Merton's Strain Theory

Question 1

Strain theorists’ argument for crime

Answer 1

People engage in deviance when they cannot achieve certain goals through legal means

Question 2

Structural and cultural factors are:

Answer 2

• Society’s unequal opportunity structure

- The strong emphasis on success goals and the weaker emphasis on using legitimate means to achieve them

Question 3

What did Merton say was the cause of crime

Answer 3

A strain between the goals a culture encourages individuals to achieve, and what the institutional structure of society allows them to achieve legitimately

Question 4

The American dream

Answer 4

Society is meritocratic and anyone can be successful through hard-work. Many disadvantages groups (poverty, inadequate schools, discrimination of certain ethnic groups) are denied the opportunity to achieve legitimately, creating pressure to commit illegitimate means (crime and deviance)

Question 5

Conformity

Answer 5

Individuals accept the culturally approved goals and strive to achieve them legitimately. Most likely among middle-class individuals who have good opportunities to achieve, but Merton sees it as the typical response of most Americans

Question 6

Innovation

Answer 6

Accept the goals of money success but use new, legitimate means (e.g theft, fraud) to achieve them. Those in the lower end of class structure are greatly pressured to innovate

Question 7

Ritualism

Answer 7

Given up on trying to achieve the goals, but have internalised the legitimate means and follow the rules. Typical of lower-middle office workers in dead-end, routine jobs

Question 8

Retreatism

Answer 8

Rejection of goals and legitimate means, becoming dropouts. Merton refers to ‘psychotics, outcasts, vagrants, tramps, chronic drunkards, etc’ as examples

Question 9

Rebellion

Answer 9

Reject existing society’s goals and means, but replace them with new ones in a desire to bring about revolutionary change and create a new society. Include political radicals and counter-cultures (e.g hippies)

Question 10

Evaluation of Merton (+)

Answer 10

Explains the patterns of how normal and deviant behaviour can arise from mainstream goals, shown from official statistics:

• Most crime is property (American society values material wealth)
• WC crime is higher because of lesser opportunities to obtain wealth legitimately

Question 11

Evaluation of Merton (-)

Answer 11

• Takes official crime statistics in, which overrepresent WC crime
• Marxists argue that it ignores the power of the bourgeoise to make and enforce the laws that criminalise the poor and not the rich
• Assumes there’s a value consensus and ignores the possibility that many may not share the same, shared goal for success
• Explains how deviance results from individuals adapting to the strain to anomie but ignores the role of group deviance e.g delinquent groups