In this essay we will assess the usefulness of these functionalist theories, and look at how it helps us explain crime. One functionalist who tried to explain crime is Merton and his strain theory, the strain theory argues that people engage in the deviant behaviour when they are unable to achieve socially approved goals by legitimate means. Merton explanation combines 2 elements; structural factors- society’s unequal opportunity structure, cultural factors- strong emphasis to achieve goals and weak emphasis on using legit means. Merton uses the strain theory to explain some patterns of crime in society, he argues a person’s positioning in society affects the way they adapt or respond to the strain to anomie. Merton gives 5 different types of adaption; Conformity- the individual accepts socially acceptable goal and achieves it through legitimate means, Innovation- Individual accepts the role of success and wealth but uses illegitimate means to achieve them, Ritualism- Individual give up on legitimate goals but still follow strictly to the rules, Retreatism- Individuals reject legitimate goals and means of achieving them e.g drug addicts, the final type is Rebellion- Individuals reject existing goals and means but replace them with new one in desire to bring about revolutionary change.
Unit 12 P5 – identify the approaches used by public services to reduce crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour. M3: analyze how the strategies used by the local community public services, work to reduce crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour D2: Evaluate a local public service initiative designed to address crime and its impact on the community The purpose of my research is to provide an overview of existing knowledge about how public services and third sector organisations reduce crime and support witness, victims of crime. Once I’ve achieved the aim from above, then I will give indications of effectiveness. Firstly, I will recognize the methodologies used by public services to counter crime and disorder. Then, I will state how the public services and third sector organisation support the victims and witnesses.
As a conclusion this essay will take into consideration whether the perspectives outlined are external or internal in their description of reasons for crime and deviance and try and determine the relevance of the arguments. Deviance according to Jary and Jary in the Dictionary of Sociology (2000) is any social behaviour that departs from that regarded as normal or socially acceptable in a society or social context. Deviance will include criminal behaviour; but it's scope is far wider than just criminal behaviour. Deviant behaviour is not necessary criminal - according to the legal code of a given society, culture or country. Crime is defined as an infraction of criminal law.
Describe how social cognition can explain criminal behaviour. Cognition has been recognised as an explanation of why an individual turns to crime. This term is applied to the mental processes that determine our actions, feelings and beliefs. Social cognition explores how our thoughts are influenced by the people we associate with. Additionally psychologists look at social cognition the other way round, to determine social phenomena through an individuals’ cognitions.
Which empirical and speculative theories are most applicable to this perspective as it applies to organized crime and overall criminal behavior? Properly cite your references or resources according to APA guidelines. Discussion Questions What is social disorganization? How does social disorganization contribute to organized crime? What is an example of social disorganization that created opportunistic atmospheres for organized crime?
Blackmon 1 Leah Blackmon Sociology 201 Deborah Robinson 15 September 2010 Crime and Social Order There are many reasons why an individual may or may not become involved in crime. In his essay, Robert K. Merton writes on the causes of crime. Merton focuses on a pint that society's cultural goals may not be easily attained by everyone. Those who do not have the means to reach these goals, such as family support and a good education, may come up with their own means to reach society's material goals. That usually means reverting to street crimes.
Assess the usefulness of official statistics to our understanding of social problems. Illustrate your response with sociological arguments and evidence. To assess the usefulness of official statistics to our understanding of social problems, I will first look at what official statistics are, I will then look at crime and suicide as two examples of social problems. I will look at how both Positivists and Interpretativists use these statistics and how useful each of these sociological approaches find them. Official statistics is the name given to the numbers of crimes reported to or unveiled by the police themselves, which lead to a conviction, caution or are dealt with in some formal way by the law.
There are chosen according to the type of research and data the social researcher hopes to find. Each can influence the data and research design in different ways. In this essay, I will explore the advantages and disadvantages of using Qualitative and Quantitative data to research Class and Crime. Using Qualitative data to investigate class allows you to conduct in-depth interviews with the respondent collecting the indicuals perspectivies and expeirneces. For e.g.
Victimology: A Study of Crime Victims 1 Victimology is an important element in the process of learning about crime victims, the needs of the victims, and even about the perpetrator of the crime. It identifies the victims, reveals their physical and mental state before and after the crime, their social interactions, and ideas as to why they were a victim. Victimology does not give the reasons why a particular person is chosen by an offender, however it will give general overview of victim selection (Petherick, “Victimology” 2010) The definitions of victimology vary in the use of words within the definition, such as victim, crime victim or behavior of crime victim. Victimology as an academic term containing two elements; the Latin word “victima” which translate into victim and the Greek word “logos” which means a system of knowledge (Dussich “Victimology ‘Past, Present and Future’”2000). In it’s simplest definition, victimology is the study of the victim or victims of a particular offender (Wallace & Roberson 2011: 3).
Why Poverty leads to Crime – A Research about the “Social Structure Theory” By Daniel Rottlaender CJ200013 Professor Gene Overall 10/12/2014 Abstract: The purpose of this research is to explain and proof the Social Structure Theory, which says that poverty leads to crime. The first part of the paper contains an explanation what the Social Structure Theory is as well as the different schools of thought the theory provides. The second part of the paper is supposed to proof the theory by using statistics and theories why poverty leads to crime. The final paragraph provides a summary and a recommendation what the government should do in order to decrease crime rates. In order to write my essay I used different types of research.