Appropriate Goals, Purposes And Interests

The two forms of regulation that Merton focuses on in the article are that it defines appropriate goals, purposes, and interests and it defines the appropriate means of obtaining these goals. These can apply to Ohio State as a society because Ohio State University is a place centered around learning in order to get a degree to sustain a happy and fulfilled life. Students come to Ohio State typically with a career path in mind and the advisors help you develop paths to obtain your goal of a degree. Throughout this process, you educate yourself based on your interests, refine your goals and develop a sense of purpose career-wise. Two examples of how Ohio State defines culturally appropriate goals, purposes and interests is first by being an institution …show more content…
Innovation is when people are accepting of goals, but cannot achieve them without untraditional ways. This would be a person who is on the path towards a degree but may cheat in hard classes simply to achieve the goal. Since this person does wish to achieve the end goal but does so in a deviant way they fit the category of innovation. Ritualism is when people reject the collective goal but like the way of achieving it. This would be a person attending Ohio State just for the means of learning without chasing a certain degree. This person fits this category because they are not chasing a degree or the end goal of college, but wish to expand their knowledge which means they appreciate the process. Retreatism is when a person does not like the process of obtaining the goal or the goal itself. This could be a person wanting to drop out of college, but continuing to do so in order to appeal to his social institutions. A person like this fits this category because they do not want the goal and do not want to partake in the process of obtaining the