Essay - Social Structure Theories Abstract Sociology Is A Branch of the...

SOCIAL STRUCTURE THEORIES

*****

Sociology is a branch of the social sciences that attempts to help us understand society and how people interact. As with many other social *****, sociology employs theories to help ***** why ***** make certain dec*****ions. Theories that help us explain societal trends are *****ually segmented in order to accurately examine the specific dynamics of different sections of society. Communities, institutions, gender, race and population ***** a few popular examples ***** common segmentations utilized in ***** theories.

***** structure theories, also called social change ***** attempt to analyze the driving forces that change society. Sociologists who study social change use the study of both criminology and sociology to draw conclusions about criminal behavior. The overarching belief of criminology theory is that certain ***** structures support deviant behavior. ***** three main *****es of social structure theories are the social disorganization theory, the ***** strain theory and the cultural deviance *****ory.

How well have social structure theories explained delinquent behavior in society? In this paper, the major social structural ********** will be defined and *****d. The culmination of ***** paper will address the question posed above.

Social Disorganization *****ories

***** Disorganization Theory: Concentric Zone *****

***** concentric zone theory as presented by Clifford Shaw ***** Henry McKay examined the arrest rates ***** youth in Chicago during staggered time periods (1900-06, 1917-23, and 1927-33). It was during these years immigrants living in the inner city begin to relocate ***** the outskirts of the city. The purpose of *****ir ***** was to conclude if delinquency was caused by particular immigrant groups or ***** the environment in which *****s lived. Park and Burgess adopted ***** *****iginal concentric zone theory, and which separated Chicago in***** 5 distinct zones. Which were:

Central Business District

Transitional Zone

Working Class Zone

Residential *****

Commuter Zone

***** and McKay's experiment reveled that arrest rates consistently re*****ed high for ***** 2, the transitional zone. ********** ultimately concluded that delinquency ***** ***** correlated with ecological environment in which a person or group dwells.

Social Ecology Theory

This theory is based on the contention that change is natural. Further, th***** theory suggests ***** when an area is invaded, competition erupts ***** competition leads to disorganization, which can spark deviance. This ***** disagrees with the social ***** theory, since the ***** presented by Shaw and McKay generalizes data to ***** ***** on an individual basis. However, the social ecological theory seeks to explain the high crime rates in urban areas ***** on ***** circumstances.

Strain Theories

The strain *****ory postulates that when regulati***** is inadequate (i.e. ***** and punishment) ***** problems arise.

Anomie *****

This theory adapted by Durkheim supports the ***** that individuals ***** lack the vehicles ***** help them realize their objectives eventually become disillusioned ***** may ultimately turn towards a l*****e ***** crime. There are two main types of strain. Structural strain is the method that improper law enforcement causes a ***** to view his or her needs. Individu*****l strain is the pressure that people feel while