Social Structure, Anomie, and Crime Test Bank Answers Ch.4

4

Social Structure, Anomie, and Crime

CHAPTER OUTLINE

4.1 Durkheim’s Sociology of Law and Crime

Durkheim (1858–1917) remains one of the most influential scholars in sociological criminology. Given the social context of his scholarly investigations—France transitioning out of a preindustrial society—Durkheim was deeply interested in understanding how social order is possible. Specifically, he wanted to investigate the preconditions of social order, social stability, and moral society. To fully appreciate those complexities, he found it necessary to examine the conditions that produce social disorder. Durkheim thus developed a systemic, sociological method within the framework of scientific positivism. In his search for lawlike regularities in the social world, he believed that generalizations could be made regarding individual variations in free will, psychological states, and motivation. His sociological method began with treating “social facts” as things that have an objective existence of their own independent from the individuals who experience them. Social facts are thus external to individuals. Social facts also regulate human behavior. For example, religion, birth, death, marriage, and law are all social facts that exert external authority over individuals. Figure 4.1 presents Durkheim’s two laws of social evolution.

Law and Social Solidarity

The Division of Labor in Society (1893) contains Durkheim’s most extensive analysis of law. Durkheim’s analysis of social order described a historical progression from “mechanical” to “organic” social solidarity. Mechanical solidarity categorizes simple societies that are limited in their social roles and division of labor. People in such societies share a “collective conscience” in which community life is the primary concern for all persons within the group, and in which there is a low sense of individualism. As societies evolved, according to Durkheim, division of labor became more complex, and the overriding concern for collective cohesion eroded. Concerns over individualism emerged as more important, thus developing an organic “social solidarity.” Organic solidarity is typical of societies that are complex in their division of labor and have a high degree of individualism. These concepts, however, are not easily quantifiable and measurable; therefore, one must study the law as an external symbol of social solidarity. Law differs from other forms of social control in that it exercises an organized pressure on individuals to conform through the use of sanctions. There are two types of sanctions that correspond to the two types of social solidarity: repressive and restitutive. Repressive law is typical in societies of mechanical solidarity, uses repressive sanctions, and is employed by the society as a whole rather than a specialized institution within society (such as the criminal justice system). Durkheim perceived social solidarity along a historical trajectory, and, with the decline of the collective conscience and the growth of individualism, repressive law was gradually replaced by restitutive law—law that coincides with organic solidarity and is a response to offenders who intend to restore the status quo. Restitutive law has two basic forms: positive law (cooperation required in a complex division of labor—includes contract, administrative, domestic, and commercial legislation) and negative law (rules between people and objects that prohibit others from interfering in certain proprietary rights of the owner—includes property and tort legislation).

The Nature of Crime

To investigate the nature of crime, Durkheim rejected the legalistic definition of crime and developed a sociological one. In The Division of Labor in Society Durkheim wrote: “An act is criminal when it offends the strong, well-defined states of the collective consciousness. . . . We should not say that an act offends the common consciousness because it is criminal, but that it is criminal because it offends that consciousness.” Therefore, to understand crime one must understand punishment, which he defined as “a reaction of passionate feeling, graduated in intensity, which society exerts through the mediation of an organized body over those of its members who have violated certain rules of conduct.” Punishment does not function as deterrence, retribution, or reform of the offender, but rather as a means to maintain and strengthen social solidarity. Punishing offenders is a means by which society demonstrates that the offense is taken seriously and that the offender has violated the social order. The target of punishment, therefore, is not the offender per se, but the “honest people” who are convinced that such action is warranted and that the offender is inferior due to his or her violation of the law. Durkheim believed that “punishment is above all intended to have its effect upon honest people.” From this he concluded that crime is normal, inevitable, and useful.

Crime is normal. Durkheim’s claim in The Rules of Sociological Method (1894) that crime is normal created outrage. However, for Durkheim crime is just as normal as other social facts—marriage, birth, death, and so on—“when it exists in the average society of its type.” As with other social facts, crime has a statistical average in every society; it is only deviations from the average that are considered abnormal. Therefore, crime should not be seen as a pathological or morbid phenomenon because the very generality of crime indicates its normality. Crime tends to increase as societies evolve from mechanical to organic solidarity.

Crime is inevitable. Even in a society of saints, “faults that appear venial to the ordinary person will arouse the same scandal as does normal crime in ordinary consciences.” Universal and absolute conformity is impossible; therefore, crime is inevitable.

