CRI 205 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Devaluation, Counterculture, World Values Survey
Document Summary
Mechanism by which disorder and malintegration produce higher crime rates. Social disorganization: weaken a community"s ability to control behavior; allow deviant subculture to ourish. Anomie: weakens moral hold that laws and norms have; if opportunities to succeed economically are blocked, crime results. County level crime rates: anomie / strain theory. If we all have equal opportunity to get to the top, then some just don"t work hard. Gap between aspirations and expectations does not affect deviance. Tuesday, may 3, 2016: institutional anomie theory. Basic argument: american dream, and the social conditions it brings about, causes crime (same as strain) American dream (all similar to strain: achievement oriented, individualism, universalism (everyone is susceptible, fetishism of money. It"s not how you play the game; it"s whether you win or lose . Polity (political institutions) responsible for protecting members of society; Should be a power balance between all, but are largely out of balance in american society money matters the most.
