Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City
... Further, while many studies have examined how individual police contacts and victimization informs perceptions of police (Brunson, 2007;Carmichael et al., 2021;Foster et al., 2022;Wu, 2014;Zhao & Ren, 2015), little quantitative research has focused exclusively on the perspectives of street-identified Black populations, the group most likely to come into contact with police (Anderson, 1999;Chambers et al., 2020;Hitchens et al., 2023;Payne et al., 2017Payne et al., , 2023Rios, 2011). It is important to note that street-identified populations represent a small segment of low-income Black communities but are the people or local residents who most often experience the criminal legal system. ...
... It is important to note that street-identified populations represent a small segment of low-income Black communities but are the people or local residents who most often experience the criminal legal system. A street identity represents the internalization of street culture or the passive or active participation in criminal activities as a way of life (Anderson, 1999;Payne et al., 2023a). Street life is also a cultural identity, partly serving as a protective buffer against police misconduct (Payne et al., 2023;Rios, 2011). ...
... First, neighborhood conditions matter in predicting street-identified Black boys/men's and girls/women's views of the police, with social cohesion significantly associated with positive evaluations of police and physical disorder connecting to less favorable attitudes toward police. Our finding aligns with previous research examining nonstreet-identified populations (Cantora et al., 2019;Carmichael et al., 2021;Dowler & Sparks, 2008;Kwak & McNeeley, 2017;Reisig & Parks, 2003;Sampson & Bartusch, 1998;Sprott & Doob, 2009) and street-identified Blacks (Anderson, 1999;Chambers et al., 2020;Hitchens et al. 2023;Payne et al. 2017;Payne et al., 2023a) suggesting that the association between neighborhood conditions and perceptions of the police is not limited to nonstreet identified residents. It should also be underscored that contrary to previous findings and their common portrayal, street-identified Black youth and adults are not likely to report negative or low levels of social cohesion (see Table 1). ...
Although public attitudes toward the police have been widely examined over the past several decades, very few quantitative studies have focused on large community samples of street-identified Black populations. Drawing on data collected by a street par-ticipatory action research project conducted in two low-income urban Black neighborhoods, this paper examines perceptions of the police as a function of neighborhood and individual correlates among street-identified Black males and females. Study findings suggest that neighborhood physical disorder is negatively related to perceptions of the police, whereas social cohesion is positively linked to favorable perceptions. Older participants had more positive attitudes toward police, and respondents with prior arrest and incarceration experiences expressed more negative perceptions. Recommendations include improving housing and environmental management programs and constructively working with street-identified Black boys/men and girls/women to enhance public-police relations.
... It is possible that for some youth, the negative behavioral consequences of victimization are informed by subsequent internalization of the code of the street to protect from further victimization and in attempt to reclaim their social status. Those that adhere to the code of the street believe presenting a tough persona and having a reputation for retaliatory, and if necessary violent, action is important to garner respect and deter victimization (Anderson, 1999). Ethnographic work has suggested the street code is one prominent behavioral orientation in schools that youths believe will net them status and respect (Bell, 2019). ...
... Ethnographic work has suggested the street code is one prominent behavioral orientation in schools that youths believe will net them status and respect (Bell, 2019). Anderson (1999) suggested that schools were "staging areas" and extensions of the street in which the code of the street was transmitted, learned, and internalized. Thus, the current study seeks to better understand how school victimization influences adherence to Anderson's code of the street. ...
... Additionally, there is ample research on the correlates and consequences of school victimization (e.g., demographics, selfcontrol, school climate; Bryson & Childs, 2018;Gottfredson et al., 2005;Shukla et al., 2016). Anderson (1999) suggests conditions of urban life brought on by systemic racism and deindustrialization combined to produce a milieu which lacked quality job or educational opportunities, high rates of crime, drug use, and single-parent families. In this context, he argues the code of the street evolved as a mechanism to establish and maintain status and reputation while deferring victimization and disrespect (Ander-son, 1999). ...
