Mobilization for youth (moby) was based on what theory?

c h a p t e r 4

Sociological Views of Delinquency CHAPTER OUTLINE

SOCIAL FACTORS AND DELINQUENCY

SOCIAL STRUCTURE THEORIES Social Disorganization Anomie/Strain Cultural Deviance

SOCIAL PROCESS THEORIES: SOCIALIZATION AND DELINQUENCY Preventing and Treating Delinquency: SafeFutures: Using Community Resources to Prevent and Control Youth Crime and Victimization What Does This Mean to Me? Tools That Can Make a Difference Preventing and Treating Delinquency: Dare to Be You Social Learning Theories Social Control Theories Social Reaction Theories

SOCIAL CONFLICT THEORIES Law and Justice The Conflict Concept of Delinquency Social Structure Theories and Delinquency Prevention Social Process Theories and Delinquency Prevention Social Reaction Theories and Delinquency Prevention Social Conflict Theories and Delinquency Prevention

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

After reading this chapter you should:

1. Know what is meant by the term social disorganization.

2. Understand the relationship between neighborhood fear, unemployment, social change, and lack of cohesion and delinquent behavior patterns.

3. Be familiar with the concept of strain and anomie.

4. Comprehend the elements of general strain theory and the concept of negative affective states.

5. Understand how cultural deviance creates a breeding ground for gangs and law-violating groups.

6. Know the social processes that have been linked to delinquency.

7. Be able to differentiate between learning and control theories.

8. Identify the elements of labeling and stigma that reinforce delinquency.

9. Recognize the role that social conflict plays in creating an environment that breeds antisocial behaviors.

10. Be familiar with the social programs that have been designed to improve neighborhood conditions, help children be properly socialized, and reduce conflict.

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82 C H A P T E R 4

The kids who are being helped by the No More Victims programs often live in tough urban environments in families torn apart and in stress. Although there may be some factors related to delinquent behavior at the individual level, the majority of delinquency experts believe that the key to understanding delinquent behavior lies in the social environment. Most delinquents are indigent and desperate, not calculating or evil. Most grew up in deteriorated parts of town and lack the social support and economic resources familiar to more affluent members of society. Understanding delinquent behavior, then, requires analyzing the influence of these destructive social forces on human behavior.

Explanations of delinquency as an individual-level phenomenon fail to account for these consistent social patterns in delinquency. If violence is related to biochemi- cal or chromosomal abnormality, then how can we explain the fact that some areas of the city, state, and country have much higher crime and delinquency rates than others? Large cities have more crime problems than rural towns; inner-city areas have higher delinquency rates than suburban areas. It is unlikely that all people with physical or mental problems live in one section of town or in one area of the coun- try. Some individual-level theorists believe that viewing violent TV shows can cause aggression. Yet adolescents in rural and suburban areas watch the same shows and movies as kids who live in the city. If the media causes violence, how can urban-rural delinquency rate differences be explained? If violence has a biological or psychologi- cal origin, should it not be distributed more evenly throughout the social structure, as opposed to being concentrated in certain areas?

SOCIAL FACTORS AND DELINQUENCY What are the critical social factors believed to cause or affect delinquent behaviors?

■ Interpersonal interactions. The shape of interpersonal relationships may be a source of delinquent behavior. Social relationships with families, peers, schools, jobs, criminal justice agencies, and the like, may play an important role in creat- ing or restraining delinquency.1 In contemporary American society, there has been a reduction in the influence of the family and an increased emphasis on individuality, independence, and isolation. Weakened family ties have been linked to crime and delinquency.2

It is difficult to be a teen today. Some

kids are being raised in indigent areas

that are the sites of poor housing, un-

derfunded schools, and law-violating

youth gangs. Others are being raised in

dysfunctional families, and some are la-

beled as “losers” from the day they are

born. Kids whose parents are convicted

criminals serving prison sentences often

face all three of these social problems.

The organization No More Victims,

founded in 1993 by Marilyn K. Gambrell,

an author and former Texas parole offi-

cer, works with parents and students to

help them cope with the roadblocks in

their lives. No More Victims teaches kids

to understand their personal pain, and

in so doing, learn how to stop hurting

themselves and others.

VIEW THE CNN VIDEO CLIP OF THIS

STORY AND ANSWER RELATED CRITICAL

THINKING QUESTIONS ON YOUR JUVENILE

DELINQUENCY: THE CORE 2E CD.

culture of poverty View that lower-class people form a separate culture with their own values and norms, which are sometimes in conflict with con- ventional society.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

■ Community ecological conditions. Residing in a deteriorated inner-city area that is wracked by poverty, decay, fear, and despair influences delinquency. These areas are the home of delinquent gangs and groups.

