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William J. Chambliss conducted a study of the Saints and the Roughnecks, two teenage delinquent groups. The Saints were higher class individuals who were perceived as well dressed, highly achieving, diligent students. However, the Saints would cheat during tests, lie to the school to leave town and play pranks and drunkenly drive in another town. On the contrary, the Roughnecks were middle class teenagers who were treated as criminals, would steal from local stores to buy alcohol, fight constantly and receive barely passing grades in school. Deviance is challenging action against any regard of social order, and crime can be considered a deviant act that breaks law. Since the community regards the Roughnecks as criminals and the Saints as “good” kids, the words “crime” and “deviance” will be used interchangeably. To describe, analyze, compare and resolve the community’s perception of the two groups, the two groups’ mannerisms and the differing careers, a few sociological theories can assist.

The Functional Theory of Crime

The Functional Theory of Crime can somewhat explain the two groups’ behaviors. It postulates that that crime and deviance occur when the collective conscience is weakened, anomie, which is the condition of normlessness, pervades society. With relation to both The Saints and The Roughnecks, the collective conscience may have been weakened in the sense that the Saints and Roughnecks’ were indifferent to their respective socio-economic cultures or that “having fun” was not part of their cultures. Thus, this may have caused anomie, which Robert Merton used to describe a society where means and goals are not harmonious to a point in which a strain is caused between them. Furthermore, he expanded this by developing modes of adaption, ways in which the individual reaches his or her goal. In fact, two modes, innovation and ritualism, can be noticed. Innovation occurs when institutionalized means are rejected but cultural gains are accepted, and both groups can be noticed doing this in the form of theft, drinking and fighting for possible monetary goals or “to have fun”. Ritualism occurs inversely to innovation, and this explain how the Roughnecks seemed as if “they don’t want to make good of themselves”. Functionalists’ viewing of crime as a naturally limited necessity shows that individuals group together and show critical or empathic feedbacks during crimes, which was proved in Chambliss’ excerpt because it was shown that individuals agreed that the Saints were “just trying to have fun” or that the Roughnecks could not “behave like the other kids in town”.

Other theories

Other theories may also sociologically explain the behavior of the two groups. The Differential Association Theory theorizes that criminal behaviors are learned through communication with interpersonal groups. In the relevant case, it can be determined that either gang’s members have learned from each other to steal, drink or play pranks. Additionally, the Social Control Theory’s elements of bonds (which, when weakened, can promote a higher chance of delinquency) that can relate to the Saints are attachment, commitment and involvement because the Saints’ behavior or ditching class and cheating can relate to the fact that even though they cared of their reputation, they did not hold formal education as a priority. Moreover, the Roughnecks also relate to attachment and belief, another social control element, because at times they felt school was simply a burden and that the police would be unfair to them at times. The Subculture of Delinquency and the Lower-class Focal Concerns Theory cannot absolutely relate to the Roughnecks and the Saints because the theories study low-class individuals, whereas the the groups are of higher classes. The Differential Opportunity Theory is similar to Merton’s perception of crime because it proposes ideas of goals and means. Also, the Roughnecks can be described under this theory, in which the criminal and retreatist subcultures relate to the group because both emphasize on alcohol and the latter relates to absence of goals. It can be argued that most of the Roughnecks perceived no concrete or success goals, which is why the group spent a substantial amount of their time stealing for alcohol. The Social Conflict and Symbolic Integrationist perspectives explain the deviant situation most efficiently.

Applying the theories – what works?