While previous research demonstrates the negative consequences of victimization at school, less research has examined the link between victimization in school and adherence to the code of the street. Using two waves from the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) data, the current study investigated the impact of school victimization on street code adherence. Results indicated a general measure of school victimization was significantly associated with increased street code adherence at a later wave. We disaggregated this measure to assess the relationship between specific indicators of school victimization and increased street code adherence. Being attacked or threatened while traveling to or from school or while at school, having rumors or lies spread about oneself, and having sexual jokes or gestures directed at youth at school were related to street code adherence. Having things stolen at school and being made fun of for appearance or speech were not significantly associated with street code adherence. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications for these findings.
... Inside these areas, referred to by Goffman [1961] as 'free places', inmates could engage in activities considered to be taboo with some degree of freedom, even if they faced repercussions afterwards.(p.162) These criminal groups seem to constitute what Yinger (1960) called a contraculture where "the conflict element is central; many of the values, indeed, are specifically contradictions of the values of the dominant culture"(p.629), or what Anderson (1999) called an oppositional culture in an alienating social environment. Writing about the seductions of crime, the moral and sensual attractions of behaving badly, criminally, Katz (1988) suggested we start "by examining how people construct the experience at issue and then, only as a secondary matter, [turn] to trace connections from the phenomenal foreground to the generational and social ecological background"(p.317). ...
... Such reputational networking, in which prisoners and prison officials and guards ("a good half of whom consist of former penal laborers" (Gentes (2009):131) participated, gave rise to a cultural ideal, embodied in the Ivans, of the hard man (compare the manliness in the hooligan song), inured to punishment and prison life, ready to use violence (ruthless and reckless if necessary) to maintain the interactional order and the right to respect (and whatever else they wanted), and backed by a reputable history of antiestablishment criminal activity. Interesting parallels can be seen in Anderson's (1999) description of young men in modern day Philadelphia's inner city: ...
... For the criminal inmates survival involved striving to maintain a hardened, take-no-prisoners presence. In a very different but analogous environment Anderson (1999) saw a similar niche construction at work in the code of the street: the code revolves around the presentation of self…A person's public bearing must send the unmistakable, if sometimes subtle, message that one is capable of violence, and possibly mayhem, when the situation requires it, that one can take care of oneself.(p.72) Maintaining one's bearing was reputation management,"a survival strategy" (Anderson (2002):1533), highlighting the value of respect: Decency or a "nice" attitude is often taken as a sign of weakness…In selfdefense, otherwise decent youths will sometimes mimic those who are more committed to the street…they sometimes adopt the "street look", wearing the street uniform, but also swaggering, using foul language, and generally trying to "go for bad", all in the interest of acquiring respect. ...
Do it yourself, you say? In this study I want to say DI not Y but WHO (With the
Help of Others) and suggest that the adjusted saying expresses an oft uncredited
dynamic of social life. Of course meritocrats won’t have a bar of it, for people are
to be judged on their own merits, so how about helping yourself.
... The studies indicate that behaviours are not only observed but also rationalized and learned in disadvantaged neighbourhoods (Kurtenbach, 2017). Individual norms are adapted in such a way that they correspond to locally perceived challenges, which may include the social legitimization of violence (see also Anderson, 1999;Heitmeyer et al., 2019;Sharkey, 2006). ...
... Sociocultural characteristics in the form of shared norms can vary between a city's neighbourhoods. Additionally, numerous studies have been conducted on this topic, including those on collective efficacy (Sampson et al., 1997;Sampson, 2012;Gerstner et al., 2019) and the code of the street (Anderson, 1999;Heitmeyer et al., 2019). Consequently, the perception of a location also influences the assessment and selection of options for action, which creates a neighbourhood effect. ...
This study examines neighbourhood effects and their impact on inhabitants' susceptibility to rad-icalization by linking standardized survey data in three German cities to data from government statistics , followed by a multilevel analysis from a total of 145 units. This allows us to control for both local and individual factors with respect to the susceptibility to radicalization. Findings show that an increased level of self-control and income satisfaction have a deterring effect against the susceptibility to radicalization. Digital activities, on the other hand, have a positive effect on susceptibility. Sociostructural characteristics at the neighbourhood level do not show a clear effect on the susceptibility to radicalization, but differences in 'legal cynicism' and 'collective efficacy' are evident in a varying pattern across the three cities under study. In the city with the highest level of social segregation, legal cynicism had a positive effect and collective efficacy had a mitigating effect on the susceptibility to radicalization. The results show that the local environment should be taken into account when explaining radicalization.
