Assess the usefulness of subcultural theories in explaining ‘subcultural crime and deviance’ in society today. The term subcultural crime and deviance is another way of describing the violation of laws or social norms by various groups within society. These groups have been explored in depth by many sociologists and they have attempted to explain subcultural crime and deviance through the existence of deviant subcultures. Originally, the work of Merton surrounding strain theory claimed that when there was a strain between the goals of society and the means of obtaining the goals then people would turn to crime. However subcultural theorists developed this idea claiming that people experiencing strain seek different forms of success.
This needs to stop and people need to start changing their attitudes towards the youth. Such stigmas being given out at these young ages can destroy a future. Juveniles, especially of color, are a lot of the time arrested for non-violent crimes, and when they come out of the system they are most likely given a probation officer and all of a sudden they are known as “criminals”. But, I see this as a second chance… avoid the jail time, learn from the mistake, and get straightened out because the crime was not severe and this shouldn’t define you. They were deviants, not criminals.
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.
Nevertheless, not always do people get influenced negatively into turning to gangs and making bad choices. Thinking about the gangster environment and about the people that have lived or live in such surroundings you may think that it’s not as bad as it looks or sounds like, but in most cases the people get dragged into situations that force them into joining gangs for protection; people have been impacted by the environment that they live in. They make their own choices, often leading them through several traumatizing events that might make them change. I believe that with a good education our youth will notice all the pointless violence and wasted futures that have been around; the more education one gets not only does it enrich the person who is devoting their life for education but it also enriches their families, communities, neighborhood’s future as well as it does for them. Environment has a lot to do with the choices that people make but thanks to knowledge people decide the path they want to take.
It does however explain why some people or actions are described as deviant, and can help in understanding crime and deviance. According to item A labelling has changed the theoretical base for the study of criminals. Becker emphasises the significance of crime being a social construct; an action only becomes criminal or deviant once society has labelled it so, and that crime can be argued to be a social construction. He introduced the concept of a master label, referring to the label which a person is given which overrides all other labels. When a person is labelled as negatively, society tends to tend them as such, and this master label often becomes internalised, and then a self-fulfilling prophecy occurs.
In other cases some criminals are born with the lack of humility, which is the ability to put yourself in the situation of the person who you are doing harm to. These people are considered sociopaths. Another theory called the rational choice theory states that everyone has their own thoughts and emotions for which they commit their crimes weather to improve their living standards or to avoid hardships. Intelligence can play a huge role in the mind of a criminal; this is considered the nature theory. A person who does not know any better is much more likely to commit a crime then a well educated person, although this
Violent Crimes and Theories Violent crimes are a major concern for United States citizens. Although there has been a decrease in violent crime, it is still a huge problem nationwide that needs to be under more control. What causes a person to become criminal is a question that many theorists would love to fully understand. In the past, criminologists believed that people were simply born criminals. Today, there are several theories on why people commit crimes.
“The negative portray of ethnic minority youths in the media is not, however, simply or solely due to, misguided stereotypes and sensationalist reporting. There is a material basis for at least some of the public concerns expressed, albeit in distorted and partial form through the mass media. This is especially so when it comes to certain types of street violence” Mass media definitely play’s a major role on a child’s decision, mainly because they don’t know any better and just are too young to understand. Hypothesis in addition will reduce gang violence. Gang violence is responsible for nearly one-third of the homicides in the country on a yearly basis.
Eliminating or controlling the drugs being distributed by gangs then their power will diminish. When the drugs are controlled then the crimes they commit and the drug money they have will also decline. People don’t realize that gangs are a major problem and are a big part of our
Economic deprivation also reduces social trust and facilitates social disorganization, which in turn leads to youth violence and crime. The above indicates that economic deprivation may affect community and family processes in such a way that youth violence increases. Secondly, Boredom is one of the major contributors to social deprivation. In many working class communities, youth facilities or leisure areas are much scarcer, or have been cut by government and local councils. This leaves many young working class people with little alternative but to meet up with friends, and hang around streets and estates looking for something to do.