Merton’s Strain Theory of Deviance – A Level Sociology Explained

Last Updated on October 8, 2025 by Karl Thompson

Robert Merton’s Strain Theory of Deviance (1938) remains one of the most influential explanations of crime and deviance in sociology. Building on Émile Durkheim’s concept of anomie, Merton argued that crime occurs when there is a strain between society’s cultural goals (such as wealth and success) and the legitimate means available to achieve them. When opportunities are blocked, some individuals innovate—often through deviant or criminal behaviour—to achieve socially approved goals.

Merton developed this theory to explain rising crime rates in 1940s America, but its relevance extends to contemporary societies today, from white-collar fraud to mass shootings.

What is Strain Theory?

Strain Theory argues that crime occurs when there are not enough legitimate opportunities for people to achieve society’s success goals. This creates a strain between aspirations and reality, pushing some individuals toward deviance.

The American Dream and the Roots of Strain

Merton argued that the cultural system of the USA was built on the ‘American Dream’. This was a set of meritocratic principles which assured the American public that equality of opportunity was available to all, regardless of class, gender or ethnicity.

The ‘American Dream’ encouraged individuals to pursue a goal of success which was largely measured in terms of the acquisition of wealth and material possessions. People were expected to pursue this goal through legitimate means such as education and work. The dominant cultural message was if you are ambitious, talented and work hard, then income and wealth should be your rewards.

However Merton pointed out that these goals were not attainable by all. The structural organisation of the USA meant that the means to get on were not fairly distributed. It was difficult, if not impossible for some to compete an achieve financial success.

Merton developed the concept of ‘anomie’ to describe this imbalance between cultural goals and institutionalised means. He argued that such an imbalanced society produces anomie – there is a strain or tension between the goals and means which produce unsatisfied aspirations.

Anomie and Crime

According to Merton, anomie is a socially produced condition of deregulation and discontent that generates deviance. Society promises success to everyone but denies equal access to achievement.

For example, a poor, inner-city teenager may be motivated to succeed but faces barriers such as underfunded schools, racial prejudice, or a lack of employment opportunities. Failure is often interpreted as a personal weakness rather than a structural problem, producing guilt instead of political anger.

The pressure to succeed can be so powerful that disadvantaged individuals resort to illegitimate means — theft, drug dealing, or fraud — to achieve the same success goals.

As Merton puts it:

‘The culture makes incompatible demands… In this setting, a cardinal American virtue – “ambition” – promotes a cardinal American vice – “deviant behaviour”
Merton (1957) Social Theory and Social Structure.

Five Adaptations to Strain

Merton’s Five Adaptations to Strain

Merton identified five ways people adapt when faced with the strain between goals and means:

Adaptation	Description	Example
Conformity	Accepts cultural goals and pursues them through legitimate means.	Working hard for promotion.
Innovation	Accepts goals but uses illegitimate means to achieve them.	Selling drugs, theft, or fraud.
Ritualism	Abandons cultural goals but rigidly follows social rules.	A bureaucrat who follows rules without ambition.
Retreatism	Rejects both goals and means, retreating from society.	Alcoholism, addiction, homelessness.
Rebellion	Rejects both existing goals and means and replaces them with new ones.	Revolutionaries and political radicals.

Strain Theory, Social Class and Crime

Merton’s strain theory can be applied to explain why there is higher rate of crime among the working classes.

Merton developed his theory from a well-established observation from official statistics – that a higher proportion of acquisitive crime is committed by those from unskilled manual backgrounds (or ‘lower social classes’).

Merton noted that American society promoted material success as a ‘legitimate goal’, and encouraged self-discipline and hard work as the ‘legitimate means’ of pursuing that goal, with the idea that any individual, irrespective of their background could, with sufficient effort, achieve material success.

HOWEVER, Merton argued that for those from lower social classes, this ‘dream’ had become an ideology, masking the fact that the legitimate opportunities are not available to all, and worse, those who failed to achieve success via legitimate means were condemned for their apparent lack of effort.

This situation puts great pressure on people to achieve material success by illegitimate means (acquisitive crime) to avoid being branded a failure.

In short, Merton argued that America was a highly unequal and divided society which promoted goals that only some of its population could realistically hope to achieve. Many young, working class men especially had internalised the desire to achieve material success (they wanted cars and nice clothes for example), but the only way they could meet these goals was through crime.

Thus, it is not so much the individual’s flaws that lead them to crime, but rather ‘anomie’ in society – the combination of the pressure to be materially successful and the lack of legitimate opportunities to achieve that success.

Evaluation of Merton’s Strain Theory

Strengths

Links personal behaviour to wider social structure.
Explains economic and utilitarian crimes effectively.
Offers a useful framework for analysing modern capitalist societies.

Limitations

Not all working-class individuals turn to crime — it doesn’t explain individual differences.
Over-relies on official statistics, underestimating middle-class and white-collar crime.
Doesn’t explain non-economic crimes such as violence or vandalism.
Marxists argue it fails to challenge capitalism itself, which relies on inequality and exploitation.

Subcultural theories later developed Merton’s ideas, arguing that deviant subcultures provide their own rewards and values to those excluded from mainstream success.

