Robert Agnew's General Strain Theory

First of all, what is “Social Strain Theory?” Robert Merton who is a theorist and creator of Strain Theory has allocated that “strains” are instigated by United States social structure which dictates equivalent goals in terms of success and job status within all members of society despite all members not having equivalent means to achieve money and success. Those that have that have obstacles in the way of achieving success and wealth experience strain and could engage in criminal behavior (Merton). In this theory Merton also created “Deviance

An abundance of research has been conducted on how Robert Agnew’s strain theory can help better understand why crime is committed. However, limitations to this to theory have come to the surface. Some suggest that

The General Strain Theory consists of three characteristics. “1. Failure to achieve positively valued stimuli. 2. The loss of positively valued stimuli. 3. The Presentation of negative stimuli.” (Agnew, R. 1992) When all three characteristics are present one is more likely to commit a crime or be

“Social Programs That Address the Strain Theory and Their Effects” The Strain Theory, introduced in 1938 by Robert K. Merton is a Social Structure Theory that is utilized to explain criminal behavior. Merton hypothesis was based on the idealism that people with different socio-cultural backgrounds share the same goals, values, and norms. He believed that “in our society opportunities to move up the social ladder exist, but they are not equally distributed” (Adler, Mueller, Laufer p.113), and it was difficult, in some cases impossible, for some to achieve financial success. Merton’s theory of Strain also assumes that people are moral and compliant to social rules and demands, but under pressure (disparity between goals and means) will turn into crime. The Strain Theory has helped criminologists and sociologists to develop crime-prevention strategies and social programs that give the lower-class people a bigger stake in

The limitations of Merton’s theory of strain can be argued as the study, which he has compiled is only concentrated on working class crime, not the middle class and white collar crimes. Furthermore, there is an over prediction because not all individuals under strain become criminals. For example, women are under most strain with unequal pay, yet statistics prove that women commit less crime than men.

Robert Agnew’s General Strain theory expands prior theorist’s concepts which emphasizes that the obstruction of an individual goal or the inability of an individual to achieve conventional goals through appropriate means causes unlawful innovations, such as crime (Brezina, 2010). More so, Agnew’s expanded the concept of stressors in an effort to make stressors classless. In addition, Agnew states that the strains that generate strong pressure which tend to lead to criminal behaviors are chronic strains, strains that are rationalized to unjust or severe, and strains that can be resolved by crime (Agnew, 2001). Lastly, Agnew believes that criminal response is most likely to occur when normal coping strategies are absent.

The two theories focus on somewhat different features of the social environment and they offer different reasons why social environments cause crime and deviance. Both theories also provide information explaining individual differences in crime while others attempt to explain group differences in crime (Agnew, 2015). Strain theory states that social structures within society may pressure citizens to commit crimes. Strain can be seen as structural, which alludes to the processes at the societal level that flows down and affects how the individual interprets his or her needs and wants. Strain can also be seen as individual, and this refers to the frictions and pains an individual can experience when he or she is seeking out ways to satisfy their individual needs.

In contrast, the general strain theory has differentiated from theories of social learning and self control because the theory deals with the type of social relationship among the individuals especially in a way that it can lead into some sort of felony as well as the drive to commit a crime. Agnew created this theory to focus on the negativity among individuals and their relationship between each other. The general strain theory is focused on the idea that if an individual is treated wrongly, unkindly, or denied an opportunity, they believed they have a right to treat others the same way. This means they could potentially involve themselves into some sort of crime. General strain theory recognizes that there are distinct connections between the theory itself and crimes that are

Exploring the role of negative emotions among murderers in a population of federal offenders: the General Strain Theory

In the 1980’s, Criminologist, Robert Agnew, presented his theory of general strain, in which he covers a range of negative behaviors, especially how adolescents deal with stresses of strain. General strain theory focuses on the source, such as anything that changes in the individual’s life that causes strain. His theory provides a different outlook on social control and social learning theory for two reasons: the type of social relationship that leads to delinquency and the motivation for the delinquency (Agnew, 1992). He states that certain strains and stresses increase the likelihood for crime such as economic deprivation, child abuse, and discrimination. These factors can cause an increase of crime through a range of negative emotions. For some people it can take a lot of willpower to take a corrective action and try to deter away from committing crime in a way that they can relieve these negative emotions. When people cannot cope with the stresses of the strain, they turn to crime as a coping mechanism. Agnew also states, that not all people that experience the stresses of strain will go forward to committing crime and live a deviant life.

Social Strain Theory is one of the many theories in criminology. According to our textbook, the definition of social strain theory better known as strain theory is that crime is generated from the acceptance of middle-class values that emphasize financial success while certain segments of the population are restricted from attaining monetary success by legitimate means. Essentially this means that everybody does not have the same opportunities. It means that sometimes people do want to achieve more but it hard for them. As you grow, one of the main things you are taught as a child is the American Dream. The dream that tells you one day you will be successful with a family and good job to support.

Agnew, R. (1992). Foundation for a General Strain Theory of Crime and Delinquency. Criminology. 30(1), 47-87.

Merton’s Strain Theory was established in 1957, and was a revision of Durkheim’s Theory of Anomie. Merton believed that the, “American Dream,” is the most significant causes of crime. People aspire to reach the American Dream that is portrayed through media and culture but the means simply do not allow it. In today’s society, people are expected to make it on their own and more often than not, this is impossible. People would eventually realize that reaching the American Dream for them is essentially impossible. This creates a strain, which is essentially a stress. These Strains can be from anything essentially, such as financial reasons, emotional reasons, or

Another relevant theory in regards to the pattern of juvenile delinquency is Strain Theory. In 1938, Robert Merton developed the theory of Strain to describe how social structures within society may pressure citizens (low socioeconomic status) to commit crimes. Merton felt that too much pressure to achieve goals, such as financial well-being, led to behaviors such as selling drugs. Merton’s theory relates to juvenile delinquency in that adolescents might experience overwhelming stress or pressure in their peer groups to have more money, to fit in, or to be influential. These social stressors will perpetuate delinquency because the teens will want to participate in criminal activity to solve such problems. In 1992, Robert Agnew

Strain theory is an occurrence within society where pressure to the juvenile to commit crimes, the juvenile is compelled remains in a specific settings like family and school. Therefore if said juvenile is experiencing pain or aversive it is hard for them to escape the situation. So to alleviate this discomfort they turn to crime, this mainly seen within the subculture of gangs (Agnew, 2012).