Crime is useful. In The Rules, Durkheim claimed that crime is a “factor in every society, an integrative element in any healthy society.” It is necessary for the normal evolution of law and morality. A society without crime would eventually reach a point of repressive intensity and authoritarianism. Crime is a useful part of every healthy society, because it provides for changes in law and morality as they relate to individual creativity.

Anomie, Egoism, and Crime

Durkheim applied his sociological perspective to the analysis of suicide and homicide. Suicide, usually regarded as the ultimate act of individual deviance, must be seen within its sociological context. By applying the concepts of social solidarity, he identified four types of suicide: egoistic, altruistic, anomic, and individualized. Egoistic suicide occurs in societies where social bonds are weakened and excessive individualism exists. Social groups prone to egoistic suicides include Protestants (whose religious beliefs foster individualism), the unmarried, childless, and widowed. Altruistic suicide occurs in societies where the social bonds are very strong, to an extreme where the individual has little personal strength to resist the bonds of society. Examples include Hindu widows who place themselves next to their husbands on their funeral pyre. Anomic suicide occurs when there is a sudden disruption in the social bonds, such as sudden poverty or wealth, divorce, or the death of a loved one. Individualized suicide occurs when a person suffers from extreme melancholy, passion, and irritation, even when these characteristics have social causes.

Durkheim argued that homicide was the most serious breach of primitive society. However, rates of homicide decline as societies advance toward organic solidarity. “Civilized” people show respect for life, property, and the honor of others. Thus homicide remained forbidden – but as a violation of the individual (the “cult of the individual”) rather than the society. Durkheim relied on evidence from Catholic and Protestant communities to support this argument: Catholic communities have less individualism and higher homicide rates than their Protestant counterparts (because individualistic beliefs lead to increased respect for life). He also showed statistical evidence related to rural-urban homicide difference.

The Evolution of Punishment

Durkheim also evaluated how systems of punishment change in qualitative and quantitative ways across time. In “Two Laws of Penal Evolution,” Durkheim (1905) argued that as societies advance from mechanical to organic solidarity, systems of punishment shift from brutal physical punishment to incarceration. In less developed societies crime is a threat to the moral order of collective life, and thus receives severe punishment. As a society shifts from collective consciousness to a higher degree of individualism, crimes are no longer perceived as offenses against the community so much as they are offenses against the individual. Laws thus progress from repressive to restitutive, and therefore punishment shifts from brutal to restorative. Durkheim also made an argument about the origin of incarceration, which emerged alongside changing forms of crime: as societies evolve the death penalty disappears and is replaced by incarceration.

Evaluation of Durkheim

Durkheim’s theories remain important and influential within modern criminology. His insistence that crime be explained sociologically revolutionized the discipline. His influence is most apparent in the work of the Chicago School (Chapter 5.1), Travis Hirschi (Chapter 6.3), and Robert Merton. Three questions emerge when considering Durkheim’s perspective on criminology. First, was his historical analysis accurate? Some historical evidence contradicts Durkheim, and indicates that restitutive law is seen in “simple” societies. Second, have homicide rates declined with modernization? Many researchers disagree on the results; some find the rates have declined with modernization, whereas others find an increase. And finally, how did his own intellectual and political biases influence his theories? His preoccupation with social order led him to place less emphasis on social conflict. He assumed, evidently, that widely held social values exist and that most people agree that crime represents a breach of these commonly held values.

4.2 Social Structure, Anomie, and Deviance

It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of Merton’s (1938) article. Merton’s sociological analysis of deviant behavior began with a revised understanding of anomie. For Durkheim, anomie was a temporary individual condition of unregulated desires that arose during turmoil or sudden change in one’s status. For Merton, anomie was a chronic social condition experienced by those who experienced a misalignment of socially approved goals and the acceptable means to achieve those goals. Merton theorized that deviance is a consequence of this specific form of social disorganization—the lack of fit between culturally prescribed aspirations and socially structured avenues for accomplishing them. Goals are “those things worth striving for,” which are regulated by institutionalized means of reaching those goals. A stable society has a balance between the goals and the means. Poorly integrated and unstable societies are those that stress the goals without providing access to the means, or vice versa. In some societies institutionalized means are not integrated with social values. Sport provides an example: stress on the goal at the expense of the means leads to acts that violate rules.

