January

Unit IV Scholarly Activity

For this scholarly activity, you will do further research on one of the three projects discussed in your textbook. Please select one of the following: the Chicago Area Project, the Mobilization for Youth, or the War on Poverty.

Unit IV Scholarly Activity

Within your scholarly activity, include responses to the following points:

· Explain the particular policy you chose and the effect it has had.

· Was it effective in fighting crime, preventing crime, or both?

· From your perspective, what could make this more effective?

· What were the disadvantages to this particular project?

· Explain the policy that influenced this project.

Your scholarly activity must be a minimum of two pages in length, not counting the title and reference pages. You are required to use at least two outside sources; one source must be from the CSU Online Library. All sources used, including the textbook, must be cited and referenced.

Criminology
CHAPTER
Copyright © 2016, 2014, 2011 by Pearson Education, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Criminology, 3e
Frank Schmalleger
THIRD EDITION

Social Structure—It’s How We Live
6

Chapter Objectives
List the major principals of sociological theories.
Describe the conceptual basis for social structure theories.
Describe the three major types of social structure theories and distinguish among them.
continued on next slide

Chapter Objectives
Summarize strain theory.
Describe culture conflict and subcultural theories, including differential opportunity theory.
Summarize the policy implications of various social structure theories.

Learning Objective 6.1
List the major principles of sociological theories.

Principles of Sociological Theories
Three major sociological approaches to crime causation
Social structure
Social process
Social life

Principles of Sociological Theories
Sociological Theories
A group of perspectives that focus on the nature of the power relationships that exit between social groups and on the influences that various social phenomena bring to bear on the types of behaviors that tend to characterize groups of people

Glossary definition
*

Principles of Sociological Theories
Social Structure
The stable pattern of social relationships that exist within a society
Social Process
The interaction between and among social institutions, individuals, and groups

Glossary definitions
*

Principles of Sociological Theories
Social Life
The ongoing and (typically) structured interaction that occurs between persons in a society, including socialization and social behavior in general

Glossary definition
*

Principles of Sociological Theories
Three key sociological explanations for crime
Crime is the result of an individual’s location within the structure of society.
Crime is the end product of various social processes, especially inappropriate socialization and social learning.
Crime is the product of class struggle.

Learning Objective 6.2
Describe the conceptual basis for social structure theories.

Social Structure Theories
Conceptual Basis
Social Structure Theories
Theories that explain crime by reference to some aspect of the social fabric
These theories emphasize relationships among social institutions and describe the types of behavior that tend to characterize groups of people rather than individuals.

Glossary definition
*

Learning Objective 6.3
Describe the three major types of social structure theories and distinguish among them.

Social Structure Theories
Three major types of social structure theories
Social Disorganization Theory
Strain Theory
Cultural Conflict Theory

Social Structure Theories
Emile Durkheim (1858–1917)
Social Disorganization Theory
A perspective on crime and deviance that highlights the role that the breakdown of social institutions, such as the family, the economy, education and religion, play in crime causation
Durkheim believed crime was a normal part of all societies and law was a symbol of social solidarity.

Glossary definition
*

Social Structure Theories
The Chicago School
An ecological approach to explaining crime that examined how social disorganization contributes to social pathology

Glossary definitions
*

Social Structure Theories
Social Ecology (Park & Burgess)
An approach to criminological theorizing that attempts to link the structure and organization of a human community to interactions with its localized environment

Social Structure Theories
Social Pathology (Park & Burgess)
A concept that compares society to a physical organism and that sees criminality as an illness or disease
Social disorganization – and therefore social pathology – may arise when a group is faced with social change, uneven development of culture maladaptation, disharmony conflict and lack of consensus.

Social Structure Theories
Park and Burgess viewed cities in terms of concentric zones
Each zone had its unique characteristics wherein unique populations and typical forms of behavior could be found.
Five concentric zones

FIGURE 6-2 Chicago’s Concentric Zones.
Source: Robert E. Park, Ernest W. Burgess, and R. D. McKenzie, The City (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1925), p. 55. Copyright © 1925 University of Chicago Press. Used by permission of University of Chicago Press.

Social Structure Theories
Cultural Transmission (Shaw & McKay)
Through a process of social communication, the transmission of delinquency through successive generations of people living in the same area

Glossary definition
*

Social Structure Theories
Broken Windows Theory
Physical deterioration and an increase in unrepaired buildings lead to increased concerns for personal safety among area residents.

The broken windows theory says that physical deterioration and an increase in unrepaired buildings lead to increased concerns for personal safety among residents living in such areas and may contribute to heightened crime rates. If this is true, how do run-down conditions in a neighborhood translate into criminal activity? Are such conditions the cause of crime? Explain.
Credit: elxeneize/Fotolia

Social Structure Theories
Critiques of Ecological Theory
Ecological theories give too much credence to the notion that spatial location determines crime and delinquency.
Ecological theories seem to have an inability to differentiate between the condition of social disorganization and the things such a condition is said to cause.
continued on next slide

Social Structure Theories
Critiques of Ecological Theory
Many crimes occur outside geographic areas said to be characterized by social disorganization.

Learning Objective 6.4
Summarize strain theory.

Strain Theory
Strain Theory
A sociological approach that posits a disjuncture between socially and subculturally sanctioned means and goals as the cause of criminal behavior

Glossary definition
*

Strain Theory
The classic statement of strain theory was offered by Robert Merton (1938).
Developed the concept of anomie
A social condition in which norms are uncertain or lacking

Glossary definition for anomie
*

Strain Theory
Strain can be thought of as the pressure individuals feel to reach socially determined goals.