■ Social change. Political unrest and mistrust, economic stress, and family disinte- gration are social changes that have been found to precede sharp increases in crime rates. Conversely, stabilization of traditional social institutions typically precedes crime rate declines.3

■ Socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic status may also affect delinquency. It seems logical that people on the lowest rung of the economic ladder will have the great- est incentive to commit crime: they may be enraged by their lack of economic success or simply financially desperate and disillusioned. In either instance, delin- quency, despite its inherent dangers, may appear an attractive alternative to a life of indigence. Economic influences may be heightened by the rapid advance in technology; kids who lack the requisite social and educational training have found the road to success almost impassable. A lack of opportunity for upward mobility may make drug dealing and other crimes an attractive solution for so- cially deprived but economically enterprising people.4

In this chapter we will review the most prominent social theories of delinquency. They are divided into three main groups: (1) social structure theories hold that delin- quency is a function of a person’s place in the economic structure; (2) social process theories view delinquency as the result of a person’s interaction with critical elements of socialization; and (3) social conflict theories consider delinquent behavior to be a result of economic deprivation caused by the inequities of the capitalist system of production.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE THEORIES In 1966, sociologist Oscar Lewis coined the phrase culture of poverty to describe the crushing burden faced by the urban poor.5 According to Lewis, the culture of poverty is marked by apathy, cynicism, helplessness, and mistrust of institutions such as police and government. Mistrust of authority prevents the impoverished from taking advan- tage of the few conventional opportunities available to them. The result is a permanent

S O C I O L O G I C A L V I E W S O F D E L I N Q U E N C Y 83

Social scientists find that stabi- lization of traditional social institutions usually precedes crime rate declines. Crime rates respond to the ability of social institutions, such as the police, to achieve public acceptance. Here, Officer James R. Clarke hands out his trading cards to students at Hardy Elementary School in Smithfield, Virginia. The cards, paid for through a community policing grant, act as public relations for the Smithfield department, which is trying hard to reach out to children.

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Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

underclass whose members have little chance of upward mobility or improvement. This extreme level of eco- nomic and social hardship has been related to psycho- logical maladjustment: people who live in poverty are more likely to suffer low self-esteem, depression, and loneliness.6

Nowhere are urban problems more pressing than in the inner-city neighborhoods that experience con- stant population turnover as their more affluent resi- dents move to stable communities or suburbs. Social conditions have actually worsened in some urban areas during the past decade.7 As a city becomes hollowed out, with a deteriorated inner core surrounded by less devastated communities, delinquency rates spiral up- ward.8 Those remaining are forced to live in communi- ties with poorly organized social networks, alienated populations, and high crime.9 Members of the urban underclass, typically minority group members, are referred to by sociologist William Julius Wilson as the truly disadvantaged.10

The impoverished are deprived of a standard of living enjoyed by most other citizens, and their chil- dren suffer from much more than financial hardship. They attend poor schools, live in substandard housing, and lack good health care. More than half of families in poverty are fatherless and husbandless; many are supported entirely by government aid. Instead of in- creasing government aid to the needy, however, in the past decade a concerted effort has been made to limit eligibility for public assistance.

Neighborhoods that provide few employment opportunities are the most vulnerable to predatory crime. Unemployment destabilizes households, and unstable families are more likely to produce children who choose aggression as a means of dealing with lim- ited opportunity. Lack of employment opportunity also limits the authority of parents, reducing their abil- ity to influence children. Because adults cannot serve as role models, the local culture is dominated by gangs whose members are both feared and respected. Preda-

tory crime increases to levels that cannot easily be controlled by police. Hundreds of studies have documented the association between family poverty and children’s health, achievement, and behavior.11 Children in poor families suffer many prob- lems, including inadequate education. They are less likely to achieve in school and to complete their schooling than are children with more affluent parents.12

Poor children are more likely to suffer from health problems and to receive inadequate health care. Unfortunately, the number of children covered by health insurance has decreased and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.13

Lack of coverage almost guarantees that these children will suffer health problems that will impede their long-term development. Children who live in extreme poverty or who remain poor for extended periods exhibit the worst outcomes.14

Poor children are much more likely than the wealthy to suffer social ills ranging from low birthweight to never earning a college degree. The cycle of poverty can lead to a variety of adverse outcomes, including life- and health-endangering condi- tions (see Figure 4.1). Providing adequate care to children under these circumstances can be an immense undertaking.

