The General Strain Theory: John Wayne Gacy, Jr - Assignment Example

Introduction The General Strain theory is in circulation since last few decades during which it was not only seriously attacked academically but was also reformulated in order to overcome the different theoretical shortcomings in the original general strain theory. The origin of the strain theory however is based on the combination of different theories most importantly the Cohen’s social control theory and Merton’s Anomie. The social control theory outlines that there may different social structures within the society which can actually induce a person to commit crime. General Strain Theory or GST therefore proved one of the most important and critical theories in criminology providing explanation to the issues such as the commitment of crime and deviance by the adolescents in a given society. (Agnew, 1992) GST can provide a set of plausible explanations to the crimes committed by the likes of John Wayne Gacy, Jr. This is owing to the fact that GST actually outlines as to whether some strains on an individual can actually force a person to commit the crime and engage into other activities in order to relieve such strain on him or her. GST on the whole therefore outlines different social elements which can combine together to help an individual to become more inclined towards crime and use crime as a tool to relieve pressure of such strains on him or her. This paper will therefore discuss the general strain theory with special reference to the case of Wayne Gacy and will present the theoretical analysis of the same besides exploring the policy implications of the same. Description of the Offender John Wayne Gacy was one of the serial killers in US who have murdered and raped 33 teenage boys and men over the period of time. Most of his victims were buried in his own home whereas some of them were actually thrown into the river to discard them permanently. He was also nicknamed as Killer Clown because he would often dress like Pogo the clown in different charitable services and parties where he was a regular attendee. A closer analysis of the life of Gacy would indicate that his inclination towards the life of crime and sex was largely influenced by the environment in which he was living. He was offered a job of manager at three KFCs by his father in law in Waterloo, Iowa and it was in Waterloo that he started to engage himself in homosexuality besides forcing teenage employees of his stores to make sex with him. (Cahil, 1986) He was psychologically examined after his first arrest and it was concluded by the doctors that he possessed antisocial personality and that it may be difficult to fully rehabilitate him out of such behaviors. What is however, critical to note that he was active in the community services and was also subsequently appreciated and rewarded for his community services also? Despite such behavior, he continued to commit the murder and rape of the teenage boys and other males to whom he described as male prostitutes. Overview of theory As discussed above that the General Strain Theory is a combination of different theories and finally culminated into a broader theory with focus on the sociology as well as the criminology. The basic postulates of the theory suggest that the social structures within society can pressure citizens to actually commit crimes and as such may result into the increased instances of the deviance and crime if society is not supportive for an individual. Robert Dubin, one of the earliest proponents of this theory outlined that the deviance is actually a function of the society and advocated to make a difference between the actual behavior of the individuals and the set of values which actually drive such behaviors. (Agnew, 1992) Explanation and Analysis General Strain theory is focused mainly on the interaction of the individuals and how the society can actually result into the adaptation of the crime as one of the means of relieving societal pressures. It is therefore argued that the general strain theory mostly focus on the negative relationships of the individuals with the society. Considering this aspect into account, it may be relatively difficult to establish that Gacy has some sort of negative relationship with others or society as a whole. This is due to the fact that Gacy was quite active in his social circle and apparently seem to have enjoyed his role as an entertainer in the community based gathering. Further, Gacy seem to have a very stable career and job prospects while working as a manager at KFC. These aspects of the Gacy’s life therefore may not fully validate the different propositions made by GST that the inclination towards crime is often a result of the society’s behavior towards an individual. GST often argues that if individuals are restricted from achieving his or her goals, the individual may actually commit the crimes in order to take the revenge. However, in case of Gacy this may not be the case as he was constantly provided the opportunities to achieve his full potential. The later modifications in the theory however, also added the idea of the social stimuli which can actually enforce an individual to commit crime. (PATERNOSTER & MAZEROLLE, 1994). This aspect of theory therefore may be sufficient enough to describe the reasons behind the committing of rape and murder by Gacy. Gacy was initiated towards the homosexuality when he migrated to Waterloo in Iowa and it was from here that his so called double life started to emerge wherein he engaged himself into the activities such as Wife Swapping, prostitution and pornography. These social stimuli therefore offered a perfect environment for Gacy to continue to engage himself into the murder and rapping activities. Policy Implications The above discussion suggest that it may not be just enough that the individuals with right kind of career and economic prospects can actually engage into the crime and criminal activities. It is perfectly possible therefore that the individuals, if offered the positive social stimuli can actually engage themselves into the criminal activities. The overall policy implications therefore may be directed at understanding the influence of the overall values and social beliefs and virtues of society can actually result into the better management of crime in a society. Having better and more balanced value system and social beliefs in a society therefore can help to create positive and healthy minds who may not engage into the criminal activities. Theoretical Limitations There are some theoretical limitations of GST because it critically fails to explain the behavior of the individuals like Gacy. GST focus mostly on the negative relationships of the individuals and the society which could result into crime. Besides, it has often been discussed that the society’s inability to allow the individuals to achieve their goals may also result into the deviance. However, the case of Gacy may be relatively different as theory failed to explain the behavior of an individual who had a better and more lucrative career and who was offered numerous opportunities to make his living in a relatively decent and more lucrative manner. Conclusion The general strain theory outlines that the negative influences of the society often result into the crime and deviance in the individuals. If the individuals are not treated properly by the society or being mistreated, it is likely that the individuals may engage themselves into the deviant behavior. The case of John Gacy however suggests that it may not be entirely explainable to define the criminal behavior of the individuals based on their relationship with the society. Bibliography 1. Agnew, R. (1992). FOUNDATION FOR A GENERAL STRAIN THEORY OF CRIME AND DELINQUENCY*. Criminology , 30 (1), 47-87. 2. Cahil, T. (1986). Buried Dreams: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer. New York: Bantam. 3. PATERNOSTER, R., & MAZEROLLE, P. (1994). General Strain Theory and Delinquency: A Replication and Extension. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency , 31 (3), 235-263. Read More