A theory associated with the Chicago School of sociology holding that crime rates are higher in neighborhoods where social institutions and community structures have broken down.
Facts
Core ClaimWeakened community institutions and social ties, not the traits of individual residents, explain persistently high crime rates in certain neighborhoods. 1 Origin YearSourced to the subject's own account Standing CritiqueSourced to the subject's own accountThe theory has been criticized for not explaining why delinquency concentrates in certain geographic areas of a city, and research has found it does not hold consistently across cities. 2 Connections
Developed By
Source Wikipedia: Clifford R. Shaw
Source Wikipedia: Henry D. McKay
Informed By
Ernest W. Burgess co-developed the concentric zone model of urban ecology with Robert E. Park at the Chicago School; Shaw and McKay built social disorganization theory directly on this ecological framework.
Robert E. Park co-founded the Chicago School of urban sociology with Ernest W. Burgess; their human ecology model of the city is the direct intellectual precursor to Shaw and McKay's social disorganization theory.
Sources
1. Siegel, Criminology: The Core
Larry J. Siegel, Cengage Learning
2. Wikipedia: Social Disorganization Theory
Criticism section
The theory has been subject to criticism, pointing out the lack of explanation as to why delinquency is concentrated in certain geographical areas of a city.
Theory section
established in 1929 by Clifford Shaw and published in 1942 with his assistant Henry McKay
View the SourceWikipedia: Clifford R. Shaw
Developed By: Clifford R. Shaw, Lead sectionQuote, Developed By: Clifford R. Shaw, Lead section
His work on juvenile delinquency with Henry D. McKay, conducted in the late 1920s, played a pivotal role in moving the study of such delinquency toward the discipline of sociology, and away from psychology and psychiatry.
Wikipedia: Henry D. McKay
Developed By: Henry D. McKay, Lead sectionQuote, Developed By: Henry D. McKay, Lead section
Shaw and McKay also developed social disorganization theory in a study published in 1942.
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