Functionalism Flashcards
Durkheim
Durkheim argued that crime occurs when there is anomie (a lack of value consensus and ‘normlessness’. Crime increased since industrialisation since there has been a breakdown in traditional values e.g. religion and the importance of family. He also argued that crime occurs because it serves a purpose in society. 4 functions - Enables social change, boundary maintenance, social cohesion, early warning device. Safety valve - Davis, prostitution allowed men to release sexual frustrations.
Evaluation of Durkheim: Positive
Functionalism is useful because it highlights the hidden functions of crime.
Evaluation of Durkheim: Negative
Functionalism focuses on the functions of crimes for wider society as a whole but ignores the impact on individuals with crimes such as murder or rape having no benefit for the individual.
Crime as a response to strain: Merton
Everyone has shared goals. People respond to the strain between the goals: Conformists etc.
Evaluation of Merton: Positive
Merton’s work shows the capitalist social structure as the cause of crime as a result of the cultural emphasis on material success.
Evaluation of Merton: Negative
However, Box claims that Merton fails to acknowledge that the powerful benefit from the capitalist system and, in particular, the laws that underpin it.
Cohen
Lower class working boys wants success but cannot achieve their goals because of cultural deprivation leads to educational failure and dead-end jobs. They suffer from status frustration and turn to delinquency to gain an alternative status within their peer group.
Evaluation of Cohen: Positive
Cohen explains crime that involves no monetary reward because their delinquent activities are about gaining the status they want, not money.
Evaluation of Cohen: Negative
Box believes that Cohen was wrong to assume that these w/c delinquent boys had originally accepted the mainstream values.
Cloward and Ohlin
They criticise Cohen for not explaining the diversity of responses found among w/c youth who find the approved means for achieving society’s goals to be blocked. They believe that a person’s reaction to strain will depend on the social environment in which they grow up. Criminal subculture, conflict subculture and retreatist subculture.
Evaluation of Cloward and Ohlin: Positive
They explain w/c deviance which is not just concerned with material/monetary gain.
Evaluation of Cloward and Ohlin: Negative
Ignores the overlap between their different types of subcultures.
Miller - Focal concerns
Commit crime due to focal concerns, he does not believe in value consensus.
Evaluation of Miller: Positive
Murray would support Miller’s ideas, arguing there is a distinct underclass whose values encourage deviant and criminal behaviour.
Evaluation of Miller: Negative
There is little evidence that these focal concerns are restricted to w/c males.
