Preview

Anomy Theory To Explain White Collar Crime

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
173 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Anomy Theory To Explain White Collar Crime
It is in this article that Messner and Rosenfeld’ version of anomy theory can be applied to explain white-collar crime. In Messner and Rosenfeld’s book Crime and the American Dream they outline their own version of strain theory, the ‘American Dream’, which highlights how in American individuals want to be successful, that success is measured in money, and that the perverseness of money compels people to break the law because of the limitations that the legal economy represents (Messner and Rosenfeld, 8). They aim to explain why white-collar offenders commit their crime and they believe that anomy theory explains white-collar crime. In their case, they show the commitment that people and groups put into the schemes in order to obtain their
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Shrock paper one
    • 1747 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Shrock paper one

    Throughout the novel Burglars on the Job: Streetlife and Residential Beak-ins, the authors Richard T. Wright and Scott Decker study the interactions of those who are within the subculture of being burglars and how, why and who they commit these offenses toward. Within this paper we will be discussing the relationship of Merton's anomie theory and how this theory correlates to the acts and motivation of the individuals to accomplish the ability to acquire the means of society. Also we will be evaluating these individuals by explaining Hirschi's social bonds theory allowing this to help us better understand those who have personal relationships and what effects this has on the individual. Lastly we will be observing how socialization into a street culture can affect the individuality and play a vast role on one's life while viewing the aspects of hustler' criminality, low self-control and culturalization of immediate gratification.…

    • 1747 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    the 1950s can be seen as a period of great prosperity for the people of britain
    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages

    the 1950s can be seen as a period of great prosperity for the people of britain

    However, Merton another functionalist argued that many types of crime exist because society as a whole shares the same ‘American dream’ (i.e. to become rich and successful), but not everyone can achieve these things lawfully, so a strain exists between the goals and ambitions of people and their ability to achieve them. The problem with Merton’s strain theory is that there are many people in society who have not achieved the so called ‘American dream’ but haven’t turned to crime, so it can be argued that crime is committed collectively and maybe because of a lack of socialisation and upbringing.…

    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    General Strain Theory Essay
    • 710 Words
    • 3 Pages

    General Strain Theory Essay

    The general assumptions of strain/anomie perspective basically discuss that social structures within our culture could coerce people into group and situations that would push them to commit crime. The reason why I chose this over subcultural perspective is because the strain/anomie perspective has more application to explaining the causes of crime though expounding upon certain goals and motivations than to claim that certain groups and subcultures of people just have a great affinity for crime that others. I argue that out of all of the strain/anomie perspectives, Agnew’s general strain theory provide the best explanation for the overrepresentation of homicides in inner-city areas. While the other theories claim that they can identify the causes that give people the motivation to commit…

    • 710 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Criminal Organizations Summary
    • 598 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Criminal Organizations Summary

    Understanding Organized Crime. Theories on the Continued Existence of Organized Crime. Pages 34-37 Mallory, S.L. (2007) Retrieved from https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2/content/DownloadList.aspx?assetMetaId=80647a1e-232e-41f2-9c58-f80755c47750&assetDataId=ccc7d548-ba92-468c-ab40-d393b2753e85 on January 24, 2011…

    • 598 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Access to Opportunity Structures in Causing Crime and Deviance
    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Access to Opportunity Structures in Causing Crime and Deviance

    There are many different factors that have to be considered when examining the role of access to opportunity structures in causing crime and deviance. Merton’s ‘Strain theory and anomie’ argues that deviance arises from the structure of society and that unequal access to legitimate opportunity structures is the cause of deviant behaviour. The main point that Merton’s theory outlines is the fact that people engage in deviant behaviour because they are unable to achieve socially approved goals by legitimate means, and when most people share similar goals for example financial success in an unequal society not all individuals have the opportunity to realise those goals by approved means, therefore they feel different, as the dominant rules how to achieve success don’t meet their needs, and as a result deviance occurs.…

    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Social Organized Crime Perspective Paper
    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Social Organized Crime Perspective Paper

    Many could argue that organized crime takes place in our society because of the circumstances in which our society has chosen to exist. It could have been started because of rules, regulations, and laws that we have placed upon ourselves that not every person agrees with. It could be a problem because several of the people within our society choose to live differently because they feel they can. Whatever the logic behind the choice organized crime does exist in our society and has for quite some time. In this paper will take a look at the perspective of social organized crime. We will discuss and explain the term social institution and how it applies to organized crime. We will discuss empirical and speculative theories that are most applicable to our perspective as they apply to organized crime and overall criminal behavior.…

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    General Strain Theory Analysis
    • 596 Words
    • 3 Pages

    General Strain Theory Analysis

    (1997), states that the strain theory can be applied to criminal activity in San Jose, and to better understand why crime continues to increase or decrease. We have concluded that there is a chance that robbery, burglary, larceny-theft and motor vehicle theft increased in 2010 is due to the great recession the country experience between 2007 and 2009. Due to the loss of property, employment and negative strains individuals were facing, could have contributed to the increase of violent and property crimes. There have been many studies that have applied the strain theory to understand crime and why individuals commit the crime (Botchkovar, & Broidy, 2013; Ferguson, Bender, and Thompson, 2016; Johnson, 1997). We can see that crime often occurs when there is a gap between desirable goals, such as money, personal goods, material goals and prestige and people do not have a legitimate way of obtaining these goals.…