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There are more than 13 million kids living in poverty in the United States. Poor children are more likely to receive inade- quate health care and as a result they will suffer health problems that will impede their long-term development. Children living in poverty are much more likely than the wealthy to suffer social ills ranging from low birth weight to never earning a college degree. They are at great risk for crime and delinquency.

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To read the transcript of an interview with Dr. William Julius Wilson, click on Web Links under the Chapter Resources at http://cj. wadsworth.com/siegel_ jdcore2e.ht

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Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

This view of delinquency is both structural and cultural. It holds that delinquency is a consequence of the inequalities built into the social structure and the cultural val- ues that form in inner-city, poverty areas. Even youths who receive the loving support of family members are at risk of delinquency if they suffer from social disadvantage.15

The social structure theories tie delinquency rates to socioeconomic conditions and cultural values. Areas that experience high levels of poverty and social disorganiza- tion will also have high delinquency rates. Residents of such areas view prevailing social values skeptically; they are frustrated by their inability to be part of the American

S O C I O L O G I C A L V I E W S O F D E L I N Q U E N C Y 85

Figure 4.1 Examples of Documented Pathways from Poverty to Adverse Child Outcomes

Source: Arloc Sherman, Poverty Matters (Washington, DC: Children’s Defense Fund, 1997), p. 23.

Iron deficiency

Anemia and problems with problem solving, motor coordination, attention, concentra- tion, and lower long- term IQ scores

Financial barriers to college

Lower school attainment

Fewer books and lessons, fewer family trips and extra- curricular activities

Lower academic achievement

Child must work or care for siblings

More mind wander- ing and less effort in school, lower school enrollment and attainment

Homelessness

Infant mortality, chronic diarrhea, asthma, delayed immunizations, family separation, and missed school

Frequent moving

Not completing high school

Utility shut-offs

Home fire deaths

Water leakage

Mold and cockroaches

Asthma

Inferior child care

Child stress (measured by higher stress hormone levels), anxious and aggressive behavior, and less active or friendly behavior

Perceived financial hardship

Parental stress and depression

Family conflict, less effective parenting behavior, marital strain, and breakup

Child behavior problems, aggressiveness, delinquency, and learning problems

Peeling paint, falling plaster, and fewer opportunities to clean and repaint

Lead poisoning

Low birthweight, hearing loss, brain and kidney damage, reading disability, lower IQ scores, dropping out of school, and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders

Poverty

Poor nutrition

Family stress

Fewer resources for learning

Housing problems

underclass Group of urban poor whose mem- bers have little chance of upward mobility or improvement.

truly disadvantaged According to William Julius Wil- son, those people who are left out of the economic mainstream and reduced to living in the most deteriorated inner-city areas.

social structure theories Those theories which suggest that social and economic forces operat- ing in deteriorated lower-class areas, including disorganization, stress, and cultural deviance, push residents into criminal behavior patterns.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

Dream. Structural theories are less concerned with why an individual youth becomes delinquent than with why certain areas experience high delinquency rates.

All social structure theorists are linked in their belief that social conditions con- trol behavior choices. However, there are different interpretations of the nature of the interaction between social structure and individual behavior choices. Three promi- nent views stand out: social disorganization, anomie/strain, and cultural deviance.

Social Disorganization The concept of social disorganization was first recognized early in the twentieth century by sociologists Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay. These Chicago-based schol- ars found that delinquency rates were high in what they called transitional neigh- borhoods—areas that had changed from affluence to decay. Here, factories and commercial establishments were interspersed with private residences. In such envi- ronments, teenage gangs developed as a means of survival, defense, and friendship. Gang leaders recruited younger members, passing on delinquent traditions and en- suring survival of the gang from one generation to the next, a process referred to as cultural transmission. While mapping delinquency rates in Chicago, Shaw and McKay noted that distinct ecological areas had developed what could be visualized as a series of concentric zones, each with a stable delinquency rate (see Figure 4.2).16

The areas of heaviest delinquency concentration appeared to be the poverty-stricken, transitional, inner-city zones. The zones farthest from the city’s center were the least prone to delinquency. Analysis of these data indicated a stable pattern of delinquent activity in the ecological zones over a sixty-five-year period.17

