Deviance and Social Control: Social Disorganization Theory

Introduction

• Presenter: Danielle McCartney
• Topic: Social Disorganization Theory
• Focus: How physical and social environments create conditions for crime and deviance, rather than individual motivations.

Key Concepts

Social Disorganization Theory

• Developed by: Clifford Shaw and Henry D. McKay
• Origin: Chicago School, early 20th century
• Core Idea: Physical and social environments, rather than personal characteristics, influence criminal and deviant behavior.

Chicago School

• Influence: Major role in crime and deviance studies
• Context: Late 19th and early 20th centuries

Concentric Zone Model

• Developers: Park and Burgess, Chicago School
• Concept: Cities develop in concentric rings around a city center affecting social organization.
• Zones:
  1. Central Business District
  2. Factory Zone
  3. Transition Zone (Zone of Transition)
  4. Working Class Residential (Inner City)
  5. Middle Class Homes (Zone of Better Housing)
  6. Commuter Zone

Application of the Theory

Shaw and McKay's Observations

• Crime is concentrated in specific city areas.
• Stability of crime rates within areas despite population changes.
• High-crime neighborhoods maintain crime rates regardless of resident racial/ethnic backgrounds.

Characteristics of Disorganized Areas

• High Levels of Poverty: Economic disadvantage is common.
• Transiency: High population turnover due to immigration or housing instability.
• Heterogeneity: Racial and ethnic diversity due to new immigrant settlement.

Consequences

• These characteristics lead to ineffective parental supervision, lack of resources, weak community attachment, and low participation in local institutions.
• Community-based controls fail, leading to the creation of deviant and criminal subcultures which replace normative social values.

Conclusion

• Social Disorganization Theory highlights the role of environmental conditions in fostering crime and deviance.
• Emphasizes the persistence of crime in certain areas due to structural factors, not individual deficits.

End of lecture notes. See you next time!