CRM 101 Lecture : CRM 101 - Sociological Theories of Crime
12 Oct 2011
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Document Summary
Biological and psychological theories tried to explain the criminality of indivi duals. Low social cohesion = high crime rate and deviance. Rapid societal change = decreased inegration and regulation. The breakdown of social cohesion and social control mechanisms in a soc iety. This breakdown can lead to high rates of crime. Russia is a contemporary case study of how anomie is associated with ri sing crime rate. Discrepency by goals and actual means for achieving those goals creates strain. Strain results in various non-legitimate ways of circumventing blocked opportuni ty. Durkheims anomie theory emphasized social cohesion and the social restraints pre vented crime. Thus for merton, anomie was shifted from normlessness to relative deprivation. The greater the gap between aspirations and expectations, the higher th e probablity of deviance. Emphasis on structure (distribution of opportunity) and culture (emphasis on pur suit of wealth) Conditions that exists when people of wealth and poverty live in close proximity to one another.