According to the social disorganization view, a healthy, organized community has the ability to regulate itself so that common goals (such as living in a crime-free area) can be achieved; this is referred to as social control.18 Those neighborhoods that become disorganized are incapable of social control because they are wracked by deterioration and economic failure; they are most at risk for delinquency.19 In areas where social control remains high, children are less likely to become involved with deviant peers and engage in problem behaviors.20 Social institutions like schools and churches cannot work effectively in the climate of alienation and mistrust that char- acterizes disorganized areas. The absence of political power limits access to external funding and protection; without outside resources and financial aid, the neighbor- hood cannot get back on its feet.21

Children who reside in disorganized neighborhoods find that involvement with conventional social institutions, such as schools and after-school programs, is either absent or blocked, which puts them at risk for recruitment into gangs.22

These problems are stubborn and difficult to overcome. Even when an attempt is made to revitalize a disorganized neighborhood by creating institutional support programs such as community centers and better schools, the effort may be countered by the ongoing drain of deep-rooted economic and social deprivation.23 Even in relatively crime-free rural areas, areas that are disorganized because of residential instability, family disruption, and changing ethnic composition have relatively high rates of delinquent behavior and youth violence.24

A number of concepts define contemporary social disorganization theory.

Relative Deprivation According to the concept of relative deprivation, in communities where the poor and the wealthy live relatively close to one another, kids who feel they are less well off than others begin to form negative self-feelings and hostility, a condition that motivates them to engage in delinquent and antisocial behaviors.25 This feeling of relative deprivation fuels the frustration that eventually produces high delinquency rates.

Community Change Some impoverished areas are being rehabilitated or gen- trified, going from poor, commercial, or transient to stable, residential, and affluent.

86 C H A P T E R 4

The Northwestern Univer- sity/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research examines what it means to be poor and live in America. Find this Web site by clicking on Web Links under the Chapter Resources at http://cj.wadsworth.com/ siegel_ jdcore2e.

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social disorganization Neighborhood or area marked by culture conflict, lack of cohesive- ness, a transient population, and insufficient social organizations; these problems are reflected in the problems at schools in these areas.

transitional neighborhood Area undergoing a shift in popula- tion and structure, usually from middle-class residential to lower- class mixed use.

cultural transmission The process of passing on deviant traditions and delinquent values from one generation to the next.

social control Ability of social institutions to influence human behavior; the justice system is the primary agency of formal social control.

relative deprivation Condition that exists when people of wealth and poverty live in close proximity to one another; the relatively deprived are apt to have feelings of anger and hostility, which may produce criminal behavior.

gentrified The process of transforming a lower-class area into a middle- class enclave through property rehabilitation.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

Other formerly affluent communities are becoming rundown. As communities go through these changes, levels of delinquency increase.26

Communities on the downswing are likely to experience increases in the number of single-parent families, changes in housing from owner- to renter-occupied units, a loss of semiskilled and unskilled jobs, and the growth in the numbers of discouraged, unemployed workers who are no longer seeking jobs. These communities also tend to develop mixed-use areas in which commercial and residential properties stand side by side, an ecological development that increases the opportunity to commit crime.27

Community Fear Disorganized neighborhoods suffer social incivility—trash and litter, graffiti, burned-out buildings, drunks, vagabonds, loiterers, prostitutes, noise, congestion, angry words. This evidence of incivility convinces residents that their neighborhood is dangerous and in decline.28 They become fearful and wary and try not to leave their homes at night.

Fear of crime is much higher in disorganized neighborhoods than in affluent suburbs.29 Residents have little confidence that the government can do anything to

S O C I O L O G I C A L V I E W S O F D E L I N Q U E N C Y 87

Figure 4.2 Concentric Zones Map of Chicago

Loop Lake Michigan

IV

V

VI

VII

VIII

IX

III

II

I

4. 1

5. 8

7. 5

9. 7

12 .9

24 .5

3. 73.

83. 5

Note: Arabic numerals represent the rate of male delinquency.

