Sociology & Criminology for a Changing World
Travis Hirschi’s Social Bonds Theory (1969) is one of the most influential control theories in criminology. Rather than asking why people commit crime, Hirschi asks why they conform to rules at all. He argues that human beings have a natural tendency toward deviance, and that conformity results from effective social control rooted in strong social
Delinquency and Drift by David Matza (1964) represents a landmark critique of both positivist criminology (e.g., Lombroso) and contemporary theories of juvenile delinquency like Cloward & Ohlin’s differential opportunity theory and Cohen’s subcultural theory. Matza challenges the behavioral determinism in these approaches and argues instead for a nuanced, interactionist understanding of delinquency as a temporary,
Edwin M. Lemert’s concept of primary and secondary deviance is one of the most influential contributions to labelling theory. Building on symbolic interactionism and early ideas from Frank Tannenbaum’s „tagging“ concept, Lemert showed how social reactions to initial rule-breaking can shape identities and careers in deviance. Key Points Primary and Secondary Deviance Main Proponent: Edwin
Institutional Anomie Theory (IAT) argues that high crime rates result from a cultural emphasis on economic success combined with institutional imbalance. When economic values dominate other social institutions—such as family, education, and politics—social control weakens, leading to higher levels of utilitarian, self-interested behavior and, ultimately, crime. Key Points Institutional Anomie Theory (IAT) Main Proponents: Steven
Robert Agnew’s General Strain Theory (GST) extends and refines the classical anomie and strain approaches by broadening the range of sources of strain and by offering a more nuanced, psychologically informed explanation of how strain leads to crime. Unlike Merton, who focused on the disjunction between culturally valued goals and socially legitimate means, Agnew emphasized
Social disorganization theory assumes that crime rates are constant in areas with certain environmental conditions, such as high unemployment, population fluctuation or material decay. Such conditions prevent social organization and cohesion in the neighbourhood and thus informal social control of delinquency. Once crime is widespread, criminal norms and values that compete with normative values are