Bus 174 was a captivating documentary that broke the norms of shielding the world from the truth about the dangerous lifestyle of one man’s poverty, how he was exposed to violence and the horrendous treatment while being held in prison. Through sociology there are many theories that attempt to explain crime, of the many theories I would say Robert Merton’s Strain Theory best represent the violent trajectory of Sandro’s life and its tragic ending. Sandro was born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, by the age of six he witnessed his mother’s murder and watched her pass away. In this same time, his coping mechanism was to act as if nothing had happen and go on with life, he acted as if it were another day and did not speak about it when his aunt…
The last theory strain theory was introduced by Emile Durkheim. The fundamental assumptions made were that people are naturally moral, we need motivations to engage in delinquency, and variations in delinquency is a result of different reactions to different types and levels of strains that individuals/ groups experience. The basic proposition is that we would not engage in delinquency unless pressured by motivations and that social conditions can force delinquency on to people. Robert Merton eventually applied Durkheim’s approach to the condition of modern industrial societies. For a society to be functional, there must be a balance between the goals and the means to achieve these goals.…
These traits all fall under Robert Merton’s Strain Theory. In both situations, the party committing the offense is unconsciously part-taking in one of Merton’s cultural goals. Depending on the circumstances the offender may or may not be conscious of their act(s). References Buranen, L. (1999).…
Merton. The theory states that social structures may burden citizens to commit crimes. Strain may be organizational, which refers to the processes at the general level that trickle down and affect how the individual recognizes his or her needs. However, strain may also be individual, which refers to the resistances and pains experienced by an individual as he or she looks for ways to satisfy individual needs. For this purpose, these types of strain can propose public designs within society that then stress people to become criminals.…
Catch Me If You Can follows the young con artist called Frank William Abagnale Jr., as he escapes the misery of his parents’ divorce. From being a pilot to a lawyer to a doctor, Frank did this all before he was even 19, employing the tactics that he learned from his father. Frank is continually pursued by an FBI agent called Carl Handratty. Frank is also picked on at his new school for dressing up, which leads him to his first impersonation: a substitute teacher. When his parents are informed, his father is seemingly proud.…
Strain Theory vs Functionalist Theory Although the strain theory and functionalist theory are different sociological theories, they do exhibit several similarities. Both theories are immersed in consumption. The strain theory demonstrates that the inclination for criminal activity is due to the immigrants desire to match the consumption level that coincides with their understanding of the American dream. While the functionalist theory focuses on the need of the immigrants fulfillment of their specific role in the societal structure that produces items that are consumed by society.…
Merton that strain theory, and crime is not created by society alone. Agnew, and Merton differ in their definition of strain theory in two ways; one being that Agnew takes a more individualist approach to strain theory, and Merton takes a more society based approach to explain crime (AGNEW, 1997, Pg. 50, & Merton, 1938, Pg.672). Agnew argues that Merton definition of strain theory is not able to explain why only some individuals do to their strain turn to crime/delinquency, and also that Merton definition neglects every other aspect of strains other than monetary (AGNEW, 1997, Pg. 50). Agnew ideal of strain theory is that immediate goals such as educational goals should also be taken into consideration when looking at strains that cause individuals to commit crimes (AGNEW, 1997, Pg. 72). Also that bad influence/stimuli, removal of positive values, and failure to achieve positive goals all create a strain on the individuals that can lead him or her into delinquency (AGNEW, 1997, Pg. 72).…
Exploring Criminality: Willie Bosket Criminological theories can be used to help understand potential causes of criminality like in the case of Willie Bosket, a young man that lead a troubled life and came from a troubled past. Fox Butterfield wrote a book entitled All God’s Children: The Bosket Family and The American Tradition of Violence in which he examines not only the life that lead to Willie Bosket being in solitary confinement for the rest of his life, but also the history that lead to Willie’s existence. One type of theory that can be used to identify reasons behind Willie’s behaviors are Strain Theory, a type of theory that suggests crime is rooted in discontent with one’s status- financial, social, or otherwise- a concept that,…
“National surveys in the United States estimate that one in six women has experienced an attempted or completed rape at some time” (Basile, Lang, Bartenfeld, & Clinton-Sherrod, 2005).In the book Picking Cotton, a young woman by the name of Jennifer Thompson was raped by a young black man who had broken into her home. A question we must ask ourselves is why did this young man commit such sinister crimes against Miss Thompson? I believe the crimes committed by this individual can be linked to Strain Theory. Strain Theory was pioneered by Robert Merton who believed that deviant behavior was encouraged around the structure of society.…
Jeffery Dahmer On a sad day in May of 1960 Jeffery Dahmer was born in Milwaukee Wisconsin. He was one of America’s most infamous serial killers. Other names attributed to him was the Milwaukee cannibal because he ate the flesh of his victims. At an early age, he began killing animals and put a severed head of a dog on a stake in his yard and a cemetery where he buried them.…
I chose the movie Cesar Chavez is based on a true story, the movie is about a labor organizer and activist man of the civil rights. Cesar Chavez was an American leader and activist who organized the strike for farm workers in Delano, California in 1965. Cesar Chavez was the son of an immigrant workers who work in the field. Cesar after the eighth grade stop going to school and also himself as well started working in the field and he saw all these discrimination against the workers. Cesar Chavez organized a nonviolent strike and many immigrants farm workers went on a strike demanding labor rights for farm workers and to increase their wages and also to improve their workplace conditions.…
DISPUTE ARISING BETWEEN THE TWO THEORIES 1. Introduction A company should pursue economic profitability in order to survive. However, today, it has been brought to awareness that a company also has social responsibilities towards a number of people working together to achieve its aim. An analysis of the shareholder and stakeholder theories has led to the conclusion that these two are very much contradictory, resulting in a debate as to which theory will help embrace good corporate governance.…
This supports item A as it states 'a set of rules laid down by the state in the interest of the ruling class'. This is reflected in crime statistics; the most common offenders are young, black males between the ages of 15-21. A counter argument to this is the idea of Strain Theory developed by Robert Merton. Traditional Marxism argues that it is increased aggression and individualistic nature of the capitalist society that inspires individuals to commit crime, however Merton comments that it is Strain between goals and the legitimate means to achieve these goals that cause an individual to commit crime.…
Within the vast multitude of social structural theories, two stand out among all the others. Shaw and Mckay’s Social Disorganization Theory serves as a unique theory that attempts to gauge the cause of the seemingly rampant crime occurring in society. Particularly, the Social Disorganization theory references an individual’s environment as a significant factor contributing to their moral fiber and ultimately their behavior. Henceforth, those individuals who are unfortunate to have to grow in an environment that is teeming with crime and composed of those with low socioeconomic status, they are likely to follow the common trend.…
Learning Theory Vs Strain Theory What is learning theory? Learning theory was developed to help discover the reason why people commit crimes and the causes. Learning Theory has made a lasting impact on society and in the field of criminology.…