Deck 8: Social Structure Theories of Crime I

Question 1

A type of gang that forms in lower-class neighborhoods with an organized structure of adult criminal behavior (highly organized and stable).

A)retreatist gangs
B)conflict gangs
C)criminal gangs
D)organized crime gangs

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Importantly,Durkheim emphasized that human beings,unlike other animal species that live according to their ______,have no internal mechanism to signal when their needs and desires are satiated.

A)natural needs
B)spontaneous needs
C)instinctual needs
D)none of these

Answer 2

B

Question 3

When law enforcement cracks down on gangs,especially during relatively inactive periods,gangs will be stronger ______.

A)by giving members a common enemy
B)by making drug access easier
C)by providing more guns
D)none of these

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Criminal gangs primarily commit what types of crimes?

A)sexual assaults
B)economic
C)property
D)violent

Question 5

When law enforcement "cracks down" on gangs in relatively inactive periods,it inevitably makes the gang ______.

A)stronger
B)experience no change
C)weaker
D)break apart

Question 6

Guerry found that ______ crimes were higher in wealthy areas but ______ crime was higher in poor areas.

A)property;violent
B)property;economic
C)economic;violent
D)violent;property

Question 7

Quetelet stated that individuals who were more likely to commit crime than their counterparts had all of the following characteristics EXCEPT:

A)educated
B)male
C)young
D)unemployed

Question 8

According to the text,providing an individual with a(n)______ is key to building a more stable life,leaving the individual less likely to feel stressed or "strained."

A)money
B)education
C)job
D)mentor

Question 9

Which of the following would fit best with Merton's adaptation of ritualism?

A)corner boy
B)delinquent boy
C)criminal boy
D)college boy

Question 10

Who is credited with being the most influential theorist in modern structural perspectives of criminality?

A)Andre-Michel Guerry
B)Thomas Hobbes
C)Adolphe Quetelet
D)August Comte
E)Émile Durkheim

Question 11

Durkheim claimed that progress typically depends on deviating from established moral boundaries in society,especially one in the more ______.

A)industrial stage
B)mechanical stage
C)both and c

Question 12

All of the following are considered categories of strain within the general strain theory proposed by Agnew EXCEPT:

A)failure to conform to conventional means
B)noxious stimuli
C)failure to achieve goals
D)removal of positive stimuli

Question 13

Who is credited with coining the term sociology?

A)Andre-Michel Guerry
B)Thomas Hobbes
C)Adolphe Quetelet
D)August Comte
E)Émile Durkheim

Question 14

The ______ is a type of lower-class male youth who responds to strains and status frustration by joining with similar others in a group to commit crime.

A)college boy
B)corner boy
C)criminal boy
D)delinquent boy

Question 15

Who created differential opportunity theory?

A)Merton
B)Durkheim
C)Hirschi
D)none of these

Question 16

Durkheim showed that the rate of suicide was lower among individuals that had all of the following characteristics EXCEPT:

A)adherents of religions that were more interactive and communal
B)young
C)married
D)had children

Question 17

All of the following are considered conventional means of success EXCEPT:

A)hard work
B)dealing drugs
C)getting an education
D)employment

Question 18

______ showed that certain types of individuals were more likely to commit crime.

A)Andre-Michel Guerry
B)Thomas Hobbes
C)Adolphe Quetelet
D)August Comte
E)Émile Durkheim

Question 19

One thing all forms of strain theory have in common is their emphasis on a sense of ______ in crime causation.

A)gratification
B)frustration
C)satisfaction
D)contentment

Question 20

All of the following are considered the most important European researchers from which social structure theories were developed EXCEPT:

A)Andre-Michel Guerry
B)Thomas Hobbes
C)Adolphe Quetelet
D)August Comte
E)Émile Durkheim

Question 21

Reaction formation involves adopting attitudes or committing behaviors that are the opposite of what is expected-a form of defiance and avoidance of guilt for not living up to the assumed standards.