... Several criminologists have offered social structure theories. These authors include Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay (1969), sociologist Walter Miller's (1971) subculture theory, and African American Studies Professor Elijah Anderson's (1999) notions of a criminal subculture within the inner-city black community. While superficially appearing relevant, the authors reject these as not particularly illuminating for purposes of this study. ...
... This evidence discounts Shaw and McKay's (1969) theory. Miller's (1971) subculture theory asserted that the lower socioeconomic class has its own value system, and Elijah Anderson's (1999) explanation of sub-cultures within the black community further detailed inner city black youth as disproportionately criminal due to the influences of economic depravity, hopelessness, rampant drug use, and alienation. These characteristics are not only present in West Virginia but are disproportionately present in those communities. ...
The decades long call to reform police in the United States is a recurring theme in political discourse and particularly since the post-pandemic political unrest reported in the media since then; however, this idea lacks scientific foundation. Several authors have contributed data collected since 2020 and thereafter conducted analyses exploring both police conduct and misconduct nationwide. Through the present study, the authors have provided socio-economic evidence by means of a comparative qualitative analysis of published data and studies examining the validity of reasons for police reform. By investigating increases in violent crime rates over the past three years, the present study’s authors have found that the popular movement to defund the police has accelerated violent crimes, including homicide. The authors conclude that while evidence may suggest a review of policing at local or regional levels is advisable; however, evidence necessitating broad institutional reshaping of the police has been insufficient for action. Shifts in various anti-law enforcement policies have made much of the recent violence predictable and were indeed predicted by those who have conducted rigorous studies of police actions, directly evaluating crime rates. In addition, we seek not only evidence of crime escalation but also the theoretical underpinnings of the spike in violent crime.
Journal of Behavioral and Social Sciences
2024, Vol. 9, 1-13 ISSN: 2375-8899
... Where it's not so much hatred and bigotry and people just don't care about lives and things." People who consider themselves decent look down on those they place as socially attached to the street (Anderson, 1999). They pray for them, hoping God will come to them and show them the right path. ...
... The diverging lifeworld orientations can increase the groups' tendency to mistrust one another, since in Queens Square, people following the street lifestyle are considered a threat to the efforts and achievements of more "decent" people with regular jobs and stable social ties. In this social environment, people's interactions are pervaded by the subtle notion that more decent people do not trust those of the "street culture" because trusting them can be an irresponsible act (Anderson, 1999). ...
... In contrast, research frequently highlights resistance among marginalized men to seek help from the police and other social institutions (Addis and Mahalik, 2003;Galdas et al., 2005;Lindsey and Marcell, 2012;Zaykowski et al., 2019). Extensive research has documented that men of color, particularly young Black men, are more likely to be stopped by the police on the street and in traffic stops, experience police misconduct, and be victims of police brutality more than other racial groups (Anderson 1999;Brunson 2007;Brunson and Miller, 2006b;Carroll and Gonzalez, 2014;Kramer and Remster, 2022;Lundman and Kaufman, 2003;Payne et al., 2017;Rios 2011). Men of color frequently express dissatisfaction with the police, with Black men holding the most negative attitudes towards law enforcement (Alberton and Gorey, 2018;Brown and Benedict, 2002;Cheurprakobkit 2000;Hurst et al., 2000;Peck 2015;Taylor et al., 2001;Wu 2014). ...
... Black and Hispanic Americans worry five and four times greater than Whites, respectively, that they will be victims of police violence (Graham et al., 2020). Much of this work has focused on and prioritized the experiences and attitudes of marginalized men (e.g., Anderson 1999;Bruson 2007;Brunson and Miller, 2006b;Rios 2011). Young men of color are more likely than other groups to be stopped by police, perceive unfair or discriminatory behavior, be the target of police misconduct and violence, and hold less favorable attitudes towards police (Brunson and Miller, 2006b;Edwards et al., 2019;Rios 2011). ...
