Explain Crime Rates Essay

The two theories with respect to criminology I would be using would be the Social Disorganization Theory and the Anomie Theory. Durkheim introduced the term ‘Anomie’ in the 19th or the early 20th century. He considered that Anomie had a major role to play with respect to social behavior. He felt that the level of moral consciousness may differ from one individual to another, and deviations often resulted in crime. Robert Merton developed ideas to establish a link between criminal behavior and Anomie. Merton considered that social pressures caused an individual to behave in a non-compliant or an abnormal manner. In society, an individual had certain goals and means of fulfilling these goals. Initially an individual may choose acceptable means to achieve these goals. However, as the situation deteriorates, he would be choosing increasingly unacceptable means to achieve the goals (Reid, 1985). The social disorganization theory was proposed by the Chicago School of Sociology. It is a situation in which divergence away from the normal is seen due to certain social situations. Any disturbance to normal social life would result in an increase in crime and disharmony. When social organization is present, positive relationship, values and goals also develop. Read more:Â  Essay About Crime Rate Increase in India In the past the social disorganization theory has been utilized to explain disturbance during the World War 1, World War 2 and the Great Depression (Reid, 1985). A criminal case in our local community was a string of suicides committed by three teenagers who attended school. Investigations revealed that the teenagers were not happy with the results they had obtained in High School. Studies revealed that the local leader, who was responsible for the educational policy adopted by the state, had adopted rather tough measures, which resulted in high failure rates and frustration in the school children. As the social pressures were high, the teenagers were behaving in a non-complaint or an unreasonable manner. This goes along with the Anomie theory. Studies also revealed that the other ministries that were responsible for public welfare were not functioning properly during that period. Hence, there was an increase in the social disorganization rate (as normal life was affected). The teenagers committing suicide expressed the dissatisfaction and the disharmony in the society. This helps to prove the Social Disorganization theory.