Sociological Theories

Social Disorganization Theory Paper Student's Name Institution Course # and Name Professor's Name Submission Date Introduction Minors or young citizens below the statutory age have become more active in criminal activities, and this has led to reviews of juvenile delinquency. Traditional criminal justice systems did not categorize criminals as adults or juveniles; the punishment that judges gave depended only on the severity of the criminal offense. Contemporary society understands that juveniles are different from adults; hence, there are notable updates on how the law handles young offenders. I currently work for a non-profit organization for juvenile justice. I recently heard reports of increased juvenile offenses in the community and overloads in the juvenile court systems. This situation requires an evidence-based approach to identify its root causes and address the issue immediately. The essay will relate the increase in juvenile offenses in the local community to sociological theory and address the problem as a juvenile justice worker working in a non-profit organization. Social Disorganization Theory Social disorganization refers to the inability of members of the society to solve their problems jointly and achieve shared values. Crime and delinquency can be seen from the social disorganization theory, which posits that they result from weakened bonds and the breakdown of social control mechanisms within disadvantaged communities. It has emerged as a relevant base for responding to the ever-increasing crime rates due to the urbanization and industrialization of American cities. Social disorganization can be associated with residential instability, family disruption, ethnic diversity, and economic status. Massive population change in a residential area due to emigration and immigration over a duration denies individuals the ability to develop a social bond with one another. Second, ethnic diversity in a specific locality presents challenges like differences in customs, fear, mistrust, and lack of shared experiences, which disrupt relations and raise crime rates. Third, the disruption of the traditional family system where parenting was a role of every community member, and the family unit was valued has limited time for supervising young citizens and communicating with fellow adults. Moreover, high population density in urban areas coupled with increasing poverty levels causes social disorganization (Errol et al., 2021). Rural localities may have a high proportion of poor people ...