It is well known that marginalized communities of color, particularly young Black men, are more likely to experience police-initiated contact that other groups. Research suggests that these events contribute to legal cynicism, or the belief that the law and its agencies are ineffective, unwilling to help, and untrustworthy. In turn, cynical orientations limit one’s willingness to call the police to help. However, recent work on marginalized women suggests that despite holding cynical attitudes towards the police, their immediate needs for safety and services supersede these beliefs. The current study examines the racialized and gendered linkages between police-initiated contact and help-seeking outcomes (reporting crime, calling for an emergency, and seeking help from police for non-emergencies). Using data from the Police Public Contact Survey (from the Police Public Contact Survey–2020) results indicate that Black and Hispanic participants were less likely than White participants to seek help. However, Black and Hispanic women were more likely than their male counterparts for calls for help regarding a crime or disturbance. Across all outcomes, police-initiated contact was associated with higher rates of help-seeking. Perceived illegitimacy of street stops reduced the odds of reporting crimes to the police. However, perceived traffic stop illegitimacy was not related to help-seeking. Police initiated contacts and perceptions of legitimacy did not moderate the relationships between demographic variables and help-seeking outcomes. Implications for theories on legal socialization and the impact of police-initiated contacts on help-seeking are discussed.
... Overall the informal social arrangements between players and player groups introduces a level of expectation of what are proper and what are improper behaviours (Suzor and Woodford 2013). The informal social controls imposed through a system of symbolic reputational indicators and word-of-mouth metagaming reputations work exactly like informal social controls in the physical world , Anderson 2000, Gianturco 2016, Page 2016. Due to the symbolic representations of reputation and the cryptic nature of word-of-mouth discussions of reputation there is some similarity to social controls found in illicit market groups (May and Hough 2004). ...
The current narrative in criminology is that drawing behavioural parallels between groups observed in virtual markets and groups within illicit markets is hampered by the lack of legal frameworks to outline and describe criminal activities. Without a legal framework it is a struggle to distinguish normative behaviour from deviant behaviour. However, this paper argues that rather than lacking legal frameworks, virtual worlds have an extensive set of formal and informal social controls that approximate the legal and social regulations placed on illicit markets in the physical world. Both the virtual market and illicit markets are punctuated by their use of violence as a tool to resolve disputes, protect markets and enforce financial transactions in the ongoing absence of legal regulation. Therefore, that if the criminological narrative can be adapted to recognise the parallels between the two markets, then the opportunity exists to study the behavior of individuals and groups in a controlled and well observed setting contained in virtual markets. This will provide insights into the structures and relationships between illicit market groups in the physical world.
... From a crime opportunity perspective then, more opportunities may be available within relatively close proximity of Black residents within these neighborhoods. This implies that the shorter journeys-to-crime often found for Black suspects is driven, in part, by a societal structure in which both crime and drug markets are concentrated in disadvantaged minority dominated areas (Anderson 1999;Johnson 2016;Peterson and Krivo 2010). Within this context, awareness of criminal opportunities differs by race: because routine activities typically occur near one's home, the activity and awareness spaces of Black residents are largely within a predominantly Black realm. ...
... 22). Black placemaking in parks, community gardens, and other urban green spaces exemplifies this understanding, highlighting how environmental engagement is as much about identity and justice as it is about ecology (Cole and Foster 2001;Aptekar 2021;Anderson 1999). These practices align with the principles of Black ecology, demonstrating that engagement with land is intimately tied to affirming Black cultural values and confronting environmental injustices (Dillon 2018a(Dillon , 2018bFinney 2014;Wilson 2019). ...
