Breanna Strong
SBS300
Dr. Shenk
12/6/13
Durkheim’s Theories and Crime
For the purposes of my essay I decided to use Emile Durkheim’s macro level sociological
theory of “Social Facts’ with a correlation of his “anomie” theory and applied them to my
analysis of Adolescent crime and deviance. Before I describe my analysis it’s important to
understand Durkheim’s theoretical definition of crime. From his perspective, Durkheim defines
crime as “offending strong and defined states of the collective conscience” (Jones, 1981, 1101).
He states crime is not an inherited factor but is the result of a common collective of criminal
definition by society (Jones, 1981, 1101). Durkheim failed to elaborate on what he deems a
crime so my interpretations of crime are acts which are illegal according to the law, and are not
limited to drug and alcohol use amongst those not of allowable age (adolescents). In the next
few paragraphs I will explain Durkheim’s social facts and anomie theory, but before that here is
a brief bibliography of some of his theoretical principles.
To my knowledge, Emile Durkhiem was a French sociologist who thought sociology
should be analyzed on the macro scale rather than the micro scale of social interaction. Many in
his field disagreed or did not fully take in the perspective of Durkheim because they were based
on empirical observation rather than scientific and statistical fact. According to Edward A.
Tiryakian, “all of his sociological investigations deal with moral phenomena treated as social
facts, so that the rational understanding of phenomena which are not logical or intellectual in
nature was for Durkheim a paramount endeavor of sociology…” (Tiryakian, 1964, 247). I will
discuss what he means by “Social Facts” a bit later. For now, I will explain only some of his
famous works and how they pertain to his rational understanding of phenomena.
In one of Durkheim’s most famous works “Division of Labor” he examines the evolution
of labor from simplistic to a largely complex industrial revolutionized system. He wondered how
the division of labor into specialized roles had an effect on the maintenance and failure of
relationships. Durkheim analyzed how institutions maintain social order and solidarity,
expressing how mutual reliance of one another was what keeps society together (Longhofer, &
Winchester, 2012, 4). In “Rules of Sociological Method”, Durkheim focuses on what he terms
social facts, which are “”manners of acting thinking and feeling external to the individual, which
are invested with a coercive power by virtue of which they exercise control over him””
(Longhofer, & Winchester, 2012, 4). They are powerful entities external to us that guide our
everyday way of life, decisions and interaction. Durkheim used his social facts theory to explain
the behaviors amongst institutions in society. Not to say Durkheim’s other theoretical
perspectives do not merit discussion, but for the focuses on this essay I will discuss one more
perspective from his work “Suicide”.
When society experiences a crises or a phenomenon which causes instability, the crises
throws the society off balance. Durkheim coined the term “anomie” in his essay “Suicide” to
mean “the inability of social ties and norms to regulate what he sees and the otherwise insatiable
passions and aspiration of individuals left to their own devises” (Longhofer, & Winchester, 2012,
5). Without social ties and moral regulation of our desires, social order can be interrupted leading
to a higher rate of suicide amongst the societies or individuals in crises.
Durkheim was one of the three founding fathers of sociology, alongside Carl Marx and Max
Weber. His observations of social phenomenon lead to abstract though different from his
colleagues, giving him a sociological edge. His perspectives didn’t always achieve high honors
from his colleagues based on lacking scientific evidence. However, more sociologists are
implementing his ideas to explain social phenomenon to this day
Bibliography
Jones, T. A. (1981). Durkheim, deviance and development: Opportunities lost and regained.
Social forces, 59(4), 1009-1024.
Longhofer, & W. Winchester, D. (2012). Social theory rewired. New York, NY: Routledge.
Tiryakian, E. A. (1964). Introduction to a bibliography Focus on Emile Durkheim. Journal for
the scientific study of religion, 3(2), 247-254.