Merton Anomie-Strain Theory Analysis

In the study of organized crime there has been much debate over definitions and theories in the pursuit of explaining gang related crime. One issue that has yet to be fully resolved is what the definitive definition of what a gang is. Another current argument is over which of the various competing positivist and constructionist perspectives in the field of sociology explains deviance. One theory that has emerged from the rest is Merton’s anomie-strain theory. Fortunately, there is one thing that is agreed upon, organized crime has shown that it knows no borders when it comes to expansion and is an international issue. A few examples that illustrate this fact are the Sicilian mafia and outlaw motorcycle gangs. However, individually none of these …show more content…
As Decker et al. (2009) states in the article, environments that have a combination of “fear, mistrust, threat, conflict, … [and] social disorganization” are “breeding grounds for gang formation” (p. 395). Merton claimed that through society’s pressure to achieve success and the lack of legitimate means, lower-class people resort to illegitimate ways to obtain success through “stealing, robbing, and other similar forms of deviant activities” (Thio, 2010, p. 18). Merton’s theory ties in perfectly with explaining how this occurs to …show more content…
Decker et al. (2009) elaborates on the social pressures on immigrant children that can lead to gang involvement. First generation children of immigrants have to deal with “culture shock” and are conflicted between the values that they learn from their parents and the values they learn from their new society (Decker et al., 2009). Decker et al. claims that “culture is critical” in determining whether or not a youth will join a gang (Decker et al., 2009, p. 400). An example of how the difference in culture affects gang involvement is how “Moroccan youth engage in gang activities and why Turkish youth abstain” (Decker et al., 2009, p.401). While the Decker et al. article does not mention Cohen’s status frustration theory, one could use this to help further explain what is occurring to the exploited lower-class youth of today. Cohen’s theory is very similar to that of Merton’s, however, Cohen has more of a focus on the youth. Cohen contends that when the lower-class youth do not meet the high expectations of society their form their own competitive “delinquent subculture” (Thio, 2010, p. 20). In this subculture the lower-class youth has opposite standards of society. Everything that is generally considered right by society is considered wrong by them and everything that is considered wrong by society is considered right by them (Thio,