CMY3701 FINAL PORTFOLIO EXAM
YEAR 2022 SEMESTER 1
STUDENT NUMBER,…………………………………
WE ALIGHT TUTORIAL
ACADEMIC SERVICES CONTACT 0611279778
EMAIL;
, ESSAY ANSWER TO QUESTION 1
Merton is best known for his theories of deviance, for his development of the
concepts "self-fulfilling prophecy", ―unintended consequences‖, ―role strain‖,
―reference group‖ ,"role model‖ and for founding the sociology of science. He is
considered to have been one of America 's most influential social scientists.In 1938,
Merton's ―Social Structure and Anomie,‖ one of the most important works of
structural theory in American sociology, Merton's basic assumption was that the
individual is not just in a structured system of action but that his or her actions may
be forced by the demands of the system. The basic idea of Robert K. Merton‘s
anomie theory is that most people strive to achieve culturally recognized goals. A
state of anomie develops when access to these goals is blocked to entire groups of
people or individuals. The result is a deviant behaviour characterized by rebellion,
retreat, ritualism, innovation, and/or conformity. Crime results predominantly from
innovation.
Merton‘s anomie theory was published in 1938, but due to the unawakened social
interest it represented a so-called ―sleep theory‖. Only the renewed publication in the
year 1954 provided for public interest. Merton refines Durkheim‘s remarks by
describing the missing social rules that lead to anomie and linking them to the aspect
of the value-medium discrepancy. Anomic conditions are no longer seen in the gap
between needs and satisfaction, but in the discrepancy between goals and means.
Crime arises from the divergence between the social objectives recognised as
legitimate and the limited access to the means necessary to achieve these
objectives. This discrepancy between goals and means varies from class to class,
YEAR 2022 SEMESTER 1
STUDENT NUMBER,…………………………………
WE ALIGHT TUTORIAL
ACADEMIC SERVICES CONTACT 0611279778
EMAIL;
, ESSAY ANSWER TO QUESTION 1
Merton is best known for his theories of deviance, for his development of the
concepts "self-fulfilling prophecy", ―unintended consequences‖, ―role strain‖,
―reference group‖ ,"role model‖ and for founding the sociology of science. He is
considered to have been one of America 's most influential social scientists.In 1938,
Merton's ―Social Structure and Anomie,‖ one of the most important works of
structural theory in American sociology, Merton's basic assumption was that the
individual is not just in a structured system of action but that his or her actions may
be forced by the demands of the system. The basic idea of Robert K. Merton‘s
anomie theory is that most people strive to achieve culturally recognized goals. A
state of anomie develops when access to these goals is blocked to entire groups of
people or individuals. The result is a deviant behaviour characterized by rebellion,
retreat, ritualism, innovation, and/or conformity. Crime results predominantly from
innovation.
Merton‘s anomie theory was published in 1938, but due to the unawakened social
interest it represented a so-called ―sleep theory‖. Only the renewed publication in the
year 1954 provided for public interest. Merton refines Durkheim‘s remarks by
describing the missing social rules that lead to anomie and linking them to the aspect
of the value-medium discrepancy. Anomic conditions are no longer seen in the gap
between needs and satisfaction, but in the discrepancy between goals and means.
Crime arises from the divergence between the social objectives recognised as
legitimate and the limited access to the means necessary to achieve these
objectives. This discrepancy between goals and means varies from class to class,
