Social Structure Theory Paper

Running Head: SOCIAL STRUCTURE THEORY Social Structure Theory Name: Course; Institution: Instructor: Introduction: Social structure theories have been found to lay the emphasis when evaluation people as the most important cause of deviant and criminal behaviors. They have been used to give credence to the widely held view that crime is largely as a result of disadvantages in the economic class position in the society. According to the social structural theories, in the highly dense low class neighborhood, there emerges forces that collude to create the ideal circumstanced for frustration, strain and disorganization, frustration which contribute majorly to the creation of crime. It should not be lost that the search for success is not the basis for the strain that causes crime but rather a combination of different factors such as neglect and abuse, deviant behavior, homelessness and frustration about poverty which individually one could easily overcome or address as exhibited in the movie Discussion: The Pelican Bay State Prison: War Zone is a classic movie that easily exposes the social structure theory. When the Pelican Bay State Prison was first mooted and created, it was intended for the hard core criminals who had proved disruptive in other prisons. However, it has changed over time to become the epic of criminal life with criminals going out of their way to get incarcerated in the prison. It highlights cases of criminals who engage in heinous crimes while in other maximum prison so as to be transferred to this facility. The social structure delves into how society is organized by social institutions, family educational, religious, economic and political institutions and stratified based on various roles and statuses. It is the intention of structural theorists to better understand the underlying causes of group crime rates as opposed to why particular individuals commit crimes. In the social structure theories, the individual is relegated to the background as the group takes center stage. The challenge thus becomes understanding the motivation behind the group psyche in making criminal decision. To best understand the social theories, one must view the society as a system consisting of mutually sustaining parts and characterized by broad normative agreement. It is these social institutions that keep the society running smoothly because of their specialized social functions. At the end of the day, irrespective of whether the role their play beneficial to the majority or not, each of the institutions does contribute to the smooth running of the society as a whole. One of the social structure theories is the Durkheim’s theory of anomie. With Anomie meaning lack of rules, plainly, the theory best captures the condition of normative deregulation in society. However, irrespective of how entrenched deregulation is practiced and embrace in society, there will be present mechanical solidarity in the form of small groups of people within the greater society come together motivated by their common and shared experiences and state of affairs, principles and tough emotional ties to the collectivity. In developing the theory, Durkheim points out that crime is common among all societies happening at all times thus making ...