I have chosen to analyze Robert K. Merton’s Strain Theory. This theory suggests that when people don’t have the means to reach a particular goal, they find other ways of reaching that goal even if the methods can be seen as unconventional; this in turn leads to deviance. The American Dream is to own a nice house and be very successful; the problem with this dream is that it doesn’t take into account those Americans who don’t necessarily buy into this as a goal for their life. This video was found on YouTube and does an excellent job in explaining this theory into further detail.
The clip that I chose starts off with the conformist, this person accepts the cultural goals and agrees “conforms” to the institutionalized way of achieving them. In this clip the conformist was brought up by a family that was loving, supportive, kind, and very secure financially. He had a goal of bring a millionaire so he worked hard and went to school to achieve that goal. The next type of person is the Innovator; this person also buys into the cultural goal, however they reject the institutionalized way of achieving these goals. For example they may want the American dream (Nice car, nice house, and lots of money) but they may get this through illegal means, like stealing or selling drugs. In the clip, the example that was used was of the man who had to support his family, so was never afforded the opportunity to go to school and get money the “right” way. This is exactly what Merton meant when he mentioned deviance. Because this individual wasn’t afforded the same opportunities it forced him into achieve the American dream that has so much emphasized in our society in an illegal way. The next type of person is the Ritualist; this person doesn’t buy into the cultural goals but they do agree with the institutionalized means. Although these people feel as though they may never be rich they still stick to the rigid rules and go to school. The next type is Retreatism; this person doesn’t buy into the cultural goals or into the institutionalized way of achieving those goals. These people don’t care about wealth or school. They tend to live sort of an unconventional lifestyle. For example, someone who willingly chooses to be homeless; this person is more often than not a dropout and does not participate with society. The last type of person is the Rebel; they completely reject both the goals and means, but go further in trying to form a counter culture. These are the 5 types Merton talks about in his Strain Theory.
There are a lot of critiques about his theory; the clip mentioned just one of them. Although there is a lot of truth to this theory, it doesn’t explain the deviance that comes from those who are already successful in society (CEO’s). It also fails to mention other types of crime like hate crimes. This theory can best be applied to the lower working class. I personally agree with the personality types that he did explain, however I do see that there are several limitations in his work. It doesn’t really mention race or gender which are two very big aspects in our society. As much as we would like to believe that we have evolved as a people, our country is still segregated, and very much still dominated by men. These things still occur and and can be noticed in common places such as the work place. An issue as big as this constantly leads to deviant behavior and should have been mentioned in this theory.
The Roadrunner Theorist 