This paper examines the racialized dimensions of urban green spaces in the United States, foregrounding how structural racism, historical exclusion, and ongoing inequities converge to shape public parks and other recreational areas. While classic urban sociological theories—exemplified by the Chicago School—have illuminated the economic and political forces underpinning urbanization, they have largely neglected race as a central axis of analysis, overlooking how systemic discrimination circumscribes access to and cultural engagement with green spaces. By charting the historical displacement of Black communities—such as Seneca Village during the construction of Central Park—and the modern phenomenon of “green gentrification,” the paper exposes how ostensibly inclusive public parks have long functioned as instruments of social control and dispossession. To address these omissions, this paper employs the framework of Black placemaking to highlight the agency, resistance, and cultural creativity with which Black communities navigate and transform urban green spaces. Drawing on scholarship in Black geographies and Black ecology, the analysis underscores how marginalized groups reclaim land and cultivate collective belonging in spite of oppressive planning practices and racialized policing. Rather than accepting public green spaces as neutral or apolitical, Black placemaking demonstrates that they are contested terrain shaped by power relations, yet open to creative reimagining. By centering Black placemaking within urban sociology, this paper calls for a more nuanced, intersectional account of how race, class, and space intersect in the production of urban green environments, urging scholars and policymakers alike to recognize and support practices that foster greater equity and inclusion.
... Many inner-city youths in hyper-segregated, impoverished areas face high dropout rates and gang involvement due to a lack of support and a sense of belonging (Anderson 1999;Klein and Maxson 2006;Howell 2010). Multicultural education offers a democratic approach that validates these students' experiences, fostering an understanding of cultural dynamics and social inequalities while encouraging a vision for a better future (Giroux 1997). ...
This paper presents a top-down approach to gang prevention, emphasizing the importance of addressing the complex structural conditions that accumulate to foster gang activity. In the title, we use the metaphor of “smoke” to represent the underlying structural conditions that are often overlooked or ignored, while “fire” symbolizes the resulting consequences of this neglect—specifically, gangs and gang violence. The authors argue that factors such as poverty, poor education, and racialized housing policies have created environments conducive to gang membership and violence. These structural inequities not only create fertile ground for gang activity but also trickle down to affect communities, as well as youth on an individual level, leading to trauma, multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and, in some cases, long-term offending. This paper also underscores the importance of addressing individual agency as well as recognizing that empowering youths to make choices outside of the constraints imposed by their environments is crucial for effective prevention. By examining broader structural issues, this paper highlights the need for comprehensive solutions that go beyond grassroots efforts. We critique current legislative measures and propose that effective gang prevention must tackle the root causes embedded in America’s socio-economic and political systems, as most gang prevention programs fail to address the institutional frameworks that contribute to individuals’ propensity to join, leave, or remain in gangs.
... Previous research in cultural sociology has advanced our understanding of the social behavior of marginalized men and fathers by demonstrating poverty's cultural influence on how this population makes sense of the world and their place in it (Anderson 2000;Edin and Nelson 2013;Harding 2010;Lewis 1966;Liebow 1967;Macleod 1987;Young 2004). Explicitly scattered throughout many of these texts are respondents' direct references to their own father's absence when framing their actions, intentions, and thoughts about fatherhood. ...
Previous research and policy implementation on absentee fatherhood maintains an overly narrow conception of absence based solely on residency. This paper argues that absence is a variegated experience for many that is inadequately captured through the resident/non-resident binary. Qualitative interviews with 26 men on their experiences growing up with non-residential fathers revealed four ideal-typical patterns of residential absence. The four ideal-types of absence are Consistent, Inconsistent, Extended, and Absolute. This research demonstrates how these four types of absence are each uniquely consequential for how these men make sense of their fathers and conceptualize fatherhood. The paper concludes with policy and research considerations for scholars, policymakers, and practitioners.
... Weitzer (1999) suggests that Black residents in marginalized communities tend to perceive that they are being targeted and mistreated by the police, while they also find that Black residents living in middle-class neighborhoods tend not to perceive such racial bias or mistreatment by the police in their community. In addition, Anderson (1999) argues that Black residents living in neighborhoods with concentrated disadvantages tend to perceive that policing in their community is ineffective. This perception stems from Black residents believing that the police do not respond appropriately to their need for safety from serious crimes or that police focus on issues irrelevant to their safety, such as minor drug issues. ...
