Durkheim & Prison
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Deviance is behavior that violates social norms and is disapproved of by large numbers of people as such. Durkheim’s theories on anomie hold a relatively significant place in the formation of modern theories of deviance, particularly structural-strain theory and control theory. Durkheim originated the concept of anomie which refers to a state of normlessness or an erosion of norms. Durkheim believed that anomie is a condition that affects both individuals and society when norms are eroded, missing, or in contention. Durkheim argued that contemporary societies are in danger of this condition because a large measure of cultural diversity causes confusion over norms and values. Individuals are left without clear moral guidelines. One might say if Durkheim were alive today he would extend this condition to the global perspective. The great degree of cultural diversity creates confusion over rules of behavior, i.e., social norms that guide individual interaction and relations in society. In other words, deviance develops from an imbalance in social systems. This is the foundation of social structural-strain extended as a theory of deviance from Durkheim’s theories on anomie. Control theory attempts to define deviance from a social control perspective. This theory argues that people are naturally non-conformist so deviance should not be a surprising social phenomena. What is surprising is that people conform and control theory sa
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Nation Number of Inmates Rate of Incarceration per 100,000
China 1,236,534 103
U.S. 1,585,401 600
(Americans 1)
The above statistics are from 1995, but in his speech Jackson stated the number if now closer to two million inmates in American prisons with 90% of all inmates being high school dropouts (Jackson 2). Jackson argued the reason for this abnormally high rate of crime in one segment of the population (high school dropouts) is because the majority of the poorest schools and most social-ill plagued neighborhoods are also the poorest urban areas, a population that contributes 84% to the prison population, of which 64% are black (Jackson 3). Thus, Jackson contends that our poor schools have become the feeding ground of our continually improving prison systems. He argues that Pennsylvania and California continue to increase annual budget allocations for prison system development and construction while both continue to do so at the expense of education. He asserts that Pennsylvania has $500 million budgeted for prisons this year and next year has scheduled $1 billion to go towards the same goal (Jackson 7). In fact, the largest unions in Pennsylvania and California are the prison guard unions. Furth
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Approximate Word count = 1912
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)
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