SOC2010 0 Merton Essay PDF

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THE CONTRIBUTION OF ROBERT K. MERTON TO SOCIOLOGY...

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SOC20100 Sociological Theory Level Two

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THE CONTRIBUTION OF ROBERT K. MERTON TO SOCIOLOGY Robert K. Merton left a great extent of study towards sociology though his concepts he developed throughout his life, making a major contribution to the works of sociology. Merton live an astonishing lifecycle. Merton was born to a family of proletarian Jewish immigrants from eastern Europe. Merton has an outstanding education, from graduating from Temple college in 1936, to receiving a scholarship to study at Harvard university. As part of his dissertation, Merton’s doctoral dissertation was published as his primary manuscript in 1936 (Sztompka, 1998). However, Merton’s contribution to sociology was prominent prior to this milestone. Such as a few of Merton’s collaborate publications for instance, the particularly prominent article: “The Unanticipated Consequences of Purposive Social Action” (Merton, 1936). Likewise, with the article "Social Structure and Anomie" (Merton, 1938). These two articles prominently have shaped sociology by showing the distribution of deviant behaviour among the positions of the social system exposing the major variances in the distribution in rates of deviant behaviour among systems. Portraying certain aspects of culture, among the goals and norms within culture, and of the social structure (Cohen, 1965). Merton was multitalented and an exceedingly prominent American sociologist of the 20th century. Leading to great discoveries within sociology and aiding explanations to constantly evolve and further explore our sociological concepts of society to help gain a better understanding the interactions and importance between social and cultural structures and science. Merton’s evaluations on the social structure and anomie paradigm, within this there is the strain theory and the theory of anomie. Merton’s model has been devotedly incorporated within sociology today (Featherstone & Deflem, 2003). Merton’s theories have been scrutinized and revised to prove the foundations of the framework are concrete. Numerous sociologists have written about Merton’s theories examining their consequences, (Crothers, 2004) Merton discovered the “Theories of middle range”, within these theories there is the strain theory in correlation with the deviance theory, likewise with Merton’s theory of Anomie two of which have greatly shaped sociology today. These theories closely link to empirical testing, attempting to isolate the main factor that controls our society. The strain theory Merton’s contribution as to encountering a possible explanation and analysis of social order though sociology was tremendously modelled by examining the social and economic body of American society, also known as the “American dream”. Merton’s work became predominantly significant during the 1950s, when the levels of crime were particularly high and still occurring during periods of economic

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growth. Masses amount of study conducted by sociologists to explain the reason for this to occur. Due to the high demand of finding a reason for this, Merton’s work become quite influential which resulted in Merton expand on his original article, further analysing the prominent reason as to why crime still occurred during times of economic growth. Merton revised his paradigm, augmenting it by retorting to denigrations (Merton, 1968), due to the expanding demand of his paradigm lead to a breakthrough concerning sociology. In Merton’s social structure and anomie papers (Merton, 1968), within these various editions the number of citations and quotations to Merton’s theory was very high in the 1960s. By Merton editing his article, he made a significant exploration that has greatly influenced society. Merton advocated that corruption and felony occasioned from conformism and obligation to cultural values regardless of present structural and economic conditions. Merton proposed that conformity lead to crime and deviance, the main cause of which was the association and prominent exposure of the “American dream” implying that everyone could theoretically reach economic success through drudgery and exertion. Merton himself expressed that “A cardinal American virtue, 'ambition,' promotes a cardinal American vice, 'deviant behaviour.” (Merton, 1968). The cultural commitment to the American dream became very easily adapted by the American population, leading then to being highly incorporated with the average American lifestyle, that even during the economic recessions, there still coexisted a ‘strain’ towards retaining the American dream. Merton established that there is a predominant detachment between “culturally defined goals” (Newburn, 2006). Merton recognized that there are restrictions to retrieve the goal of success through reasonable resources due the establishment of the social structure. The lower class experience the hardship due to the system, they are less able to attain the sort of successes that are being promoted. Merton advocates that the largely universal method of adaption is conformity, which is the easiest way to accept the cultural and industrialized goals within society. This interlinks with Merton’s theory of Anomie in connection with the imbalance concerning goals and reasonable necessitates. Leading to crime and deviance being socially acceptable and a form of on outlet through the structure of society and culture. Merton alluded essentially that society people coincide to ambitions and affluence. Merton confirmed that to resolve the strains generated from their inability to attain success in five different ways; conformity, innovation, Ritualism, Retreatism and lastly, Rebellion. Overall implying that once goals are unachievable crime arises and is prominent in the strains imposed by the inequality that is very prominent in the “American dream” society that has been constructed. Merton strongly implies that advertised dominance of success throughout America is a recurrent theme that is a major component that formulates Americas society. Suggesting that those who have reached a barrier to reaching the goals they would like to attain, will consequently diverge to finding other means of achieving their desired goals. Subconsciously the individual is pushed towards committing a crime to achieve a standard of wealth. (Merton, 1968)

