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The Anomie-Deviant Behavior Connection: the Theories of Durkheim, Merton, and Srole

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The Anomie-Deviant Behavior Connection: the Theories of Durkheim, Merton, and Srole EUGENE GARFIELD INSTITUTE FOR SCIENTIFIC lNFORMATION@ 3S01 MARK ET ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19104 The Anomie-Deviant Behavior Connection: The Theories of Durkheim, Merton, and Srole Number 39 September 28, 1987 In my recent review of the literature on But if we do nothing more than make more fraud, I I suggested that a critical aspect of CC readers aware of the important theories the situation involves the concept of anomie. of anomie, we will have succeeded. The word “anomie” derives from the Greek word arwmia, meaning lawlessness or Anomie “without law,”2 and refers to societal in- stability resulting from a breakdown in The first sociological use of the term broadly accepted vrdues, as well as wide- “anomie” is usually attributed to a founder spread personal feAings of uncertainty and of modem sociology, French sociologist alienation. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) in his book The possible connection between anomie J?se Division of Labor in Society, original- and deviant behavior in science is the most ly published in 1893.s But according to W- recent factor that led me to contemplate the ciologist Marco Orru, University of South theme of this essay. But a persistent stimulus Florida, Tampa,2.4 it was actually Jean- has beerr my long-standing knowledge that Marie Guyau, a French philosopher, who the work on anomie by the sociologist fist used the term sociologically in his books Robert K. Merton, Columbia University, Esquisse d ‘une Morale saris Obligation ni New York, was not generally known to our Sanctions and L ‘Irrkiigion de 1‘Avenir: readers. I could therefore not resist the Jhde Sociologique;6 Durkheim’s first use challenge to summarize this work in Csw- of’ ‘anomie” actually occurred in his review rent Contents” (C@). %xial scientists will of the latter of Guyau’s books.T In fact, the especially appreciate the monumental, if not first use of the word was in the literature impossible, task involved in condensing over of ancient Greece, by historians in discus- 50 years of work on anomie; but short of sions of the social conditions of their simply reprinting Merton’s work, we make times.g Nevertheless, it was Durkheim who some attempt to describe this major contri- promulgated a theory of anomie.g It was bution to twentieth-century sociology. later developed by Merton; 10 Leo Srole, What follows, then, is an attempt to distill College of Physicians and Surgeons, Cohun- what ought not to be distilled. However im- bia University; 11and many other sociolo- perfect this essay may be, I do think cita- gists. tion analysis allows us to say something unique about this field of research. Indeed, Merton’s Theory of Anomie anomie is the topic of several current re- search fronts (see Table 1). The essay pro- Merton theorizes that anomie (normative vides some bibliographic material to whet breakdown) and some forms of deviant be- the appetite of readers who wish to know havior derive largely from a disjunction be- more, and we hope that social scientists will tween “culturally prescribed aspirations” of enjoy the confirmation by citation analysis a society and “socially structured avenues of what may seem obvious to many of them. for realizing those aspirations. ” 12(p. 188) 272 In other words, a gap between people’s as- theories on anomie and has been included pirations and their access to legitimate means and further developed in each of the three of achieving them results in a breakdown of printings (1949, 1957, and 1%8) of Mer- values, at both societal and individual levels. ton’s book Social i%eo~ and Social Struc- In the US, unlike many other societies, ture (STSS). 12 the cultural goal of economic success–the Sociologist Stephen Cole, State Univer- “American Dream” of social mobility, sity of New York, Stony Brook, says that meaningfid work, home ownership, material “this theory has probably been more fre- comforts, and easefid retirement-is held up quently cited and reprinted than any other as a legitimate expectation for all members paper in sociology. ‘‘13 But though SIW, in of society, not just for a fraction of them. which SS&A was reprinted, has long since Doctrinally, this culturally defined goal is become a Citation Cthsic”, 14 it is difficult achievable through socially approved to say precisely how often the SS&A piece avenues that are held to be equally available has been cited. Over 200 explicit citations to all. In reality, however, that ideal has of it since 195S can be found in the Science never been achieved. While it may have ex- Citation htdexm (SCP ) and since 1966 in hibited extraordinary strides, US society still the Social Sciences Citation Indexm restricts or closes access to these avenues (SSCP ). But an unknown number of cita- of opportunity for significant portions of the tions to the paper are masked as references population; at the same time, it places heavy to one of the three editions of STSS, which emphasis on the achievement of success. 