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Merton's Strain Theory (The American Dream (For Merton, deviance is…
Merton's Strain Theory
Merton argues that people engage in deviant behaviour when they can't achieve socially approved goals by legitimate means
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The American Dream
For Merton, deviance is the result of a strai between the goals a culture encourages individuals to aim for and what the structure of society actually allows them to achieve legitimately
The American Dream emphasises on "money success". Americans are expected to pursue this goal by legitimate means
The ideology claims that American society is meritocratic. But in reality, poverty and discrimination block opportunities for many
The resulting strain between the cultural goal an the lack of legitimate means produces frustration and a pressure to resort to illegitimate means
The pressure is increased by the fact that American culture puts more emphasis on achieving success at any price than upon doing so by legitimate means .
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Criticisms
It's too deterministic: not all working class people deviate. It ignores the power of the ruling class to make and enforce laws