FIGURE 6-4 A Visual Representation of Strain Theory.

Strain Theory
Relative Deprivation
A sense of social or economic inequality experienced by those who are unable, for whatever reason, to achieve legitimate success within the surrounding society
Suggests that inconsistencies in the ability to achieve the American Dream are to be blamed for most criminal activity
continued on next slide

Glossary definition
*

Strain Theory
Relative Deprivation
Related to the notion of distributive justice
The rightful, equitable, and just distribution of rewards within a society

Strain Theory
General Strain Theory (GST)
A reformulation of the strain theory by Robert Agnew and others in 1992
A perspective that suggests that law-breaking behavior is a coping mechanism that enables those who engage in it to deal with the socioemotional problems generated by negative social relations

Glossary definition
*

Strain Theory
According to the General Strain Theory, strain occurs when others do the following:
Prevent or threaten to prevent an individual from achieving positively valued goals, such as autonomy or financial success.
continued on next slide

Strain Theory
According to the General Strain Theory, strain occurs when others do the following:
Remove or threaten to remove positively valued stimuli that a person possesses, such as the loss of a romantic partner or death of a loved one.
continued on next slide

Strain Theory
According to the General Strain Theory, strain occurs when others do the following:
Present, or threaten to present, someone with noxious or negatively valued stimuli, such as verbal insults or physical abuse.

Strain Theory
GST expands on traditional strain theory in several ways:
Include all types of negative relations between an individual and others
Maintains strain is likely to have cumulative effect on delinquency after reaching a certain threshold.
continued on next slide

Strain Theory
GST expands on traditional strain theory in several ways
Provides a more comprehensive account of the cognitive, behavioral, and emotional adaptation to strain.

Strain Theory
Negative affective states
Adverse emotions that derive from the experience of strain, such as anger, fear, depression, and disappointment.

Learning Objective 6.5
Describe culture conflict and subcultural theories, including differential opportunity theory.

Culture Conflict Theory
Culture Conflict Theory
A sociological perspective on crime that suggests that the root cause of criminality can be found in a clash of values between variously socialized groups over what is acceptable or proper behavior

Glossary definition
*

Culture Conflict Theory
Conduct Norms (Thorsten Sellin, 1938)
Shared expectations of a social group relative to personal conduct

Culture Conflict Theory
Two types of culture conflict
Primary Conflict
Secondary Conflict

Culture Conflict Theory
Subcultural Theory
A sociological perspective that emphasizes the contribution made by variously socialized cultural groups to the phenomenon of crime
Culture
A collection of values, ideas, beliefs, and traits that characterize a human group

Culture Conflict Theory
Subculture
A collection of values and preferences that is communicated to subcultural participants through a process of socialization

Culture Conflict Theory
Focal Concerns (Miller, 1958)
The key values of any culture, especially, the key values of a delinquent subculture
Such concerns include trouble, toughness, smartness, excitement, fate, and autonomy.

Culture Conflict Theory
Techniques of Neutralization (Skyes & Matza)
Culturally available justifications that can provide criminal offenders with the means to disavow responsibility for their behavior

FIGURE 6-6 Techniques of Neutralization.

Culture Conflict Theory
Differential Opportunity Theory (Cloward and Ohlin)
Legitimate Opportunities
Illegitimate Opportunities

Culture Conflict Theory
Reaction Formation (Cohen)
The process in which a person openly rejects that which he or she wants or aspires to but cannot obtain or achieve
continued on next slide

Culture Conflict Theory
Reaction Formation (Cohen)
When youths who experience the same kind of alienations from middle-class ideas band together, they achieve a collective and independent solution and create a delinquent subculture.

Culture Conflict Theory
The Code of the Street (Anderson)
Hyperinflated notion of manhood that rests squarely on the idea of respect
Individuals who are street-wise learn to outsmart, or “hustle”, others while avoiding being hustled themselves.

Culture Conflict Theory
Critique of Culture Conflict Theories.
Lacking explanatory power
Criticized for being racist because many so-called violent subcultures are said to be populated primarily by minorities

Learning Objective 6.6
Summarize the policy implications of various social structure theories.

Social Structure Theories
Policy Implications
Chicago Area Project
A program focusing on urban ecology and originating at the University of Chicago during the 1930s, which attempted to reduce delinquency, crime, and social disorganization in transitional neighborhoods

Glossary definition
*

Social Structure Theories
Policy Implications
Objectives of the Chicago Area Project
Improving the physical appearance of poor neighborhoods
Providing recreational opportunities for youths
Involving project members directly in the lives of troubled youth

Chapter Summary
Sociological perspectives on crime causation are diverse and include three major approaches to crime causation: social structure theories, social process theories, and social conflict approaches.
continued on next slide

Chapter Summary
Social structure approaches emphasize the role of poverty, lack of education, absence of marketable skills, and subcultural values as fundamental causes of crime.
The three major types of social structure theories are: social disorganization, strain, and culture conflict.
continued on next slide

Chapter Summary
Strain theory depicts delinquency as a form of adaptive, problem-solving behavior.
Culture conflict perspectives rely on the proposition that the root cause of crime is a clash of values.
continued on next slide

Chapter Summary
Theoretical approaches that fault social structure as the root cause of crime point in the direction of social action as a solution.

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