SOC 225 Study Guide - Midterm 2 - Winter 2026

A collection of flashcards covering key terms and concepts from SOC 225, focusing on theories of crime, social control, gender issues, and more.

Strain Theory

Suggests that crime occurs when individuals lack culturally approved ways to achieve cultural goals.

Anomie

A breakdown of social norms and values, leading to increased individualism and loss of social cohesion.

Relative Deprivation

A disjunction between cultural goals and the structure of opportunities available to individuals, often leading to crime.

Microanomie

Merton's concept that focuses on individual-level strain due to the prioritization of personal goals over societal norms.

Institutional Anomie

Refers to weak restraints on achieving economic success, often leading to white-collar crime.

Differential Opportunity Structure

Cloward & Ohlin's theory stating that access to criminal behavior is dependent on the availability of opportunities.

Routine Activities Theory

Posits that crime is a result of the convergence of motivated offenders, suitable targets, and lack of guardianship.

Situational Crime Prevention

Strategies focused on reducing opportunities for crime by making targets less suitable or rewarding.

Labelling Theory

Explains how being labeled as deviant can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy and reinforce criminal behavior.

Symbolic Interactionism

Highlights how individuals create social realities through interactions, emphasizing the importance of meanings in behavior.

Social Control Theory

Explains why people do not commit crimes, focusing on the importance of social bonds and the costs of deviance.

General Deterrence

Preventing crime by threatening punishment as a means of influencing the behavior of the general population.

Specific Deterrence

Preventing crime through the personal experience of punishment, thereby influencing the behavior of individuals.

Gender-Based Violence

Refers to violence directed at an individual based on their gender, often rooted in systemic inequalities.

Intersectionality

The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, as they apply to a given individual or group.

Cultural Conflict Theory

Thorsten Sellin's theory that crime arises from clashes between norms of different cultural groups.

Gilligan's Theory

Highlights the differences in moral development and ethical decision-making between genders.

Marxist Feminism

Analyzes how capitalism and patriarchy intersect to oppress women and promote female criminality.

Victimization-Criminalization Continuum

Describes how systemic factors such as economic hardship contribute to both victimization and subsequent criminal behavior.

Social Disorganization Theory

Suggests that crime is rooted in the breakdown of community structures, particularly in transitional neighborhoods.