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Social Structure and Anomie

NCJ Number
149043
Journal
American Sociological Review Volume: 3 Issue: 5 Dated: (1938) Pages: 672- 682
Author(s)
R K Merton
Date Published
1938
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This paper suggests that certain phases of social structure generate the circumstances in which the violation of social codes constitutes a "normal" response.
Abstract
An effort is made to provide a coherent, systematic approach to the study of sociocultural sources of deviant behavior and to determine how some social structures pressure certain persons to engage in nonconformist rather than conformist conduct. Two important elements of social structure, cultural goals and institutional norms, are discussed in the context of socially approved values. Alternative modes of adjustment or adaptation by individuals are examined, including conformity, innovation, ritualism, and retreatism. Consideration is also given to the role of group pressures and standards and cultural demands in antisocial behavior, the link between crime and poverty, and differential social class symbols of achievement. 21 footnotes

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