While numerous studies demonstrate that Black individuals have more negative perceptions of the police than their White counterparts, few have simultaneously examined racial differences in perceptions of procedural justice, police effectiveness, and legitimacy. Additionally, limited research has rigorously examined the relationship between race and perceptions of the police while carefully accounting for potentially relevant factors that could influence this relationship. Using unique survey data largely drawn from crime hot spots in Baltimore, Maryland, we examined the differences between White ( n = 500) and Black ( n = 2,452) individuals’ perceptions of procedural justice, police effectiveness, and police legitimacy. Furthermore, by conducting propensity-score matching on White and Black residents in our data, we compared perceptions of the police between 394 pairs of similarly situated Black and White residents who were matched based on demographics, victimization, offending, self-control, recent experiences with the police, perceived police presence, and street environments. Results indicated that while Black people have more negative perceptions of procedural justice than White people, they do not hold different perceptions regarding police effectiveness and obligation to obey. These findings hold even when comparing the matched White and Black people. Our findings suggest a nuanced relationship between race and perceptions of the police.
... Youth explained how these challenges magnify the stress that arises from issues within their romantic relationships and the profound feedback of these on within-relationship behaviors (blue loops in the CLD), specifically relationship-destroying behaviors. Exposure to racism explains in part why Black youth are more likely to have dating relationships marked by conflict (Anderson, 2000;Kogan et al., 2013;Kurdek, 2008;Wilson, 2003). Stress proliferation processes refer to the tendency for stressors to be interdependent, where stress experiences frequent spillover to create additional stressors in people's lives (Doyle & Molix, 2014;LeBlanc et al., 2015). ...
Marijuana use in adolescence is associated with significant adverse outcomes. Romantic relationships are an important context for marijuana use. Prior research suggests a bi-directional relationship between marijuana use and relationship functioning; however, the complex interplay between adolescent relationship dynamics and marijuana use remains unclear. We engaged youth to participate in group model building, a system science approach, to understand from their perspective how social complexities influence the uptake, continuation, and escalation of marijuana use. Two independent groups of clinic and community-recruited youth aged 15–20 participated in a series of four 2-h workshops. Through structured activities, participants generated a causal loop diagram (CLD) representing critical features of the complex and dynamic social system impacting marijuana use for youth in their community. The CLD that emerged represents the mental models of youth and features fourteen feedback loops, including balancing and reinforcing loops, across three domains. These interrelated domains span within-relationship behaviors, factors proximal to marijuana use, and influences on the partner pool, which impact the quality of adolescent romantic relationships and contribute to a high prevalence of marijuana use among youth. Applying a system perspective offers new insights on how stress, and behaviors within relationships in response to stress, feed back to magnify relationship dysfunction and fuel marijuana use. This model provides a new foundation for future research and data collection to better understand and test the identified relationships and feedback loops. Our findings further underscore the importance of educational programs that teach youth about healthy relationship dynamics and stress-coping approaches that do not involve substance use. Understanding how factors function as a system provides important information toward illuminating relationship dynamics and designing more impactful and synergistic interventions.
... Since its introduction, Sutherland's (1947) hypotheses have undergone various transformations by numerous scholars, including Wolfgang and Ferracuti (1967), Anderson (1999), and Akers (2011). Although each of these theorists amended and even expanded upon the early work of Sutherland, they all held that criminal behavior is the product of a learning process where the social relationships we have in our lives influence not only our perceptions of the world, but our behavior(s) as well. ...
For police officers to effectively enforce the law, it is imperative that citizens perceive of them as legitimate authority figures. Although procedural justice has shown to be a salient predictor of perceived police legitimacy, a recent line of studies has discovered other significant correlates of this outcome. No study though has explored whether deviant peer associations share a relationship with law enforcement legitimacy evaluations. Questionnaire data were collected from a convenience sample of university students (N = 623) to determine whether measures of friend's attitudes favorable toward criminal acts as well as friend's actual criminal behaviors predicted both the obligation to obey and trust in police constructs of police legitimacy. Results indicated that friend's attitudes supportive of criminal behaviors negatively predicted each police legitimacy concept, while somewhat unexpectedly, respondents who reported having many friends who engaged in past crimes were more likely to obey the police. Policy implications are discussed.
... Cultural Deviance Theory suggests that individuals who grow up in specific environments are more likely to engage in criminal behavior due to the cultural norms and values they have been exposed to (Anderson, 1999;Warner & Pierce,1993). Cultural Deviance Theory posits that individuals engage in criminal behavior when they are socialized into subcultures where deviance is normalized. ...