The lack of fit has three components: (1) means are often elevated to ends, and sometimes the goals are out of reach; (2) many people not only fail to succeed but tend to endure penalties for such failure; and (3) cultural fictions, such as “anyone can make it in America,” contribute to a sense that failure is a result of individuals who do not work hard enough, rather than a structural reality for many people. Merton believed that the United States puts heavy emphasis on goals but insufficient emphasis on legitimate means. According to this analysis we live in a society that is egalitarian in its ideology but unequal in the available means to success. Therefore, American society is badly integrated; its social and cultural structures produce strain and tension.

Merton’s Typology of Modes of Individual Adaptation

Merton identified five types or modes of adaptation to the strains and tensions of social life in the United States based on position in the class structure (see Table 4.1). Conformity, the most common mode, refers to those who accept the goals and legitimate means for success. Innovation refers to those who use illegitimate means to achieve socially acceptable goals. Some innovators are improperly socialized (otherwise they would be conformists). Ritualism refers to those who reject the goals of success, yet accept the means; they “go through the motions” of everyday life without much passion or desire for more. Retreatism refers to those who have rejected the goals and the means. They are “in the society but not of it,” typically involved in escapist behaviors such as alcoholism and drug addiction. Vagrants, psychotics, and tramps also illustrate retreatism as a private and isolated – rather than public – response to anomie. Rebellion involves alienation from legitimate means and values. Unlike the other adaptations, those engaged in rebellion must identify with a large-scale source of frustration that is directed at the foundations of society.

Evaluation of Merton

Merton’s analysis is a brilliant polemic against individualistic analyses of crime that rely on defective personalities or biology. His analysis of the societal roots of deviant behavior is a critique of U.S. inequality, and his work remains one of the mot powerful sociological explanations of deviance and crime. Three criticisms must be kept in mind, however. First, he relies on unstated and unproven assumptions, especially on a “shared” sense of middle-class values. Second, he makes no indication of the structural causes of the strain on individuals. And finally, his conclusion that nonconformity is predominantly a lower-class response is either tentative or wrong, especially when we keep in mind the realities of white-collar crimes. Moreover, Merton does not explain why most people are law-abiding.

4.3 Revised Strain Theory

Building from Merton’s strain theory, contemporary theorists have developed revisions in the concepts of strain as it relates to criminal behavior on both an individual and structural level. Agnew outlines his “general strain theory” as it relates to animal abuse, and Messner and Rosenfeld outline their “institutional anomie theory” as it relates to structural sources of crime.

Agnew’s General Strain Theory

Agnew extends strain theory to include “relationships in which others present the individual with noxious or negative stimuli,” such as in those relationships where one of the individuals is not treated as he or she expects or desires to be treated. Agnew describes three sources of strain: failure to achieve positively valued goals, the removal of positively valued stimuli from the individual (e.g., loss of a significant relationship), and the presentation of negative stimuli (e.g., victimization, abuse, or neglect). Applying this theory to the abuse of animals, Agnew argues that when people experience strain due to their companion animals’ behavior (e.g., biting and chewing or destroying possessions) they will engage in violence against those pets. Some violence against animals is socially acceptable, such as swatting mosquitoes or killing the coyotes that threaten farm animals. The theory still applies, however, because these pests (mosquitoes and coyotes, and so on) present a strain to people when they are trying to accomplish other things. Agnew considers two other aspects in his analysis of stress and animal abuse, and how they bear on his theory: (1) strain sometimes reduces the likelihood of animal abuse, and (2) there is a relevance of many other factors, both sociological and psychological. See Figure 4.2 in the text for a social psychological model of animal abuse.

Evaluation of General Strain Theory

Some empirical evidence supports Agnew’s general strain theory, and seems based on the commonsense notion—which Agnew has stated—that if humans are treated badly by others they are more likely to treat others badly and engage in crime. Few criminologists would disagree. Still, some key propositions need refinement, and it is not clear how the theory might apply to racial inequality or white-collar crime. Recent work by Ngo and Paternoster uses NCVS data to show how strain is gendered; women stalking victims are more likely to experience fear rather than anger. Agnew (2013) emphasizes that is widely accepted that a range of strains increases the probability of crime. However, it is difficult to explain why some cope with strain legitimately while others use illegitimate means.

