Social Disorganization Theory Of Crime Research Paper

Throughout the semester we have learned many different theories that either aim to explain why people commit crime or why they avoid it. Several factors come into play when attempting to explain why some people that we grow up with become criminals and others do not. Two theories that best explain why I am not a criminal are social disorganization theory and social control theory. In a general sense, social disorganization theory goes into detail about where I was brought up while social control theory is mostly driven by the people that surround me and unknowingly pass on accepted behaviors. Social disorganization theory is composed of two different constructs: the level of disorder and the level of collective efficacy. When a neighborhood …show more content…
In a general sense, social control is how well a person will follow the rules, expectations, and behaviors that society has deemed acceptable through two types of social control; formal and informal. Formal social control is practiced through rules and regulations and would include sanctions from law enforcement and employers. Informal social control on the other hand does not have set laws and regulations and is enforced through family and friends. This is said to be more important and have a greater effect because these people typically mean a lot to us and normally would want to avoid being a disappointment or failure. There are four parts to social control theory, and the first one is attachment which is just as I stated above, the people that we want to keep from disappointing and who are most important to us. The second part is commitment which is very similar to attachment yet it involves the hope of keeping things like education and employment versus actual people. The third construct is involvement and this part questions whether a person is involved in pro-social groups such as church and even Greek life. It is essential to note though, that crime is not in any way related to the amount of time that a person invests in these activities. Lastly, the fourth part is beliefs and this explains that it is important to see how pro-social a person’s values really are. For example does the person value education and the idea that going to school will help achieve a degree and therefore a better job? People can avoid crime when they form positive attachments, are committed and involved in pro-social activities, and hold on to the belief that their values will take them far in life. (Akers, R. L. & Sellers,