Functionalist Theories on Deviance
This slideshow focuses on two functionalist theories as to why people engage in deviant acts:
- Durkheim's Functionalist Theory
- Merton's Strain Theory
Remember that under the Functionalist Theory, "functions" have positive effects on society and "dysfunctions" are harmful to society.
Emile Durkheim's observations about deviance (original text from The Division of Labour in Society, 1893):
Deviance, especially extreme forms of deviance, are functional in that they challenge and offend the established norms in the larger collective conscience. In other words, extreme deviance pushes norms enough to make members of society reconsider why they even consider some behaviors as being deviant.
So, why didn't Durkheim view deviance as "dysfunctional"?
First, Durkheim argued that deviance was enivitable and would always exist. Secondly, deviant behaviors themselves can be dysfunctional, however, deviance in general has some functional effects on society.
Three main points from Durkheim's theory:
- Point One: deviance reaffirms norms when the deviants are punished
- Point Two: deviance promotes solidarity among those who support and those who oppose the deviance.
- Point Three: deviance often stimulates social change.
You can apply Durkheim's three points to the events on 9/11:
- Point One: Americans came together in national unity to rally against the perpetrators of 9/11.
- Point Two: Because of the national grief experienced, 9/11 is a very real reminder of why terrorism is deviant.
- Point Three: The U.S. government has
pursued an aggressive anti-terrorism policy
since 9/11.
Merton's structural strain theory (or just Strain Theory) states that people feel strain when they are exposed to cultural goals that they are unable to obtain because they do not have access to culturally approved means of achieving those goals.
Robert Merton was a Functionalist who studied why people conform or deviate. Merton argues that the tension or strain between socially approved goals and an individual's ability to meet those goals through socially approved means leads to deviance. The deviance occurs when individuals reject either the goals, the means, or both.
Merton's Strain Theory brings together the concept of materialism with deviance. The average American sees the "American Dream" as a goal of monetary success. They typically desire to have the dream but realize that they often lack the means to attain it. So how does one respond to this goal gap realization? Merton identifies five ways in which people adapt: conformity, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion.
Conformity: Pursuing goals within socially accepted means.
Example: getting a socially acceptable job and being as successful as possible
Innovation: Pursuing goals by replacing legitimate means with deviant/criminal means to attain them.
Example: becoming successful through an illegal business, such as drug dealing
Ritualism: Rejecting the goals but abiding by the means.
Example: having a job but no desire to get a promotion
Retreatism: Rejecting the goals and means and not pursuing their goals.
Example: Choosing to remain homeless or becoming a hermit
Rebellion: Rejecting both the socially approved goals and the means to attain them and creating new goals and means to achieve the new goals.
Examples: A terrorist or a person living in a communal situation
Merton argues that all people who
engage in deviant behavior fall into
one of the five categories. The Strain
Theory is often used to explain deviance
by those living in lower income neighbor-
hoods who are typically depicted as being
left out of the economic mainstream,
hopeless, and resorting to turning their anger and rage toward other people or things. The structure of society and the economic status of the people involved are major factors in why some people commit deviant and/or criminal acts.