Messner and Rosenfeld’s Institutional Anomie Theory

Messner and Rosenfeld extend Merton’s theory to a broader structural analysis in their institutional anomie theory. In Crime and the American Dream (2007), Messner and Rosenfeld describe the American Dream as laden with notions of wealth and material success—indicated by the ownership of a home, a car, and obtaining a good college education. This desire for materialistic success is deeply associated with a cultural fetish for money. The dominance of this economic realm occurs in three interrelated ways. First, noneconomic institutional functions and roles are devalued. Education is not achieved for the pure joy of learning, but rather as a means to a “financial” end. Second, other institutions are forced to accommodate to economic requirements. And finally, economic norms penetrate most other institutional areas. Because capitalistic economic values devalue prosocial noneconomic institutions, the culture and the institutional structure of the United States are directly linked to high levels of predatory crime, white-collar and corporate crime, and an inclination to own guns. Figure 4.3 is a model of the links between macrosociological organization and crime.

Evaluation of Institutional Anomie Theory

Similar to Durkheim’s analysis of individualism, Messner and Rosenfeld express concern over the rise of egoism; the decline of community; and the loss of faith in certain social institutions, such as the family and the school. Social change—both institutional and cultural—should encourage a shift away from the current materialistic culture and individualism, toward a more equitable social structure and concern for collective obligations. However, institutional anomie theory needs to address the source(s) of economic dominance of other institutions. Barak’s (2013) Theft of a Nation documents “dysfunctional consequences” produced by the declining ability of political institutions to regulate economic processes.

CLASS EXERCISES FOR CHAPTER 4

1. Split students into pairs. Have them review Merton’s modes of adaptation to anomic strain. Where would they place themselves in these categories? How does this exercise illuminate the strengths and weaknesses of Merton’s theory? Students should struggle with this; because they are rarely completely “conforming” or completely “innovating,” their responses often depend on specific circumstances. This might lead to a discussion of “drifting” into and out of different modes (foreshadowing Matza’s work as described in Chapter 5).

2. In small groups, have students construct a realistic scenario surrounding the sudden influx of 10,000 new immigrants into their community. Using the word “immigrant,” it will be interesting to see what images the students develop. Where are these immigrants from? Why are they here? What are they hoping to find? How will the city accommodate them? What will the community likely experience as a result of this influx of immigrants? Ask students to be as specific as possible. How does this reflect back on the ecological approach? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this approach?

3. Starting from explication of Merton’s typology have students discuss which of the adaptations might be most threatening to U.S. society. Although some will initially identify “innovation,” other students will most likely point out that innovators are not necessarily a threat given that they affirm one of our society’s core values. This insight is a useful transition point for discussions of normative cohesion, the positive functions of deviance, or both. Following up the discussion with just about any episode of The Sopranos reinforces the normality of crime.

TEST BANK FOR CHAPTER 4

Multiple-Choice Questions

1. According to Durkheim we should consider social facts as

a. things.

b. external to individuals.

c. coercive.

d. all of the above.

2. Which of the following is an example of altruistic suicide according to Durkheim?

a. Childless women

b. Lottery winners

c. Hindu wives

d. Elderly men

3. Regarding homicide, Durkheim theorized that with evolution from mechanical to organic solidarity, homicide would

a. increase.

b. decrease.

c. stay the same.

d. become an epidemic.

4. Durkheim demonstrated that societies with greater levels of __________ have lower homicide rates.

a. individualism

b. collectivism

c. Catholicism

d. suicide

5. Durkheim’s analysis of society developed a sociological methodology based on what?

a. Theology

b. Psychoanalysis

c. Biological reduction

d. Positivism

6. What was the fundamental question that Durkheim was trying to answer?

a. How is social order possible?

b. What are the preconditions of an ordered, stable, and moral society?

c. What conditions produce social disorder?

d. All of the above

7. According to Durkheim, the first and most basic rule is to consider “social facts” as if they were

a. things.

b. moral virtues.

c. extraneous social forces.

d. crucial elements in the healthy development of individual egos.

8. According to Durkheim, social facts have external controls over individuals because they

a. are unchanging in time and space.

b. regulate how individuals act, think, and feel.

c. exist within a specific time and place.

d. exist within the individual.

9. According to __________, social phenomena have an objective existence of their own and exist quite independently of the individuals who experience them.

a. Agnew

b. Marx

c. Durkheim

d. Merton

10. Mechanical solidarity is defined as those societies that are

a. simple in the division of labor and have a high collective conscience.

b. complex in the division of labor and have a low collective conscience.

c. simple in the division of labor with a high degree of individualism.

d. complex in the division of labor with a low degree of individualism.

