Social Theory and Social Structure

Angela Hitchcock Intro to Criminology Professor Burton February 06, 2016 Social Structure Theory According to Siegel (2016, p 212) In the 1960’s there was the “War on Poverty” in which the object was to improve the community structure of crime ridden inner city neighborhoods. There were various programs set up to provide solid communities and reduce crime. Several programs were introduced to give the poor, options for a better life. Two of the programs, to assist with the problems in the…

period of transition concerning social structure and understanding. Liminality consists of a pre-liminal state, a liminal period, and a communitas state. The pre-liminal state is characteristically defined as a time when events occur under specific conditions that start to press against an individual’s normal social structure and thought process. The liminal period is a time of “in-between” in which individuals no longer participate in their typical social structures or identify with their…

Social control is an ideology constructed, in which Sociologists recognize two general functions of this concept, of formal and informal sanctions. The interrelation of these sanctions, depend on one another in order to restore influence (YouTube, 2017). The norms and values established within our society, are a fundamental part of this everyday socialization. Norms, based on the cultural attitudes of the society in which you live, shape a person's attitudes and behaviors of what is deemed…

Analyzing Wal-Mart Wal-Mart is a nationwide cooperation that supplies cheap goods, decent pay, and friendly service to consumers all over the nation. The consumers request the items. These items could range from yogurt and lip gloss to clothes and a new flat screen. Whatever our needs/want Walmart always has what we’re looking for, and if it’s not the cheapest they have a program that always you to get that extra money spent back. So to basically some it up, Wal-Mart and Society is equal to…

Travis Hirschi’s theory of social control compared to classical criminology, Durkheim's theory, and Merton’s theory. Social control theory examines delinquency, and how “Delinquent acts result when an individual’s bond to society is weak or broken” (Hirschi, 2014, p. 231). He argues that delinquency is not subjected to one certain group, but anyone can become delinquent. Criminality is created through the social bonds that are broken or weakened during youth, the four elements of the social…

Reaction Paper: Race, Social Bonds and Juvenile Attitudes Toward Police: How Perceptions of Police Come About In this paper I will argue the typology of theories used and whether the evidence is strong, adequate or inadequate. The authors of my article is trying to focus on the perceptions of adolescents about police. They manage to display a macro perspective within the article; the macro perspective allows the outside structures to shape an individual’s views and/ or opinions. It is apparent…

Humans thrive to fulfill their desires and needs. Anomie theory and Social Bonding theory provide very different explanations of why people commit or do not commit crimes and how humans function. Robert Merton focused on Anomie theory, also known as Strain theory, which focused on how American culture defines monetary success as a predominant cultural goal to which all its citizens should aspire (Walsh 147). Anomie is a term meaning “lacking in rules” or “normlessness” used by Durkheim to…

Social learning theory. Krumboltz, Mitchell, and Jones (1976) theory suggests the interaction of genetic influences, cognitive processes, emotional processes, and environmental conditions influence peoples’ career choices and work related behaviours (Feller, Honaker, & Zagzebski, 2001; Krumboltz & Worthington, 1999; Osipow, 1990). In particular, they emphasize that peoples selection of careers are based on what they have learned from encounters with other individuals, institutions and events,…

Why do some people break laws? Why do most people behave? Theories of crime help us to answer these questions. Some theories locate the causes of crime in broader social structures (the economy, family breakdown, unemployment). Other theories draw our attention to biological and developmental causes, as well as the situational aspects of crime causation and prevention. And still other theories look at how social norms and values (social rules) guide and influence both criminal and…

Effective laws must also be known to the public. The conch in the movie symbolized rules and structure, only the individual who was holding the conch was allowed to speak, which was effective until Jack decided to branch off and make his own group. This rule was effective as it was clearly stated to everyone in the society that only the person holding…