    • 596 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Negative Effects Of White Collar Crime
    • 217 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Negative Effects Of White Collar Crime

    White caller crime is slow poison for the human society. There are many negative effects associated with society. Such as economical effect and social effect. In social effect people have to lose money and in social effect, the negative effect is connected with the family. If any case your personal information are hacked by hackers so it will huge problem for us and it creates many issues on social life. Because hackers can use those information for unethically purpose. According to my understanding, white collar crime is not victimless crime. White collar crime commits manly in public sectors. Therefore, people are the main victims in the white collar crime.…

    • 217 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Connection Between Social Strain Theory And Anomie
    • 1219 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Connection Between Social Strain Theory And Anomie

    The feeling of disconnect and indifference due to a disagreement between a society and of the individual can lead to deviance and criminal activity. Understanding the connection between the Social Strain Theory and anomie help explain the variables that motivate people towards criminal activity or deter them away from it. These concepts help explain the concentration of crime in lower class and minority communities, as well as the generally high crime rate in American society but fail to explain violent crimes such as homicide and assault or why people choose one adaptation over the…

    • 1219 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Personal Perception of Organized Crime Paper
    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Personal Perception of Organized Crime Paper

    Crime itself is a general term that describes acts that are going against the grain of law and what is considered legal. Illegal acts do not necessarily have to hurt anyone in particular, and it does not mean that violence has to be part of a crime. A criminal act could be as simple as stealing a blouse or shirt from a department store. In the case of organized crime, the term changes significantly. Organized crime consist of a group of people who have an agenda or a structured plan of corruption, that is to say, a program in place to commit illegal acts to gain power through financial gain, and powerful influence or reputation among the same criminal organization or in the publics eye. Though, the power or prestige gained in the public’s eye does not automatically mean that people in society know of the corruption that particular person in power is involved in.…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Sociology- Criminology Essay Jan 2011
    • 1608 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Sociology- Criminology Essay Jan 2011

    One of these approaches is Merton’s Strain theory whose key idea is that deviance is the product of a delinquent subculture with different norms and values from the rest of society that provides an alternative opportunity structure for those denied a legitimate chance to succeed. According to Merton, deviance within society is a result of the culture and structure of society itself because he believes all members of society share common values and goals but do not always occupy the same economic and social positions. Therefore, they do not have equal opportunities to realise those goals. One example Merton uses is the ‘American Dream’ to illustrate his theory. The philosophy behind this believes anyone can achieve their goals of the American Dream regardless of their social background through normal means including hard work, determination etc. However, Merton argues that the pressure from society to achieve financial success actively pushes individuals to commit crimes because they want to achieve…

    • 1608 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    White Collar Crime
    • 537 Words
    • 3 Pages

    White Collar Crime

    The definition of white collar crime is still truly undefined by most experts. There are many variations as well as specific traits. For example, the type of offender or the type of offense. Some however believe white collar crime is mainly related to economic and corporate crime only. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has opted to approach white collar crime in terms of the offense verses the offender. The FBI’s definition is: illegal acts which are characterized by deceit, concealment, or violation of trust and which are not dependent upon the application or threat of physical force or violence. Individuals and organizations commit these acts to obtain money, property, or services; to avoid the payment loss of money or services; or to…

    • 537 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Immigration And Crime Essay
    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Immigration And Crime Essay

    To begin with, Social structure theories enlighten on how social economic structures can influence economic opportunities in our society, which then could also lay an impact on criminal tendency to a person. According to (author), strain theory, developed by Merton, states that there are certain things or circumstances that could increase the likelihood of a person to commit a crime, these are known as strains or stressor. These strains or stressors create a negative impact to the person’s emotions such as frustration and anger. These types of emotions influence the corrective actions and behaviors of an individual, thus committing a crime is an unavoidable result. Moreover, material success, such as cars,…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Use Of Offender-Based Approaches To White Collar Crime
    • 393 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Use Of Offender-Based Approaches To White Collar Crime

    Offender based approaches to white collar crime is define with emphasis as an essential characteristic of crime dealing with high social status, power, and respectability of the actor. A strength to this type of approach allows the social stigmatism of the “criminal” offender to be destabilized in the public view. Drawing attention to the ideation that people within high society or social standing can and will commit crime. This approach while breaking the social norms of antisocial behavior lends itself to weakness within the theory. While using social standing and status as part of the approach, researchers have a challenging time translating that in to useable data for comparison. The actual cost of the crime can’t always be measured…

    • 393 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Best Essays

    Critically Evaluate Feminist Explanations of Female Criminal Behaviour.
    • 2514 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Critically Evaluate Feminist Explanations of Female Criminal Behaviour.

    Marsh, I., Melville G., Norris G., Morgan K., Walkington, Z. (2006). Theories of Crime. London: Taylor & Francis Ltd. P125.…

    • 2514 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Best Essays
    Read More

Related Topics