11. Organic solidarity is defined as those societies that are

a. simple in the division of labor and have a high collective conscience.

b. complex in the division of labor and have a low collective conscience.

c. simple in the division of labor with a high degree of individualism.

d. complex in the division of labor with a low degree of individualism.

12. According to Durkheim, repressive laws are more likely to be found within

a. organic solidarity.

b. positive law.

c. mechanical solidarity.

d. complex divisions of labor.

13. According to Durkheim, restitutive laws are more likely to be found within

a. organic solidarity.

b. positive law.

c. mechanical solidarity.

d. complex divisions of labor.

14. What is the aim of restitutive law according to Durkheim?

a. Punishment of individuals and infliction of pain

b. Reestablishment of the status quo and social relationships

c. Reinforcement of elite definitions of reality

d. Reinforcement of the existing class structure

15. Why did Durkheim reject the legalistic definition of crime?

a. Because it was too broad for his purposes.

b. Because it was absurd to think the lawmakers would understand crime better than he did.

c. Because he regarded it as inadequate for scientific sociology.

d. Because he regarded it as too individualistic.

16. Durkheim’s own definition of crime relied on the fact that

a. police routinely disregard offenses.

b. too many offenses go undetected; therefore, the legalistic definition is inadequate.

c. laws support the interests of elite members of society.

d. people are punished for their offenses.

17. To truly investigate crime, Durkheim believed it was necessary to understand

a. punishment.

b. criminal justice procedures.

c. lawmakers.

d. offenders’ pathologies.

18. The real targets of punishment, according to Durkheim, are

a. the offenders’ families.

b. law-abiding and honest people.

c. offenders.

d. children.

19. According to Durkheim, a sociological perspective understands crime as

a. useful.

b. inevitable.

c. normal.

d. all of the above.

20. According to Durkheim, crime is normal because

a. it is a social fact that exists in nearly all societies.

b. absolute and total conformity is never possible.

c. it contributes to a healthy society.

d. it illuminates social boundaries.

21. According to Durkheim, crime is inevitable because

a. it is a social fact.

b. even a society of saints will have some violations.

c. absolute and total conformity is always possible.

d. it illuminates social boundaries.

22. According to Durkheim, crime is useful because

a. it is a social fact.

b. absolute and total conformity is seldom possible.

c. even a society of saints will have some violations.

d. it contributes to the integration of society.

23. Variations in suicide rates can only be explained sociologically because suicide

a. rates vary with religious orientations.

b. rates fluctuate with the type and extent of social organization.

c. is the ultimate antisocial act.

d. injures the entire society, not just the individual.

24. A type of suicide that Durkheim identified is

a. anomic.

b. altruistic.

c. egoistic.

d. all of the above.

25. According to Durkheim’s typology, egoistic suicide results from

a. intensely strong social bonds.

b. a sudden disruption of social bonds.

c. weakened social bonds.

d. particular individual states.

26. According to Durkheim’s typology, altruistic suicide results from

a. intensely strong social bonds.

b. sudden disruption of social bonds.

c. weakened bonds between individual and society.

d. individual pathologies.

27. According to Durkheim’s typology, anomic suicide results from

a. inability to resist the demands of one’s social group.

b. a sudden crisis of economic or social life that leads to abrupt changes in expectations.

c. weakened social bonds.

d. individual pathologies.

28. According to Durkheim’s typology, individualistic suicide results from

a. inability to resist the demands of one’s social group.

b. a sudden disruption of social bonds.

c. weakened social bonds.

d. particular individual states.

29. If we follow the idea of “winning the game at all costs,” even overlooking the rules of the game, then the result is likely to be

a. one very unhappy loser.

b. hostility and frustration leading to rebellion.

c. a fair fight.

d. anomic strain.

30. According to Merton, the “lack of fit” between the goal and the means occurs

a. if the penalties for failure are severe.

b. when not all members of society have equal access to means.

c. when ideological beliefs such as the “American Dream” no longer integrate society.

d. all of the above.

31. In Merton’s model a stable society

a. has egalitarian ideology, but unequal routes to success.

b. emphasizes the goals more than the means.

c. emphasizes the means more than the goals.

d. has egalitarian ideology and makes routes to success available to all.