12 have collectively received a total of over (p. 186-90) 3,600 citations since 1955, according to data One result is that culturally sanctioned from the SCI, SSCI, and the Arts& Human- goals are often largely unattainable by le- ities Citation [M2x” (A&HCI “). That’ ‘So- gitimate means (or perceived as such) for cial Structure and Anomie: A Classic Re- certain segments of society. This leads to visited” was the subject of a plenary ses- pressure to succeed by illegitimate means. sion of the 57th amual meeting of the East- This potent combination is sacmby Merton ern Sociological $osiety, held this May in and others as the background cause-and the Boston, is an indication of the continuing in- interactive result-of many of US society’s terest in its central themes. Another indica- ills, such as drug abuse, alcoholism, suicide, tion is that SS&A, in addition to being core delinquency, vandalism, assault, embezzle- to front #85-0382, is also core to the 1986 ment, and fraud. As mentioned earlier, we front’ ‘Adolescent drug use, risk taking, and have referred to an overemphasis on’ ‘suc- deviant behavior” (#86-04U9),which has 29 cess” as having been proposed as at least core publications and 265 citing papers. See a partial explanation for the occurrence of the hkstoriograph (Figure 1) for a microhis- intellectual dishonesty in science. 1 tory of this area of anomie research for the past few years. Social Structure and Anomie As Merton notes, his theories of anomie are based on the “analysis of behavior de- The scholarly interest in anomie as a fac- viating from premibed patterns of conduct” tor in social deviance is evident in IW’s and his search for an explanation of how it research-front data. One 1985 front entitled is that the “frequency of deviant behavior “Drug use and delinquency among adoles- varies within different social structures and cents” (#85-0382) has 40 core amuments how it happens that the deviations have dif- and 400 published-that is, citing—papers. ferent shapes and patterns in different sceial Among the core works is Merton’s first structures. ” 12 (p. 185) landmark paper, “Social structure and an- A key component in Merton’s formula- omie” (SS&A), published in 1938 in the tion is the typology of individual adaptations Amen”can Sociological Review. 10The arti- to the imbalance between cultural goals and cle presents the underpinnings of Merton’s access to legitimate means of achieving 273 .4........................ Table 1: The 1985 and 1986 SCF /SSCF research fronts on variuus aspects of devisnce and anomie, A= number of core papers. B= number of citing papers. Neerrrber Nsme A B 85-0382 Drug use and delinquency smong adolescents 40 400 85-2716 Sociological studies on alienation 5 47 85-5046 Durkhetis sociological metbndology 2 7 86-0409 Adolescent drug use, risk raking, and deviant bebavior 29 265 86-1454 SeIf-rejection and the explanation of deviance 2 24 8&2121 Deviant behavior and mass Aa 2 25 86-5072 Development of Durfdreim’s wciology of religion 2 20 86-7673 Devisrrce in science and trends in criminology 2 26 them. Merton characterizes five types of TabSe 2: schematic representation of rhe five types of adaptive behavior and cautions that the cate- adaptation to cutturaflyprc.wribt-dgoals and means of gories “refer to role behavior in specific achieving those goals exhibited by individuals in types of situations, not to personality”; he Robert K. Merton’s tfrearyof anomie. Plus signs ( + ) signify acceprsnceand minus signs (-) symtmlie re- also observes that the categories are not ab- jection; a combination of the two (*) signifies ‘‘re- solutes and that’ ‘ptwple may shifi from one jection of prevailing values and substitution of NW ahemative to another as they engage in dif- values.” ferent social activities. ” 12 (p. 194) Mer- A TYPOLOGY OF MODES OF INDIVIDUAL ton’s typology summartz“ ing these modes of ADAPTATION adaptation is reproduced from SS&A in Mudea of Culture Insthrtionrdiaed Table 2. Adsptstbn &r&lfs Meam The first of these categories-’ ‘confomsi- ty’ ‘—involves acceptance of both the pre- 1. Conformity + + 11. Innovation + — vailing cultural goals and approved means III. Riturdkm — + of achieving them. fn stable societies, Mer- IV, Retreatism — ton says, this is by far the most common V. Rebcllinn * * adaptation. ‘‘Imovation” occurs when the individual accepts cultural goals but takes alternative approaches for attaining them. The Place of SS&A Tothty “Ritualism” combines the abandonment of cultural goals with a deep attachment to the Cole writes that Merton’s theory specified socially approved means of advancing to- “how a certain type of society and location ward them.
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