What is strain theory? Describe the origin and its relationship to gangs

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Strain theory originated with Robert Merton, who borrowed the term anomie from the 19th-century French sociologist E´mile Durkheim and applied it to the problem of crime in America (Merton, 1968). The concept of anomie refers to inconsistencies between societal conditions and opportunities for growth, fulfillment, and productivity within a society (the term anomia has been used to refer to those who experience personal frustration and alienation as a result of anomie within a society). It also involves the weakening of the normative order of society—that is, norms (rules, laws, and so on) lose their impact on people. The existence of anomie within a culture can also produce a high level of flexibility in the pursuit of goals, even suggesting that it may at times be appropriate to deviate from the norms concerning the methods of achieving success.
Durkheim, writing during the late 19th century, suggested that under capitalism there is a more or less chronic state of deregulation and that industrialization had removed traditional social controls on aspirations. The capitalist culture produces in humans a constant dissatisfaction resulting in a never-ending longing for more and more. And there is never enough— whether this be money, material things, or power. There is a morality under capitalism that dictates "anything goes," especially when it comes to making money (it certainly applies to the modern corporation).
What Durkheim was hinting at (but never coming right out and saying it—this was said very forcefully by Karl Marx) was that a very strong social structure is needed to offset or place limits on this morality. In other words, strong institutions, such as the family, religion, and education, are needed to place some limits on us. But the failure of these institutions can be seen in our high crime rates and the fact that the economic institution is so powerful that it has sort of "invaded" and become dominant over other institutions. (More will be said about this shortly.)
The basic thesis of strain theory is this: Crime stems from the lack of articulation or fit between two of the most basic components of society: culture and social structure. Here we refer to culture as consisting of 1) the main value and goal orientations or "ends" and 2) the institutionalized or legitimate means for attaining these goals. Social structure, as used here, consists of the basic social institutions of society, especially the economy, but also such institutions as the family, education, and politics, all of which are responsible for distributing access to the legitimate means for obtaining goals.