Functionalists And Subcultural Theories Flashcards
Durkheim- positive functions of crime
Limited amount of crime is both necessary and beneficial as it fulfils 2 important positive functions for society:
Boundary maintenance- crime produces a reaction from society which serves to unite them to change what is being done wrong.
Adaptation and change- deviance helps society to resolve and review the way it does things and learn from mistakes.
Durkheim- positive functions of crime EVALUATION
X Durkheim claims society needs a certain amount of deviance to function successfully, yet doesn’t offer anyway of knowing how much is the right amount.
X Durkheim claims that crime serves a positive function for society by reaffirming its values and promoting solidarity but ignores its negative effects on the victims.
Merton- strain theory
Merton explains deviance as a response to the strain that exists between the cultural goals we have and the legitimate means in which to achieve them.
‘American dream’- pursue goals by legitimate means such as study, educational qualifications and hard work. However, many disadvantaged groups are denied opportunities to achieve these goals legitimately due to poverty and inadequate schooling.
Deviant adaptation to strain- conformity, innovation, ritualism, rebellion.
Merton- strain theory EVALUATION
+ Merton shows how both normal and deviant behaviour can arise from the same mainstream goal.
X It cannot help us to explain ruling class crime such as tax evasion, as they do it come under strain.
X Strain theory only applies to utilitarian crimes, it cannot help us to explain crimes such as vandalism.
Cohen- status frustration
Agrees with Merton that deviance is a lower class phenomenon, resulting from the lower class not being able to achieve mainstream success legitimately, such as educational achievement.
Focuses on deviance among working class boys:
Working class boys suffer cultural deprivation and lack of skills to achieve, lack social status in school, experience status frustration because they can’t achieve it legitimately, then turn to delinquent subcultures that invert mainstream goals to improve their status.
Cohen- status frustration EVALUATION
+ Unlike Merton, Cohen is able to explain deviance as caused by status frustration and alternative status hierarchy which helps explain non- utilitarian crimes such as vandalism.
X Cohen assumes working class boys shared the same goals as the middle class only ending up rejecting them once they fail to achieve them legitimately, and ignores the fact that the working class boys never shared the same mainstream goals in the first place.
Cloward and Ohlin- differential opportunity
Agrees with Merton and Cohen that working class youths are denied legitimate opportunities to achieve money success.
Argue not everyone who fails to achieve legitimately then has equal chance to go on to becoming successful through illegitimate means. They argue that different neighbourhoods for example provide different opportunities for young people to learn criminal skills and develop d
Criminal careers.
Identify 3 different types of deviant subcultures: criminal, conflict and retreatists subcultures.
Cloward and Ohlin- differential opportunity EVALUATION
+ Cloward and Ohlin provides an explanation for different types of working class deviance in terms of different types of subcultures.
X similar to Merton and Cohen, they focus too much on working class crime and deviance and ignores crimes of the wealthy such as white collar crimes and corporate crimes.
Miller- focal concerns
Miller argues that the working class create their different value system as a response to working class jobs, which allow them to cope with their situation.
Focal concerns include: fate, excitement, autonomy, smartness, toughness and trouble.
Working class boys become delinquent because they are grown up in subcultures with these values, so they are more likely to break the law. Therefore, their deviance is a result of their socialisation.
Miller- focal concerns EVALUATION
+ Unlike other strain theories, Miller does not consider delinquency as a result of people to achieve legitimately. Instead his focus is on that there are re different set of values that exist amongst different social classes.
X Miller focuses to much on the lower class focal concerns, and does not explain why not all working class people resort to delinquency.