Source: Clifford R. Shaw, Delinquency Areas (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1929), p. 99.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

counter the drug dealers and gangs that terrorize the neighborhood.30 They tell oth- ers of their experiences, spreading the word that the neighborhood is dangerous. Businesses avoid these areas and neighbors try to move out and relocate to other, safer areas. As people and businesses leave, the neighborhood becomes even more destabilized and crime rates soar. Neighborhood kids may adjust psychologically by taking risks and discounting the future; teenage birthrates soar, and so do violence rates.31 As crime rates rise, so does fear.32

In fear-ridden neighborhoods, social institutions cannot mount an effective social control effort. Because the population is transient, interpersonal relationships tend to be superficial. Neighbors don’t know each other and can’t help each other out. Social institutions such as schools and religious groups cannot work effectively in a climate of mistrust. When community social control efforts are blunted, crime rates increase, further weakening neighborhood cohesiveness.33 As cohesiveness declines, fear increases, which reduces community cohesion and thwarts the ability of its institutions to exert social control over its residents.34 This never-ending cycle is shown in Figure 4.3.

Community Cohesion In contrast to disorganized areas, cohesive communi- ties have high levels of social control and social integration; people know one an- other and develop interpersonal ties.35 Residents of these areas develop a sense of collective efficacy: mutual trust and a willingness to intervene in the supervision of children and help maintain public order.36 Communities that are able to maintain collective efficacy can utilize their local institutions—businesses, stores, schools, churches, and social service and volunteer organizations—to control crime.37 These institutions can be effective in helping kids avoid gang membership, thereby lower- ing neighborhood crime rates.38 Parents in these areas are able to call on neighbor- hood resources to help control their children; single mothers do not have to face the burden of providing adequate supervision alone.39

Anomie/Strain Inhabitants of a disorganized inner-city area feel isolated, frustrated, ostracized from the economic mainstream, hopeless, and eventually angry. These are all signs of what sociologists call strain. How do these feelings affect criminal activities? To relieve strain, indigent people may achieve their goals through deviant methods, such as theft or drug trafficking, or they may reject socially accepted goals and substitute more deviant goals, such as being tough and aggressive.

Strain theorists view crime as a direct result of lower-class frustration and anger. Strain is limited in affluent areas because educational and vocational opportunities

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Figure 4.3 The Cycle of Social Disorganization

Disorganization

Weak community cohesiveness

Weakened social controlsIncreased fear

Neighborhood change

Weak social controls • Formal • Informal

Fear

collective efficacy A process in which mutual trust and a willingness to intervene in the supervision of children and help maintain public order creates a sense of well-being in a neighbor- hood and helps control antisocial activities.

strain A condition caused by the failure to achieve one’s social goals.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

are available. In disorganized areas, strain occurs because legitimate avenues for suc- cess are all but closed.

It was Robert Merton (1910–2003), one of America’s preeminent sociologists, who adopted the concept of strain to explain crime and delinquency. Merton argued that although most people share common values and goals, the means for legitimate economic and social success are stratified by socioeconomic class. Upper-class kids have ready access to good education and prestigious jobs; kids in the lower class rarely have such opportunities. Without acceptable means for obtaining success, individuals feel social and psychological strain; Merton called this condition anomie. Consequently, these youths may either (1) use deviant methods to achieve their goals (for example, stealing money) or (2) reject socially accepted goals and substitute deviant ones (for example, becoming drug users or alcoholics). Feelings of anomie or strain are not typically found in middle- and upper-class communities, where educa- tion and prestigious occupations are readily obtainable. In lower-class areas, how- ever, strain occurs because legitimate avenues for success are closed. Considering the economic stratification of U.S. society, anomie predicts that crime will prevail in lower-class culture, which it does.40

General Strain Theory Merton’s view focuses on the strain that builds up when lower-class kids become frustrated because they lack the means for achieving their personal goals. In his general strain theory, sociologist Robert Agnew argues that there are actually more sources of strain than Merton realized (see Figure 4.4).41

1. Strain caused by failure to achieve positively valued goals. This type of strain will occur when youths aspire to wealth and fame but assume that such goals are impossible to achieve. Also falling within this category is the strain that occurs when individuals compare themselves with peers who seem to be doing a lot better, or when youths believe they are not being treated fairly by a parent or a teacher. Such perceptions may result in reactions ranging from running away from the source of the problem to lowering the benefits of others through physi- cal attacks or vandalism of their property. For example, the student who believes

S O C I O L O G I C A L V I E W S O F D E L I N Q U E N C Y 89

Figure 4.4 Elements of General Strain Theory

Failure to achieve goals

Disjunction of expectations and achievements

Removal of positive stimuli

Presentation of negative stimuli

Sources of strain

Antisocial behavior

• Anger • Frustration • Disappointment • Depression • Fear

Negative affective states

• Drug abuse • Delinquency • Violence • Dropping out

anomie Normlessness produced by rapidly shifting moral values; according to Merton, anomie occurs when personal goals cannot be achieved using available means.

general strain theory Links delinquency to the strain of being locked out of the economic mainstream, which creates the anger and frustration that lead to delinquent acts.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

he is being “picked on” unfairly by a teacher slashes the tires on the teacher’s car for revenge.

