Lesson Overview

This week we are introduced to the mainstream sociological approaches to understanding crime. We start with Durkheim’s anomie theory, which postulated that social changes and the feeling of normlessness in society were linked to crime. Merton expanded on this concept through the strain theory, which stated crime was a result of discrepancies between societal goals and the means to achieve those goals. Agnew expanded the theory further in developing the General Strain Theory, stating that the anger or frustration that resulted from negative relationships or experiences led to criminality.

Learning Outcomes

• Identify Émile Durkheim’s contributions to understanding social changes and anomie.
• Explain why Robert K. Merton’s theory of strain become popular when it did, as well as how his conceptualization of “anomie” differed from Durkheim’s.
• Discuss how Robert Agnew’s proposed model of general strain added more sources of strain to Merton’s original framework.
• Identify some ways the various models of strain theory have informed the making of policies intended to reduce criminality.

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Workflow

Readings:

1. Anomie. Brittanica – https://www.britannica.com/topic/anomie

2. Chapter 3: Anomie. In Tierney, John. Key Perspectives in Criminology, McGraw-Hill Education, 2009. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/bmcc/detail.action?docID= 480635

Download the chapter here.

Key_Perspectives_in_Criminology_-_3_Anomie_Theory

Videos

PowerPoint

Discussion Forum

Discussion Forum 9