Merton stops short of addressing the core social institutions, values, and structures that reinforce anomie but his essay prompts sociologists to postulate which structures or value may be culprits.
The author does offer three "success prototypes" extant in American culture. First, all Americans are encouraged to strive for the same goals and those goals are believed to be possible for all. Second, any stumbling blocks along the way will soon transform into success. Hope is integral to the American Dream. Third, by aiming high, the only way a person can fail is to not participate or not play the game.
Merton also describes five types of individual adaptations to social goals. A person may shift from one of these adaptation patterns to another depending on the circumstance. The most common adaptation tool in stable societies is conformity. Innovation is another tool of adaptation in a culture like ours, in which the pressure to succeed is often divorced from clearly explicated or poorly enforced means by which to achieve success. Merton centers his theory on financial attainment and its role in American society. The author's ideas still hold true nearly a century after Merton published "Social Structure and Anomie" but the theory can also extend to different social realities and cultures. For instance, Merton's theory would be helpful in illuminating the differences between cultures like ours, in which "the sacrosanct goal virtually consecrates the means," and cultures that are nearly opposite on Merton's continuum. Cultures that condone female genial mutilation, for example, or those that overemphasize religion at the expense of reason are ones that fall into Merton's category of "ritualism" (p. 232-3). Furthermore, Merton's explanation of deviance as being a natural, not abnormal response, forces sociologists to work harder to unearth structural causes for social conflict. Not all criminological problems can be blamed on psychological...
Americans have come to believe that by medicating the population with anti-depressants and other socially acceptable pharmaceuticals, we can avoid addressing the anomie that plagues the culture.
Although highly generalized, Merton's theory effectively explains patterns of deviance from a sociological perspective, and one concurrent with conflict theory. For instance, students who work hard in school but who cannot afford to go to college will invariably struggle with the realization that hard work does not necessarily merit success. That student may do no better than to plod through minimum wage jobs and up the corporate ladder and if he and his children continue accepting the validity of the culturally-sanctioned and sacrosanct goal of financial attainment they will ultimately feel pressured to achieve that goal at whatever cost. or, as Merton suggests, the family could opt out of the paradigm altogether by rebelling against both the goal and the anomie. Voluntary simplicity is one means of effective rebellion against the anomic goal of financial attainment.
However enlightening his theories, Merton does not sufficiently explain individual differences. His theory is solely concerned with the role of social structures in explaining the phenomenon of deviance. Two individuals from the same social class may react differently to the frustration that arises from unfulfilled desires. Although Merton mentions white collar crime to substantiate his clam that the pursuit of money has become a sacrosanct value that surpasses any norm, he would not be able to explain why some billionaires commit white collar crimes and others do not. Psychology must account for at least some manifestations of deviance in any society. In any case, Merton's contributions to sociological theory are invaluable.
Works Cited
Merton, Robert K. "Social Structure and Anomie." Excerpt in Social Theory. Charles Lemert (Ed.). p. 225-237.
