Sociological Theory Of Criminological Analysis

People see crime as an individual problem and not one that involves the entire community; however, according to Natalie Boyd, a teacher with a PhD in psychology, the sociological theory of criminology believes that people become a criminal by the influence of their surroundings. The theory states that people are not born with an evil gene in their body, but from the environment they live in. There are three sociological theories of crime causation: strain, social learning, and control (Boyd). Each of the theories is different in account of what they focus on. It could either be the different features in the environment, different accounts of why the environment can cause crime and explaining the differences in individual crime and group crime

Merton stated that deviance was based on two criteria: a person’s motivation to their goals and a person’s belief of attaining their goal. His theory has fascinated people because it suggests that “people can turn to deviance in the pursuit of widely accepted social values and goals” (Boundless). An example would be selling illegal drugs in exchange of making large sums of money. It also illustrates that adolescents are exposed to different kinds of customs, like deviance or conformity (“Sociological Theories Crime”). From those who experience strain or stress would likely become upset and may engage in crime to “reduce or escape the strain they are experiencing” (“Sociological Theories”). For example, a teenage may run away from home to escape the abuse from their parents. One could also engage in violence to end being harassed by others. From a recent study by Robert Agnew, the social strain theory focuses on “the failure to achieve three related goals”, which are money, status/respect, and for adolescents, the autonomy from adults (“Sociological Theories”). The desire for money is probably the central

They argue that all people are more satisfied through the life of crime rather than through legal channels. Their way of thinking is that stealing money is easier than working hard for it (“Sociological Theories”). The conflict theory suggests that deviant behaviors are resulted from social, political, and the inequalities of a social group. Some groups would act defiantly in response of the inequalities: order to change the circumstances, change the social structure, or just “act out” against their oppressors (Boundless). The two types of control are direct and internal. Direct control occurs when family members provide the individual with rules that prohibits them from criminal behavior. Internal control comes from within: self-control. People who lack self-control are most likely impulsive, insensitive, risk taking, and nonverbal (“Sociological Theories”). In other words, crime is less likely to happen when others try to control a person’s