32. According to Merton, what are the modes of adaptation?

a. lumpenproletariat, working class, middle class, and capitalist class

b. conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion

c. conformity, middle class, and capitalist ideology

d. working class, innovation, and middle-class success

33. According to Merton, conformists

a. accept the means and the goals.

b. reject the means, but accept the goals.

c. accept the means, but reject the goals.

d. reject the means and the goals.

34. According to Merton, innovators

a. accept the means and the goals.

b. reject the means, but accept the goals.

c. accept the means, but reject the goals.

d. reject the means and the goals.

35. According to Merton, retreatists

a. accept the means and the goals.

b. reject the means, but accept the goals.

c. accept the means, but reject the goals.

d. reject the means and the goals.

36. According to Merton, ritualists

a. accept the means and the goals.

b. reject the means, but accept the goals.

c. accept the means, but reject the goals.

d. reject the means and the goals.

37. Merton’s theory was criticized because

a. he relied too heavily on official, socially constructed data to prove his theory.

b. it relies on the assumption that the culturally approved means and goals are widely accepted.

c. although most people accept the goals of success, many of them rely on alternatives for getting there.

d. he was too idealistic and did not really understand historical materialism.

38. Merton’s theory was criticized because

a. it indicated his passion for preserving the status quo.

b. he was a privileged white man at a highly prestigious university.

c. he presumed that most anomic strain would occur in the lower classes.

d. he presumed that most readers would just “know” what he was thinking.

39. Which twentieth-century U.S. criminologist most heavily influenced revised strain theories?

a. Sutherland

b. Merton

c. Hirschi

d. Marx

40. Agnew’s theory of a “general strain theory” identified three chief sources of strain. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

a. The failure to achieve positively valued goals.

b. The removal of positively valued stimuli from the individual.

c. The presentation of positively valued stimuli.

d. The presentation of negative stimuli.

41. In applying general strain theory to animal abuse, Agnew argued that strain

a. causes humans to develop animal tendencies.

b. causes simple animals to abuse other animals.

c. might lead to animals’ aggressive behavior.

d. might lead directly and indirectly to animal abuse.

42. According to Agnew’s research, nonhuman animals are sometimes the __________ and sometimes the __________ of violence.

a. target, tool

b. scapegoat, blame

c. perpetrator, victimizer

d. observer, silent witness

43. Agnew said—at the heart of his theory of general strain—that if we treat people

a. badly, they might get mad and become docile.

b. badly, they might get mad and engage in crime.

c. nicely, they will become docile.

d. badly, they will get even.

44. Messner and Rosenfeld’s macro-level strain theory views the American Dream as

a. a commitment to material success and collective well-being.

b. a commitment to material success but not at the expense of collective well-being.

c. a commitment to the goal of material success, to be pursued by everyone in society under conditions of open, individual competition.

d. none of the above.

45. According to Messner and Rosenfeld, modern U.S. society is incapable of delivering the American Dream to all citizens because of

a. a nightmare economy.

b. a cultural fetish for money.

c. a structural inequality eliminating opportunities for many.

d. both b and c.

46. An example of a devalued noneconomic institution functioning for economic ends is

a. the stock market.

b. the military.

c. the education system.

d. the United Nations.

47. According to Messner and Rosenfeld, high levels of crime in the United States result from

a. poor social solidarity.

b. social disorganization.

c. poverty.

d. a culture and social structure based on materialism.

48. From a perspective of institutional strain theory, solutions to crime include

a. reestablishment and strengthening of the American Dream.

b. cultural regeneration and radical reappraisal of the American Dream.

c. free education so that all can achieve the American Dream.

d. both a and c.

49. For Merton, anomie is a

a. chronic condition due to the strain of inaccessible means to social goals.

b. temporary condition due to the sudden change in one’s status.

c. temporary condition due to the strain of inaccessible means to social goals.

d. chronic condition due to the sudden change in one’s status.

50. According to Merton, the unavailability of means to achieve goals results in

a. social conflict between groups.

b. a poorly integrated, unstable, and stressed society.

c. healthy competition for scarce resources.

d. lower prices for commodities.

True or False Questions

1. _____ In Durkheim’s view most suicide has social causes.

2. _____ For Durkheim, mechanical solidarity is evident in complex societies with high degrees of individualism.

3. _____ Organic solidarity is characterized by a high degree of collective conscience and a low level of individualism.

4. _____ Repressive law is typically seen in societies that have organic solidarity.

5. _____ Restitutive law attempts to restore the status quo ante.

6. _____ Merton’s concept of anomie indicates that it is a temporary condition resulting from a sudden change in status.