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Attributable to Merton’s considerations in the field of sociology, Merton has initiated an innovation within the theory of deviance. Merton’s contribution led to an incredible outburst in structural sociology. Merton’s findings remain a subject of continued debates for more than half a century. Merton’s incredible insights have led to progressive findings. Merton stipulates an accomplished, convoluted paradigm for sociology. His conjectural and procedural alignments of functional analysis are widely applied, often without recognising the authorship. (Sztompka, 1998). Merton has been a prominent figure in sociology he has served as president of American sociological association 1956, the eastern sociological society 1968, he won the noble prize in economics in 1997. Merton approaches sociology through a unique perspective on human behaviour, analysing sociological concepts to produce an answer, “For whatever the role of biological impulses, there still remains the further question of why it is that the frequency of deviant behaviour varies within different social structures and how it happens that the deviations have different shapes and patterns in different social structures…. Our perspective is sociological. We look at variations in the rates of deviant behaviour, not at its incidence.” (Merton, 1968) Merton strategically formulates an answer without referencing the structure of a culture or social structure. Merton provided a very important sociological insight that has helped sociology progress drastically, Merton’s sociological insight insinuated that whilst individuals remain proficient to acclimatizing in fluctuating behaviours while present in the social environment, everyone portrays this so by selecting amid socially structured alternatives. Merton advanced a sociological explanation for deviant behaviour. Merton’s anomie perspective has remained practical in significant volumes of research throughout the intermediate interludes of the twentieth century, researchers have used Merton’s methodology to develop measures of anomie based on indicators of social structural conditions. Effectively Merton’s work has provided a frame work that cab be, and has been, a critical point of analysis of anomy. The major outcome of Merton’s work is that it has helped sociology advance in its finding and being able to further generate innovative sociological concepts in sociology, especially in advances in the beneficial consequences of people’s actions to keep a group in balance, this is related to function, a term Merton associated with these consequences. Similarly, with dysfunction, denoting towards the repercussions that attenuate stability. Merton has a way in which he acquires and presents questions and solutions, in a way of which he constructs and denotes each investigation through puzzles to combat the question. (Sztompka, 1998) (Cole, 2004). Merton is unquestionably one of the furthermost significant sociologists of the 20th era, he has provided vital information helping the progression of sociology, many sociologists have used his work to further develop sociological theories for the purpose of enhancing sociology. From stipulating detailed 3

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significant sociological context for the analysis and exploration of deviant behaviour appearing in American civilization (Featherstone & Deflem, 2003). Many sociologists such as Garfield, stating the unanticipated consequences of Merton’s work (Garfield, 2004). Similarly, in “Anomie: History and Meaning” by Marco Orru. Allen & Unwin, Merton was referenced within the book in correlation with Merton’s theory of Anomie. (Mestrovic, 1988). This shows that Merton’s presence is still vital in the world of sociology and he was left a great legacy.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Cohen, A. K., 1965. The Sociology of the Deviant Act: Anomie Theory and Beyond. American Sociological Review, 30(1), pp. 5-14. Cole, S., 2004. Stephen Cole. Social Studies of Science, 34(6), pp. 829-844. Crothers, C., 2004. Merton as a General Theorist: Structures, Choices, Mechanisms, and Consequences. The American Sociologist, 35(3), pp. 23 - 36. Featherstone, R. & Deflem, M., 2003. Anomie and Strain: Context and Consequences of Merton’s Two Theories. Sociological Inquiry, 73(4), pp. 471 - 489. Garfield, E., 2004. Citation Measures of the Influence of Robert K. Merton.. Social Studies of Science, 34(6), pp. 845 - 853. Merton, R. K., 1936. The Unanticipated Consequences of Purposive Social Action. American Sociological Review, 1(6), pp. 894-904. Merton, R. K., 1938. Social Structure and Anomie. American Sociological Review, 3(5), pp. 672-682. Merton, R. K., 1968. Social Theory and Social Structure. 1968 Enlarged Edition ed. New York: The Free Press. Mestrovic, S. G., 1988. Anomie: History and Meanings. Social Forces, 67(2), pp. 543 - 544. Newburn, T. R. P. &. D. D., 2006. The politics of crime control: essays in honour of David Downes. Oxford ed. New York: Oxford University Press. Sztompka, P., 1998. Robert K. Merton: Recipient of the 1997 Cooley-Mead Award. Social Psychology Quarterly, 61(2), pp. 97-100.

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