The parallels with the macrolevel of anomie and control theory were discussed in research conducted by Agnew and Passas. The two theorists highlighted that the microlevel theory should be separate from the control theory (Agnew and Passas, 1997). Dr. Agnew also made a connection with strain theory to both control theory and social learning theory (Agnew, 1992). These theories are very different because of the type of social associations that they covered and the motivations of which they were based on. Control theory is based on the idea that society’s failure makes room for people to commit crime. Whereas, strain theory is more fixated on the burden put on the individual, which is the reason they are lead to crime.