To prevent their delinquency, the Roughnecks and the Saints must be perceived differently by the community. Functionalism, Symbolic Interactionism (Labeling Theory) and the Conflict Theory can all help to create social policies for both groups. Firstly, the functions of the school, family and the police must be stricter upon the Saints. For example, once the Saints are in school, it should be the school’s duty to ensure that the boys provide some proof of or limit their commuting escapades and that they are not cheating during assessments. Furthermore, on a Social Conflict perspective, the Saints’ families can lessen the material resources, including transportation, that the Saints possess in order to prevent vandalism and drinking. Also, with the family reassuring the teenagers of the economic reputation they must retain, limited resources and a stricter vigilance can decrease the frequency of the Saints’ delinquency. However, when the deviant acts do occur in the distant town, the police should be punctual of the law and refrain from listening to begging. Thus, of labeling, the Saints can possibly be “good” kids in both towns. In the case of the Roughnecks, the police and family can perform their functions. The police can be stricter, but fairer. In other words, the police should only accuse or take any authoritative action when a criminal act is confirmed, rather than just giving pointless threats to the Roughnecks. The family can teach the Roughnecks of “better” cultural values, including posture and clothing, and try to get the teenagers interested. Of the functionalist study, this can prevent anomie, and the Roughnecks can utilize or maintain their learned cultural goals. The conflict theorists might then express that the middle class teenagers’ conscience would be of the level of a higher class individual who seeks to maintain reputation and is more cognizant of law. The school can view the Roughnecks more positively before and after the Roughnecks seize or decrease their deviant mannerisms. Reinforcing the Labeling Theory, the Roughneck’s corrective actions and the community’s more positive feedback may result in more solid careers, as the self-assuring theory would benefit them to become successful.

Social Conflict and Symbolic Interactionism may best answer the two analytical questions about why the community viewed the Saints more positively than they viewed the Roughnecks and why their careers were different in terms of expectations. Firstly and most blatantly, Social Conflict theorists would emphasize that the Saints had more wealth, so the Saints were able to traverse away from local observation. In fact, the Roughnecks had to remain very close to their core community and were constantly observed by teachers and policeman during times of loitering and other deviant actions. The Roughnecks did not possess enough financial power to roam around and avoid staying in or visiting a same area more than once. Social conflict theorists also argue that the higher class individuals, the Saints, in this case, would attempt to maintain their standard; however, the Roughnecks would ignorantly talk back to people of authority. For example, the Saints’ image of being “good” students was accompanied by their high socio-economic status, as they had enough wealth to dress better than the Roughnecks, commit deviance and crime in another town and buy food and drinks there. In fact, the other town’s café’s owner was “dependent” on the Saints because they gave the café “substantial business”. On the other hand, the Roughnecks would have to steal to get money and buy alcohol through a drunkard.   Furthermore, the simple fact that the Saints had a lesser probability than the Roughnecks to be surrounded by “ghettos”, places of somewhat frequent deviance, can also support that the police would obviously view the Roughnecks as absolute delinquents. Additionally, the Saints would manipulate laws and regulations because their socio-economic status awarded them with close contact with those in legislative or lawful power. Thus, this economic difference would help shape the distinct careers. But the Symbolic Interactionism perspective would best describe the reasons for the career outcomes. Firstly, though, how the Roughnecks were viewed must be evaluated first. Because of their more visible and physically closer deviance, which included fighting, the Roughnecks were labeled by the community as dangerous, delinquent teenagers. On the contrary, the more posh Saints would use excuses of academic leadership and apologetic thoughts to fool the teachers and policeman, respectively. This is an example of the Labeling Theory, in which individuals are responsible for a social process amongst the “criminals”, who would further commit more acts of deviance. Therefore, it may be so that the groups are indirectly responsible for the labels they receive, and most of the Roughnecks’ self-assuring image consisted to the point when they would continue to influence more individuals, who would then be further labeled. This process would lead to a “big event”, which was athletic scholarships that Herb and Jack were granted, but most of the other Roughnecks, especially Jerry, failed or had to serve jail time. In clearer words, Herb and Jack broke off the deviance pattern, whereas Jerry could not. Conversely, the Saints, as they were labeled as better citizens, would successfully exceed in the future theoretically because the community perceived them as committing no or little delinquency, which would save them from legal or authoritative impeachment.

All in all, a number of theories can explain evaluate the past and future of the two groups, but the Conflict Theory and Symbolic Interactionism are most successful in explaining the difference in the groups’ impression management and career outcomes. More importantly, theories, especially the Labeling Theory, can help one realize that resources, the community’s opinions and the groups’ regard of reputation can relate to how or why the groups use the acquired labels to reach certain goals, including career paths.

© Copyright Nikhil B. Punjabi