7. _____ Merton’s typology of reactions to anomic strain include conformity, innovation, retreatism, ritualism, and rebellion.

8. _____ According to Merton’s theory, ritualists will accept the means but not the goals of success in society.

9. _____ A person who follows the means and ends of a society would be, according to Merton, a ritualist.

10. _____ Durkheim’s work has influenced a number of other theorists, including the Chicago School.

11. _____ Messner and Rosenfeld linked the American Dream to high rates of illegal gun ownership.

12. _____ Merton’s work was an attempt to refute Durkheim’s views of social order.

13. _____ From a sociological perspective, crime is normal.

14. _____ According to Durkheim, punishment reinforces social bonds.

15. _____ Sociological analysis should pay attention to social dynamics, but it should treat social facts as things in their own right.

16. _____ Agnew’s “revised strain” approach is deeply critical of Merton’s over-emphasis of social psychological rather than structural causes of crime.

17. _____ According to Agnew, animal abuse may a response to negative stimuli and/or the failure to achieve socially valued goals.

18. _____ According to Messner and Rosenfeld, Merton’s theory does not pay sufficient attention to the lop-sided import of the capitalist system in U.S. society.

19. _____ The “institutional anomie” approach suggests that the “American Dream” may actually be an “American Nightmare.”

Essay Questions

1. Durkheim’s and Merton’s analyses are often discussed together. Indeed, Merton identified himself as a functionalist and acknowledged his intellectual debt to Durkheim. Even so, their work differed in important ways. Demonstrate your understanding of the relationship between Merton and Durkheim by comparing and contrasting their level of analysis, approaches to anomie, and analyses of the cause of crime.

Required content:

1. Durkheim offered a macro sociological explanation, i.e., an argument about crime and deviance as related to the overall structure of society.
2. Merton’s analysis was a “middle range” theory, i.e., it was less abstract, focused more on individuals and their position in social structure.
3. Durkheim’s anomie was a crisis state that affected individuals.
4. Merton’s anomie was a chronic state intrinsic to some societies.
5. Durkheim analyzed crime and deviance as social facts; he did not necessarily specify a causal mechanism.
6. Merton’s analysis specified a causal mechanism for deviance and crime: the misalignment of socially approved goals and socially sanctioned means to achieve those goals.

Additional content:

1. Durkheim and Merton also show many similarities.
2. Both theorists link deviance and crime to a society’s social structure.
3. Both theorists drew attention to the importance of shared norms.
4. Both theorists noted that crime may have positive consequences for society.
5. Both theorists may be considered “functionalists” (albeit for slightly different reasons).

2. Although Durkheim’s work reflects the time period in which he was writing, Durkheim also made innovative and creative claims, some of which might seem counterintuitive. Write a brief essay that explains how Durkheim’s thought both reflected the intellectual currents of the time and deviated from them. Pay particular attention to his arguments that established the new science of “sociology.”

Required content:

1. Durkheim’s thought reflected the time period’s emphasis on positivistic science (empiricism and rationality).
2. Durkheim’s work also reflected the influence of Darwinian evolution (slow gradual change, from simple to more complex).
3. Durkheim’s approach to society as an integrated system reflected the popular idea of “organicism.”
4. Durkheim argued that some phenomena, even seemingly individualistic ones, are best approached as social rather than individual-level facts.
5. Durkheim argued that deviance and crime have positive consequences.

Additional content:

1. Individuals “participate” in social facts, but social facts are external to and constrain individuals.
2. Suicide seems highly individualistic, but illustrates the social fact level of analysis.
3. Durkheim showed how suicide is pattern by the historical and social context.
4. Deviance and crime might harm individuals, but at the social fact level deviance and crime can reinforce the norms that hold society together.
5. Social traits that exist in most societies of a given type are normal; as such, they must somehow contribute to the society’s “fitness.”
6. If society is approached as an organism, it is possible to see how its constitutive parts contribute to the functioning of the whole.

3. In The Division of Labor in Society, Durkheim makes an evolutionary argument that connects changes in social organization to shifts in the nature of law. Write a brief essay that summarizes Durkheim’s argument about the evolution of social “solidarity” and how this shift influences the nature of law.