Question 22

Cohen's theory of reaction formation is related to what theorist's defense mechanisms?

A)Merton
B)Freud
C)Agnew
D)Durkheim
E)Quetelet

Question 23

The first modern national crime statistics were published in England in the early 1800s.

Question 24

One type of activity that has shown relatively consistent success in relieving stress is laughter.

Question 25

Organic societies in the Durkheimian model are those that have a high division of labor and thus a low level of agreement about societal norms.

Question 26

According to Durkheim,in primitive mechanical societies virtually everyone experiences essentially the same daily routine.

Question 27

Identify some ways the various models of strain theory have informed policy making in attempts to reduce criminality.

Question 28

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY.Which of the following adaptations to strain are more likely to lead to criminal offending?

A)conformity
B)rebellion
C)innovation
D)ritualism
E)retreatism

Question 29

A key policy implication of strain theories is the need to develop healthy coping mechanisms.

Question 30

According to Cloward and Ohlin,conflict gangs are blocked not only from legitimate opportunities but also from illegitimate opportunities.

Question 31

Durkheim was clear in stating that crime is not only normal but necessary in all societies.

Question 32

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY.Farnworth and Leiber proposed testing the gap between ______ and ______ as opposed to traditional studies concerning strain theory.

A)educational goals
B)occupational goals
C)economic aspirations
D)educational expectations
E)economic expectations

Question 33

Conflict gangs are highly organized and turn a tremendous profit.

Question 34

What distinguishes Cloward and Ohlin's theory from the previous strain theories is that they emphasized five different types of gangs that form based on the characteristics of the social structure in the neighborhood.

Question 35

What or who can provide the mechanism for limiting human individuals' insatiable appetite for more?

A)media
B)individual ego
C)society
D)family

Question 36

Cohen stated that he believed the tendency to reject middle-class values is the primary cause of gangs.

Question 37

According to Cohen,youths begin to value destruction of property and skipping school because these behaviors ______.

A)defy the conventional order
B)lead to success in the conventional world
C)lead to a payoff in the nonconventional world
D)defy the means and goals of society

Question 38

Cohen emphasized youths' internalization of the American Dream and fair chances for success,leading to frustration when they fail to be successful according to this middle-class standard.

Question 39

Examples of criminal gangs are seen in movies depicting highly organized neighborhoods (often consisting of primarily one ethnicity)-movies such as The Godfather,A Bronx Tale,State of Grace,Sleepers,New Jack City,Clockers,Goodfellas,Better Luck Tomorrow,and many others that were partially based on real events.

Question 40

According to Cohen,lower-class male youths will adopt a normative value system that defies the very values they are expected to live up to by changing their normative beliefs to value authority,school achievement,and respect for authority.

Question 41

Explain the concept of relative deprivation.

Question 42

Explain how Merton altered Durkheim's version of what "anomie" means,a definition we will explore below.

Question 43

What was Auguste Comte credited with emphasizing and researching?

Question 44

Émile Durkheim discussed the idea of collective conscience.Explain what this is in relation to individuals in a society as well as the two (2)different types of societies also discussed by Durkheim.How is crime affected by the strength of the collective conscience in a community,and why?

Question 45

Explain Cohen's model of status frustration.

Question 46

Explain Durkheim's concept of anomie and how it relates to societal changes.Give an example of a time of anomie in the United States and how society was affected.

Question 47

What does Durkheim mean when he states that humans have no internal mechanism to signal when their needs and desires are satiated?

Question 48

Strain theories all trace their origin to the theory of what criminologist?

Question 49

What strengths and weaknesses do you see in social structural theories? Provide examples.

Question 50

Why was Quetelet's model controversial at the time he proposed it?

Question 51

What is reaction formation?

Question 52

What are the adaptations to strain Merton proposed? Explain the five (5)different adaptations to strain and give an example of each.

Question 53

Why do criminal gangs use youth for their "dirty work"?

Question 54

What did Andre-Michel Guerry ultimately conclude from his report examining the first modern national crime statistics?