Someone who works for the government who goes through the
motions of doing their job but has given up on trying to get promoted or
becoming rich & powerful. Typical of lower-middle class officer workers
in dead-end, routine jobs.
Retreatism
Individuals reject both the goals & the legitimate means
& become dropouts. Merton includes ‘psychotics, outcasts, vagrants,
tramps, chronic drunkards & drug addicts’ as examples.
Rebellion
Both socially approved goals & means are rejected, &
different ones substituted. Examples would include political activists,
religious fundamentalists or counter-cultures such as hippies, who have
decided society no longer works well & needs to be radically changed.
