Robert K. Merton
w “Strain Theory”
n Individual Level
n Gap between economic aspirations (which all are encouraged to pursue) and structural reality (limited opportunity)
w Policy Implications?
n Increase opportunity for lower class youth
n “Mobilization for Youth” Program
MERTON II
w Culture
n THE “American Dream” mentality
w Social Structure
n Unequal distribution of means for achieving the “American Dream”
w Problems?
n Preoccupied with Lower Class
n Addresses only “Economic Crimes”
n Everyone focused on the MICRO level theory
Messner and Rosenfeld (1995)
w CRIME AND THE AMERICAN DREAM
w “The Road not Taken”
n Focus on Anomie at Macro level
n Why is U.S. so crime-prone?
w Culture = American Dream
w Social Structure = more than $
The Culture: Elements of the “American Dream”
w Achievement
w Individualism
w Universalism
w The “fetishism” of money
w These elements encourage “Anomic conditions”
THE AMERICAN DREAM PRODUCES ANOMIE
w MERTON: Pursuit of financial success is “limited only by considerations of technical expediency.”
w Lombardi: Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.
Social Structure More than Distribution of Wealth
w Social institutions as the building blocks of society (make up social structure).
w Functions?
n Allow us to adapt to the environment
n Mobilize and deploy resources to achieve collective goals
n Socialize members to accept society’s normative patterns
Institutions in U.S.?
w The Economy
w The Polity
w The Family
w Education
Key Issue for M & R
w These institutions sometimes have conflicting goals and values.
w All societies can therefore be characterized by their distinctive arrangements of institutions
w The U.S.? Economy Dominates: we are a “MARKET SOCIETY”
The “Market Society” as a play on words
w A capitalist economy is referred to as a free market or “market” economy.
w The term “market society” suggests that the entire society is dominated by the free market economy.
Indicators of “Economic Dominance” or a “Market Society”
w Devaluation of non-economic institutional functions and roles
w Accommodation to economic requirements by other social institutions
w Penetration of economic norms into other social domains
Implications of Economic Dominance
w Weak institutional controls
n Family and School are handicapped in efforts to promote allegiance to social rules
n Single parent families
n Poorly funded schools
n “Weak institutions invite challenge”
Culture, Social Structure, and Crime Rates
Empirical Validity of IA theory
w New theory--only 2 good tests thus far
n Both support IA, but have limitations
w Chamlin and Cochran
n State level variations in non-economic institutions modify the effect of poverty on economic crimes
w Messner and Roesnfeld
n The “decommodification index” across countries predicts homicide rates
Policy Implications of IA
w The two main causes of crime are:
n American Dream ethos (cultural)
n Economic Dominance of other institutions (structural)
w Change “money fetish?”
n Time for America to “grow up”
w Strengthen non-economic institutions?
n Family, School...