Required content:

1. Durkheim described a historical progression from “primitive,” or simple, societies to more complex societies.
2. Simple societies exhibit “mechanical” solidarity: a shared “collective conscience” that values community life over individualism.
3. Complex societies exhibit “organic” solidarity: a complex division of labor coupled with a high degree of individualism.
4. Repressive law is typical of mechanical solidarity. Repressive sanctions reassert the collective conscience.
5. Restitutive law is typical of organic solidarity. Restitutive law reflects the import of individuals in advanced societies.

Additional content:

1. Restitutive law attempts to restore the status quo.
2. There are two types of restitutive law.
3. Positive law reflects the need for cooperation required in a complex society (e.g., contract and administrative law).
4. Negative law refers to rules that prohibit interference in proprietary rights (e.g., property law and tort).
5. Durkheim’s two Laws of Penal Evolution posit a related evolutionary shift in the nature of punishment.
6. In mechanical solidarity, punishment tends to be physically brutal. With organic solidarity punishment shifts to incarceration.

4. Using Merton’s typology, coupled with insights from Durkheim, explain why crime is not necessarily a threat to social order but ritualism potentially is.

Required content:

1. Merton’s analysis is based on the relationship between socially acceptable goals and means.
2. According to Merton, “innovators” accept the goals but either reject or do not have access to socially approved means. Crime is a response to this disjunction.
3. “Ritualism” involves a rejection of goals while adhering to socially approved means.
4. In Durkheim’s analysis, social integration is an effect of normative consensus.
5. Although crime deviates from acceptable means, it upholds the socially approved goals. Crime thus reinforces normative cohesion. In contrast, ritualism rejects the goals and thus threatens social solidarity.

Additional content:

1. Durkheim also argued that deviance and crime have positive functions.
2. Deviance and crime clarify the norms that are the foundation of social order.
3. Deviance and crime can also enhance in-group solidarity/cohesion.
4. Deviance and crime may provide a safety valve that dissipates the tension generated by normative adherence.

5. Although Merton’s anomie theory provides a powerful explanation of the social basis of crime and deviance, some contemporary theorists both criticize and extend his work. Write a short essay that illustrates your understanding of Merton’s explanatory model, notes some of its major criticisms, and addresses a contemporary extension of his work.

Required content:

1. Merton’s model presumes that societies have socially approved goals and means to achieve those goals.
2. In complex or poorly integrated societies, the social structure may act as a barrier between the means and the goals.
3. Crime is an innovative response to this “anomie.”
4. Merton’s model is criticized for class bias. It focuses on conventional street crime but does not consider white-collar crimes more typical of the middle classes. (Similarly, Merton’s model suggests that crime is concentrated in the working class.)
5. Merton’s model is also criticized for only conceiving of strain in structural terms.

Additional content:

1. Agnew’s “revised strain” theory addresses social psychological sources of strain, e.g., negative stimuli, the removal of positive stimuli, and/or failure to achieve valued goals.
2. Animal abuse is an example of something the revised strain approach can explain but anomic theory cannot.
3. Messner and Rosenfeld’s “institutional anomie” theory extends Merton’s work to the macro-sociological level.
4. Messner and Rosenfeld note that in the United States some cannot achieve the American Dream because of the lopsided dominance of the capitalist system.
5. Noninstitutional factors such as education are not valued as ends in themselves, only as means to ends.
6. According to Messner and Rosenfeld, other institutions are forced to accommodate to economic requirements and relations.

ADDITIONAL SOURCES

Black and Gold (2007): Documentary film. Depicts New York’s “Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation,” a former gang that reorganized as a street political organization inspired in part by the Black Panthers.

Blow (2001): Drama. Useful for Merton with the added advantage of disrupting racialized and class assumptions regarding drug users and sellers.

City of God (2002): Drama. Real-world depiction of crime and street life in a Rio de Janeiro favela.

The Handmaid’s Tale (1990): Drama. Adaptation of the Margaret Atwood novel useful for discussions of mechanical and organic solidarity, Durkheim’s law typology, and collective conscience.

Juice (1992): Drama. Useful for Merton, especially in conjunction with discussion of masculine street code.

Making Sense of Sociological Theory (1997): Educational film. Includes a segment on Durkheim and viewing societies as organic structures.

The Panic in Needle Park (1971): Drama. Excellent depiction of drug-based “retreatism.”

The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005): Documentary film about the Enron fraud and bankruptcy, useful as a counterexample for strain theory.

The Underground World of Commercial Sex (2008): Documentary film. Useful for considering Mertonian “innovation” and the gendering of illegitimate opportunity.