Theories Of Anomie

Emile Durkheim also mentioned anomie- which is the lack of regulation or breakdown of norms. It is a state of “normlessness”- people do not know where they belong. A disconnect emerges between your desires and what you can have. Masses of people did not feel connected to the whole because of the quick change from traditional to modern societies. According to Durkheim, it was the internalization of social morality. Too many people were not integrated into society, and their capacity of needs were unlimited. Industrialization dissolved restraints on the passions of humans. Traditional societies taught people to control their lives through religion. Modern, industrious, societies separated people through the division of labor. There is no limitation on what we desire or go after. There is social disorganization and too many possibilities. As a result we cannot reach our goals. Durkheim says there has to be a limitation on our wants and desires. In the film we saw people in traditional societies satisfied with what they had because noone around them had more or less. They were on a solidarity

Anomie, first developed by Emile Durkheim, is very evident in today's society. The concept of anomie, according to Durkheim, is a state of normlessness, where individuals are succumbed to deregulation in their lives and through out their society brought on by a social change. Robert K. Merton, following the ideas of Durkheim, developed his own notion of anomie, called Strain Theory. Merton argued that anomie was a day to day function in society, seen as a social structure that embraces the same goals to all of its members without giving them equal means to achieve them. In the name of progress, modern society has promised a better world, yet in modern society anomie has not become the exception but instead the norm.

The building blocks that construct and support today’s society are mounted on the pillars of delicate norms and precise social standards. Occasionally, as a result of political or economic or social upheaval, anomie lashes out. Anomie often occurs when individuals take a disinterest in the social expectations of society and focus on their own personal gain and interests. This creates a disturbance in the classic order of societies. Communities ignore the colloquial goal of being a cohesive group and begin to rely on their own intuition. The book “Teenage Wasteland” by Donna Gaines classically defines the result that anomie has on societies and individuals.

2. Durkheim: What term does Durkheim associate with social solidarity? How do societies achieve it organically and mechanically? What did he think threatened social solidarity?

Meaning: This is the idea that deviance is due to the pressure that the society puts on some people, therefore forcing them to deviate. It reminds of the old adage that “poverty breeds crime”. In support of structural strain theory of deviance, Robert Kline Merton borrowed Emile Durkheim’s concept of Anomie (i.e. normlessness) and applied it to deviance.

Anomie theory posits that US society focus heavily upon monetary success, but places little emphasis upon how this success is obtained. Strain theory proposals a very similar concept, but focus upon smaller units within society. It argues that while everyone aims to reach the middle class standard of success, people in some groups will be unable to achieve it via legitimate channels. These theories suggest that people how commit crime are trying to accomplish the

Combining age-graded theory and anomie theory would help explain criminality by using more variables that have been proven reliable. Merton 's theory created in the 1930s is ‘incomplete’ (Messner, & Rosenfeld, 2006) and life-course may help complete this theory. Anomie factors affect a person in adolescents differently than a person in adulthood, this is why adapting life course with anomie can be helpful. Merton states his view of biological variables, “It provides no basis for determining the non-biological conditions which induce deviations from predicted pattern of conduct.” (Merton, 1938, p.672). Individual variables like biological factors are important, but they are aspects of criminality.

“According to Durkheim, the state of normlessness that people find themselves in as a result of a

Following the Biological Criminology was Sociological Mainstream Theories. Foremost of these theories is the Anomie Theories of Emile Durkheim (1893), and Robert Merton (1938). Durkheim said that a moral malaise or normlessness may occur as a result of one’s failure to live according to the norms of the society, failure to adapt with changing norms, and or in conflict with the norms (Hagan, 2002). Hagan (2002) also cited that Merton viewed anomie as a condition occurring when there is a lack of means to achieve societal goals. Merton called this as Strain Theory.

With modernization and industrialization, labour became increasingly specialized. Before this in the pre- modern societies, all workers did almost the same work in order to sustain themselves. These workers shared social cohesion base on similarity and commonality among themselves. This ‘mechanical solidarity’ was soon replaced by ‘organic solidarity’. With organic solidarity social cohesion was based on each individual’s dependence on every other in the society for survival. (The Emile Durkheim Archive, Solidarity)

His views can be divided into three different theories; the form of solidarity, Anomie, and the division of labor. Durkheim explained that there are two different types of the social integration; which is mechanical and organic solidarity. He explained that the mechanical solidarity forms a group or community where people affiliate and feel the comfort by regulated by the shared rules and the systems of beliefs, which is we call common conscience. The mechanical solidarity has a strong social morality compare to organic solidarity. The organic solidarity is more like an opposite theory of mechanical solidarity. The organic solidarity is the society that is more focused on individual’s values, performance in different tasks, and form a society that has less social morality with less common conscience. Durkheim explained, as a society grows up, the division of labor increases and become powerful. The mechanical and organic solidarity must exist in our society to keep the balance between the inequality and equality. But at the same time, it also makes big distance between the high class and working class and it is causing working class to feel devastated because of the differences of advantages and disadvantages between the high class and working

Durkheim was one of the most influential sociologists in relation to the functionalist theories which stated society consisted of a structural consensus with a collective conscience of shared norms and values. He argued in order to establish the meaning of society one must understand the structures and social facts. He highlights changes in society from traditional societies which were linked with mechanical solidarity consisting of small scale ties with little division of labour. This in turn created a strong collective conscience of unity in comparison to modern society where differences amongst groups are promoted in turn weakening social solidarity. This is due to rapid changes within society in which Durkheim emphasises is due to a complex division of labour. Durkheim then argues that due to the combination of enlightenment notions and a capitalist society a collective conscience of individualism and greed is created. (Jones, Bradbury and Boutillier, 2011, pp.62-64)

Durkheim was an early sociologist whom is widely known for his theories on the structure of society, including its functioning in traditional and modern societies and the contrast between individualism yet social order. Unlike the other sociologists of his era, his theories analysed external features or "social facts", such as social structure, rather than internal/ psychological features such as a person 's desires and motives. These social facts are made up of the values, morals and structures within a society. "According to Durkheim collective consciousnesses, values and rules are critical to a functional society" (Hurst, 2015). Durkheim 's book "Suicide" (2002) presented the concept of anomie. "The term anomie refers to a condition or state in which

Dr. Merton expanded the research on Anomie with his theory on deviance and social strain. There are people who reaching for success but have different strategies on obtaining it. You have people who earn an honest living and others who will do anything to achieve success. Even if it means to indulge in criminal activity to be successful. “Dr. Merton believed that all United States citizens believed and strived for the “American Dream”; however, the ways in which citizens obtain the “American Dream” of success are not the same, simply

For the purpose of the study, anomie and planned behaviour theory have been applied since they bear relevant to the analysis of impact of solid waste on environment and health. The French sociologist Emile Durkheim introduced the term “Anomie” in his study of suicide (1897). He has also borrowed the word from the French philosopher Jean- Marie Guyau. According to Emile Durkheim, anomie is an absence of social values and norms. The anomie theory explains various forms of deviance. It is also called strain theory. When a social structure or system is in the state of abnormal or deviant, the common values, norms and meanings are no longer understood or accepted, and the new values, norms and meanings have not emerged or developed. According to Emile Durkheim, social facts are the subject issues of sociology. It is also defined as the patterns of behaviour that are capable of exercising some power upon individuals. The social facts guide and control conducts external to the individual in the form of norms, folkways and mores. Emile