Deviance is the breaking of a social code. Social codes exist because of the shared agreement in society general about what is right and wrong. Society as a whole sees crime and deviance as wrong and punishable.
However, Functionalist sociologist, Durkheim, claims that a certain, limited amount of crime is necessary in society for it to exist. He says that a certain amount of crime means that when the offenders get punished it raises awareness about crime to the rest of the society. The punishment of the offenders can act as a deterrent to others. This is through things such as public humiliation and punishments such as public execution. Also, the criminal justice system creates a “spectacle” which portrays crime as wrong.
However, there are problems with Durkheim’s theory. This is because there is no way to tell what is “too much” crime to be useful and what is the “right amount of crime” for society. Durkheim also suggested that it was possible for people to use their power to change laws about what is seen as crime and deviance. This is through things such as the media with regards to rape within marriage, the rights of the woman etc.
Merton had a different theory to Durkheim. This is called the strain theory. He focused on the “American Dream” where money and wealth is a measure of success. He found that people had to have money to be seen as successful and if they couldn’t get their money by legal means, through businesses etc then they resorted to getting it through other means, This meant that people turned to crimes such as stealing and drug dealing as a way to earn money and be deemed as being “successful”.
However, there are also problems with Merton’s “strain theory”. Not everyone who commits a crime is doing it to earn money. Where does this fit into Merton’s theory? Some people were brought up with crime and turn to crime as a way of life. Others take drugs or steal just for the “fun” of it.
There are problems with each Functionalist approach to assessing crime and deviance in society as what fits on criminal and one crime doesn’t necessarily fit another. Therefore, what causes crime can’t be properly defined in society, especially since society is constantly changing, as are the norms and values within society. We can conclude by saying that functionalist theories are useful to describe crime and deviance, to a certain extent. It does have more flaws than positives.
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zafer904 (student)