The Continuing Relevance of Strain Theory

Merton’s strain theory is an important contribution to the study of crime and deviance – in the 1940s it helped to explain why crime continued to exist in countries, such as America, which were experiencing increasing economic growth and wealth.
Baumer and Gustafson (2007) analysed official data sets in the USA and found that instrumental crime rates were higher in areas where there was a ‘high commitment to money success’ alongside a ‘weak commitment to legitimate means’..

It is possible to apply Merton’s theory of anomie to explain White Collar Crime – white collar criminals (those who commit fraud at work, for example) might be those who are committed to achieving material success, but have had their opportunities for promotion blocked by lack of opportunities – possible through class, gender or ethnic bias, or possible just by the simple fact that the higher up the career ladder you go, the more competition for promotion there is.
The (2009) applies Merton’s strain theory to explain rising crime rates during a period of economic growth in Malaysia, suggesting we can apply this theory to developing countries and that a ‘general theory of crime’ may thus be possible.
Philip Bourgeois (1996) In search of respect shows us that some of the most despised criminals have actually internalised Merton’s success goals.

Carl Nightingale: On the Edge – Carl Nightingale developed Merton’s Strain Theory, applying it to inner city youths in the 1990s.

Applying Strain Theory to Mass Shootings in America…

Merton’s Strain Theory can be applied to explain the rise in mass shootings in recent years in the United States. However, we need to take into account more than just Strain Theory. We also need to recognise that mass shooters tend to be white, working class men. Thus the ‘crisis of masculinity’ has a lot to do with the increasing trend of mass shootings too!

Kalish et al (2010) argue that a culture of hegemonic masculinity in the US creates a sense of aggrieved entitlement conducive to violence.

Today in America young men face barriers to achieving traditional markers of male success. Getting a decent paying job, buying a house and finding a partner are all harder than ever. There are a significant number of young men who fail to achieve any of these normal masculine success goals. Many men feel they are entitled to these things, which is part of patriarchy. Not achieving these goals means lots of men feeling anxious and their masculine sense of identity threatened.

When this happens, some of these men blame others for taking their opportunities away from them. Some of them (wrongly) blame ethnic minorities for taking their jobs, houses, and women. Some of these enact these feelings through mass-murdering ethnic minorities.

This kind of white-male racist reaction has a long history in America as outlined in this article in The Conversation.

The article above also notes that many of these mass shootings end with the shooter committing suicide. Suicide fits in with the masculine narrative: a pre-planned, successful suicide is the final way a young man can assert their masculine identity. (This may sound bonkers, but read the article, it’s in there!).

Conclusion

Merton’s Strain Theory remains one of sociology’s most powerful frameworks for explaining the social causes of crime. It highlights how the promise of equal opportunity can mask deep inequalities that push some people toward deviance.

By connecting structural inequality, cultural values, and individual behaviour, Merton provided a foundation for many later theories — from subcultural theory to modern analyses of consumerism and masculinity.

References

Merton, R.K. (1938) Social Structure and Anomie, American Sociological Review.
Merton, R.K. (1957) Social Theory and Social Structure.
Baumer, E. & Gustafson, R. (2007) Social Forces, Vol. 86(1).
Bourgois, P. (1996) In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio. Cambridge University Press.

Kalish, R., et al. (2010) Masculinity, Violence and Entitlement in the U.S.
Open University – Anomie and Strain Theory overview

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Signposting/ Related Posts

Merton’s Strain Theory is taught as part of consensus theory within the A-level sociology Crime and Deviance syllabus.

Other consensus theories include:

What is Merton’s Strain Theory?

Merton’s Strain Theory of Deviance explains that crime and deviance occur when there is a mismatch between society’s cultural goals (like wealth or success) and the legitimate means available to achieve them. When individuals are unable to reach these goals through accepted routes such as education or work, they may turn to illegitimate methods such as theft or fraud. This creates a “strain” between goals and means — a key cause of deviant behaviour.

What are the five adaptations to strain according to Merton?

Merton identified five ways individuals adapt to strain:
Conformity – Accepting both cultural goals and legitimate means.
Innovation – Accepting goals but using illegitimate means to achieve them.
Ritualism – Rejecting goals but continuing to follow societal rules.
Retreatism – Rejecting both goals and means, withdrawing from society.
Rebellion – Rejecting both existing goals and means and working to replace them with new ones.

How does Merton’s Strain Theory explain working-class crime?

Merton argued that working-class people are more likely to experience blocked opportunities due to structural inequality. Society encourages everyone to pursue material success but does not provide equal access to education, jobs, and resources. This pressure to “succeed” without the means to do so leads some individuals to engage in crime as an alternative route to success.

What are the main criticisms of Strain Theory?

Critics argue that not all individuals who face strain turn to crime. Subcultural theorists suggest that deviant subcultures help explain these differences. Marxists believe that Merton fails to address capitalism’s role in producing inequality, while others point out that strain theory focuses too heavily on economic crime and neglects crimes of violence or passion.

Why is Strain Theory still relevant today?

Strain Theory remains relevant because it connects personal frustration with wider structural inequalities. It helps explain modern phenomena such as white-collar crime, gang culture, and even mass shootings. In societies where consumerism and competition are strong but opportunities remain unequal, Merton’s concept of strain continues to provide valuable insights.