Social Disorganization Theory Of Crime Analysis

Using criminological terms and concepts, focus on a jurisdiction, neighborhood, or geographic locale with which you are familiar. Regarding a human behavior which you select to focus on in that geographical space, write two concise yet comprehensive paragraphs on how social disorganization theory can inform your understanding of behavior and place, and one weakness which would find your understanding somehow lacking, and why. Then write two equally compelling paragraphs on how routine activities theory would foster your understanding, and one weakness which might leave your understanding lacking, and why.

Social Disorganization; what is it? How does it affect me and the community that I live in? For many years’ residents in their particular community fought crime the best way they knew how. Some call the police, some protected their clan and yet others simply watch it happen, praying that they are not the next victim. So how do people stop crime when the police are nowhere around? Who can the residents turn to? The answer is simple; they turn to their neighbors.

To prevent crime, it is imperative that the law enforcement agencies and scholars examine why people commit crime. A number of theories have emerged and many still continue to be explored in exclusion and in combination to seek the best solutions that can ultimately reduce the types and the levels of crime. One such theory that is still being explored is social disorganization theory. According to this theory people's tendency to take part in criminal activities is largely determined by the neighborhood where they are brought up in especially if conditions favorable to crime and delinquency prevail in such places. When communities becomes incapable of realizing common goals and solve problems that its residents face, there is a high likelihood that its residents will engage in criminal activities (Sampson & Grove, 1989). Some of the problems that are likely to increase incidences of crime in neighborhoods when communities fail to address them are poverty, residential mobility, ethnic heterogeneity, and weak social networks. They decrease a neighborhood's capacity to control the behavior of people in public.

Have you ever watched the news and wondered why so much crime is taking place in or around your neighborhood and by whom? You're not alone in trying to figure out why that is happening. The city of Chicago was experiencing major crime in their neighborhood by juvenile delinquency and could not pinpoint the reason behind it. Criminology theorists went on a mission to find why crime was popular in the neighborhoods of Chicago. They created a theory called social disorganization theory which is also known as the theory of the Chicago school.

Social disorganization theory explains the ecological difference in levels of crime, simply based on cultural and structural factors that influence the social order in a given community. Social disorganization is triggered by poverty, social stability, ethnic heterogeneity, and a few key elements. Although Clifford Shaw and Henry D. McKay (1942), were known for social disorganization theory, in 1947 Edwin Sutherland introduced the notion of a ecological differences in crime that is the result of differential social organization. Despite similar arguments on social organization, Shaw and Mckay argued that the cultural integration explained the ecological variation in crime rates as a result of the negative impact on the community. Also elaborating on structural socioeconomic factors shaping informal control like poverty, heterogeneity, and residential mobility. Later Robert Sampson and Byron Groves (1989), refined the work of Shaw and Mckay by highlighting on the importance of social ties and new measures of social disorganization.

The social disorganization theory is directed towards social conditions. This theory argues that crime is due to social conflicts, change, and lack of consensus in the group.

Bursik (1988) states that, “… there persists a notable tendency in sociological theory to attribute the malfunctioning of social structure primarily to those of man’s imperious biological drives which are not adequately restrained by social control (p. 97). The concepts of social structural theory are based on the foundation of strain theory and social disorganization theory. The aspects of society can cause criminality, because of the various circumstances that are preventing opportunities for prosperity. Social structural processes are happening because of the various roots society has created for crime to take place, the various neighborhood effects of crime, and structural barriers that antecedents to crime. Also, individuals go beyond measures to coordinate with society new procedures; however, if that means committing a crime is a result, then all measure will be met.

We can use the social disorganization theory to address the idea that crime and criminal networks thrive in social disorganized neighborhoods. This theory explain that an area in which there is a disintegration of conventional values caused by urbanization, rapid industrialization and an increase in immigration may causes the development of high crime (Adler, Mueller,Laufer & Grekul, 2009, p.160). Cultural deviance theory also combines certain parts of this theory since it explains how the different set of values of disadvantaged or disorganized neighborhoods contributes to criminal behavior (Adler, Mueller,Laufer & Grekul, 2009, p.130). These theories can be explained with the movie City of God, since it addresses the idea of the context in which crime and criminal networks flourish. City of God is a slum in Rio de Janeiro, a lower class area, marked by poverty with low income group. It is evident that there is a weak community institution in the slum, which is lacking of agents of social control such as the police or even strong familial or friends relationships. It is mainly the people who live in the City of God that maintain order.

The fact that the social disorganization theory is pretty much you will that one one individual is influence of the people around him if he is in a neighbor hood known of robberies then the individual is more than likely going to be doing robberies. that is one example

The main arguments of the social disorganization theory of crime according to Shaw and McKay (1942) are that crime can be attributed to the absence of community unifying institutions. Social disorganization theory links the cause of crime to these specific neighborhood characteristics. Sampson and Groves (1989) stated that residential mobility, low economic status, ethnic heterogeneity, and family disruption are characteristics that lead to the social disorganization of a community thus, leading to an increase in crime and inherently causing a criminal subculture. Shaw and McKay (1942) focused their research in the “areas of transition” that had primarily all of the characteristics that led to social disorganization. According to Feldymeyer (lecture, 2/26/2014) the absence of institutions such as: extended family, good school, churches and local neighborhood organizations that cooperative with each other and work together for the betterment of the community as a whole, led to social disorganization. According to Sampson and Groves (1989) because of these neighborhood characteristics and the lack of social institutions of

Social Disorganisation Theory According to this theory, “crime is most likely to occur in communities with weak social ties and the absence of social control. It is the absence of moral and social solidarity that provide the conditions for social deviance to occur” (Little, et al., 2014, p. 217). Weinstein is a rich, powerful and influential producer in Hollywood.

One of the most predominant areas of study in sociology is in the explanation of crime and deviance in society. Criminal acts are those which violate established formal laws, whereas deviance refers to the breaking of social norms. Crime and deviance are a social construct as they are decided by the people in a society and can vary greatly depending on the society in question, as well as the time period being studied.

The textbook talks about social disorganization theory in chapter 7. The theory originated from the Chicago School of Ecology. Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay started this theory. Shaw did a lot of research on juvenile and their delinquency. The reason I think this theory would best describe race as it correlates to crime is because it says simply your neighborhood has a huge effect on your criminal activity. Cleveland has a west side of town that is predominantly white and a black side of town that is predominantly black. I am a police officer in Cleveland and we get majority of our calls on the west side of town. I am not saying the entire east side of town is criminal but certain parts of the area we get

Social Disorganization theory connects crime rates to neighborhood ecological characteristics. Based on the research and according to Osgood and Chambers, social disorganization theory specifies three important variables; residential instability, ethnic Heterogeneity, female-headed households. These three variables are considered to be the most criminogenic.

Social disorganization theory is part of the positivist paradigm of criminology, a scientific approach to crime causes, and part of the Chicago School of crime. While trait theories under the positivist approach assume that crime is cause by internal factors, social disorganization theory relies on the assumption that crime is caused by environmental