2. Strain as the removal of positively valued stimuli. Strain may occur because of the loss of a positively valued stimulus.42 For example, the loss of a girlfriend or boyfriend can produce strain, as can the death of a loved one, moving to a new neighborhood, or the divorce or separation of parents.43 Loss of positive stimuli may lead to delinquency as the adolescent tries to prevent the loss, retrieve what has been lost, obtain substitutes, or seek revenge against those responsible for the loss. For example, a child who experiences parental separation or divorce early in his life may seek out deviant peers to help fill his emotional needs and in so doing increase his chances of delinquency.44

3. Strain as the presentation of negative stimuli. Strain may also be caused by nega- tive stimuli. Included in this category are such pain-inducing social interactions as child abuse, criminal victimization, school failure, and stressful events, rang- ing from verbal threats to air pollution. For example, children who are abused at home may take their rage out on younger children at school or become involved in violent delinquency.45

According to Agnew, adolescents engage in delinquency as a result of negative affective states—the anger, frustration, fear, and other adverse emotions that derive from strain. The greater the intensity and frequency of strain experienced, the greater their impact and the more likely they are to cause delinquency. Research supports many of Agnew’s claims: kids who report feelings of stress and anger are more likely to interact with delinquent peers and engage in criminal behaviors;46 people who fail to meet success goals are more likely to engage in illegal activities.47

In sum, kids who feel strain because of stress, disappointment, and anger are more likely to engage in delinquent behaviors.48 To relieve their feelings of frustra- tion, they may join deviant groups and gangs whose law-violating activities produce even more strain and pressures, which result in even more crime.49

Agnew himself has recently found evidence that experiencing violent victimiza- tion and anticipating future victimization are associated with antisocial behavior.50

This finding indicates not only that strain is produced by actual experiences but that it may result from anticipated ones.

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According to Agnew, strain may be caused by the presence of negative pain-inducing interac- tions within the family, such as child abuse and neglect. Chil- dren who are abused at home may take their rage out on younger children at school or become involved in violent delinquency. On the other hand, a warm, supportive family life, such as that shown here, can help kids cope with delinquency-producing environmental strain.

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negative affective states Anger, depression, disappoint- ment, fear, and other adverse emotions that derive from strain.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Core COPYRIGHT © 2005 Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc

Cultural Deviance The third structural theory, cultural deviance theory, holds that delinquency is a result of youths’ desire to conform to lower-class neighborhood cultural values that conflict with those of the larger society. Lower-class values include being tough, never showing fear, living for today, and disrespecting authority. In a socially disor- ganized neighborhood, conventional values such as honesty, obedience, and hard work make little sense to youths whose role models may include the neighborhood gun runner, drug dealer, or pimp. Those adolescents who share lower-class values and admire criminals, drug dealers, and pimps find it difficult to impress authority figures such as teachers or employers. They experience a form of culture conflict and are rendered incapable of achieving success in a legitimate fashion; as a result, they join together in gangs and engage in behavior that is malicious and negativistic.51

Both legitimate and illegitimate opportunities are closed to youths in the most disorganized inner-city areas.52 Consequently, they may join violent gangs to defend their turf, displaying their bravery and fighting prowess.53 Instead of aspiring to be “preppies” or “yuppies,” they want to be considered tough and street-smart.

Youths living in disorganized areas consider themselves part of an urban under- class whose members must use their wits to survive or they will succumb to poverty, alcoholism, and drug addiction.54 Exploitation of women abounds in a culture wracked by limited opportunity. Sexual conquest is one of the few areas open to lower-class males for achieving self-respect. The absence of male authority figures contributes to the fear that marriage will limit freedom. Peers heap scorn on anyone who allows himself to get “trapped” by a female, fueling the number of single-parent households. Youths who are committed to the norms of this deviant subculture are also more likely to disparage agents of conventional society such as police and teach- ers.55 By joining gangs and committing crimes, lower-class youths are rejecting the culture that has already rejected them; they may be failures in conventional society, but they are the kings and queens of the neighborhood.

If the culture of the community helps promote delinquency, then it may be pos- sible to prevent delinquency by reshaping community climate. That approach is the subject of the following Preventing and Treating Delinquency feature.