Applying material from Item A, analyse two ways in which deviant subcultures may respond to the difficulties of achieving mainstream goals PDF

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Great essay about why deviant subcultures turn to crime, 10 mark essay top band...

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Applying material from Item A, analyse two ways in which deviant subcultures may respond to the difficulties of achieving mainstream goals One way in which deviant subcultures may respond to the difficulties of achieving mainstream goals, could be as Item A suggests, linked to young people underachieving at school. Albert Cohens study on working class boys being denied status at school due to cultural deprivation. Therefore, these boys are placed in bottom sets and unable to acquire same status as those students in higher sets. These boys in turn leave school with little to no qualifications and work in low paid jobs or are unemployed, this therefore denies their status in wider society. Cohen further argues that the experience of the working-class boys and constantly being denied status, leads them to feel alienated and angry. The experience a ‘status frustration’ and in turn, respond by developing gangs or subcultures of link minded boys. These boys in turn, reverse the norms and values of the dominant culture and award one another status on the basis of anti-school and delinquent behaviour. Therefore, showing how deviant subcultures respond to the difficulties of achieving mainstream goals. Another way in which deviant subcultures may respond to difficulties of achieving mainstream goals would be linked to ‘living in a deprived or unstable neighbourhood.’ Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin argued for the illegitimate opportunity structure. They suggest that the type of crimes committed by young people depends upon the illegitimate opportunity structure that is available to them in their locality. One of the structures is how in some areas, there are established patterns on illegitimate opportunity in which people experience illegal ‘careers’. These organised types of criminal subcultures mirror legitimate businesses. Some inner-city areas may be dominated by conflict subcultures, which engage in highly masculine territorial or respect driven violence. For example, ‘turf wars’ between rival gangs. Furthermore, if young people fail to gain criminal or conflict subcultures, they may form retreatism subcultures, in which major activities are recreational drug use. There is some evidence that subcultures of heroin addicts may be responsible for the crimes such as street robbery or theft etc, to fund their addiction. Circumstances such as these explains how deviant subcultures respond to difficulties of achieving mainstream goals....