As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of the Revolutionary War, the commemoration offers a moment to reflect on the complex intersection of law, justice, and governance in the nation’s formative years. Sam Mason, a Revolutionary War militia captain turned infamous river pirate, provides a compelling lens through which to examine the challenges of establishing legal order in early America. His life illustrates how societal instability, jurisdictional fragmentation, and evolving legal frameworks shaped frontier justice—issues that remain relevant to contemporary criminal justice.
... In disadvantaged neighborhoods, exposure to negative role models may be more prevalent, promoting attitudes that devalue education and encourage problematic behavior. Additionally, limited job opportunities for adults in these areas may lead adolescents to perceive little benefit from responsible behavior, resulting in lower commitment to education (Ellen and Turner, 1997;Anderson, 2000). Conversely, in affluent neighborhoods, . ...
Both genes and the neighborhood are important for life satisfaction; however, there is little research on gene-environment interactions (GxE) that examines how the effect of genetic endowments varies as a function of the environmental context with life satisfaction as the outcome. This study investigated how neighborhood deprivation moderates the effects of genetic predisposition on life satisfaction. Using data from the German Twin Family Panel (TwinLife), we identified 760 dizygotic (DZ) twins and employed twin fixed-effect models to assess the GxE effects on life satisfaction. The findings reveal that the polygenic score (PGS) for subjective well-being is positively associated with life satisfaction. The effect of PGS for subjective well-being on life satisfaction is strongest for individuals living in moderately deprived areas, while it is weaker for those living in highly deprived and less deprived areas. Thus, there are signs of compensation in less deprived areas and, particularly, diathesis-stress/triggering in highly deprived areas.
... En concordancia con estos enfoques, se plantea que la consecución de recursos económicos por vías ilícitas puede operar como un atajo para satisfacer aspiraciones más o menos mediatas de consumo, ofreciendo un acceso a recursos denegados por la vía de la educación, el trabajo o las políticas de bienestar (Staley, 1992). También permitiría reemplazar el sentimiento de frustración por uno de logro, en donde el honor y el respeto se volverían claves para labrar la autodeterminación (Anderson, 1999). Por último, posibilitaría un desplazamiento respecto de los valores morales socialmente aceptados, ya que la búsqueda de alternativas frente a la marginación favorecería la tolerancia a la cultura de la ilegalidad (Wilson, 1996;Massey y Denton, 1993). ...
Este estudio analiza la relación entre privaciones socioeconómicas, consumo y criminalidad en jóvenes de zonas marginadas de la Ciudad de México. Cuestiona la hipótesis de que las carencias económicas y altas expectativas de consumo son determinantes de la delincuencia. A partir de información obtenida mediante el levantamiento de una encuesta, se reveló que la mayoría de los participantes no percibe dificultades significativas para satisfacer necesidades básicas ni otorga gran importancia al consumo de lujos. No se observaron altos niveles de frustración ni inclinación a obtener bienes ilícitamente. Los resultados desafían la supuesta relación directa entre privación socioeconómica y tendencia criminal, sugiriendo la necesidad de enfoques más integrales para comprender estas dinámicas.
... Strain theory suggests that unemployment generates stress and frustration by limiting economic and social opportunities, which can lead to violent behavior in response to these tensions (Agnew, 1992). On the other hand, subcultural theory proposes that chronic unemployment and poverty can foster the creation of criminal subcultures where violence becomes an accepted norm (Anderson, 1999). Additionally, from an economic perspective, unemployment can increase crime rates due to a reduction in opportunity costs for individuals involved in criminal activities (Becker, 1968). ...
This study examines the complex relationship between unemployment and violence in Ecuador for 2019–2022, using HJ Biplot analysis to uncover the underlying socio-economic and criminological dynamics. The study reveals a nuanced relationship between unemployment and different types of violence. While unemployment is significantly associated with homicides and murders, the association with femicides and hired assassinations is much weaker. Significant regional and temporal patterns and changes like violence are also observed, highlighting the need for dynamic and adaptive strategies. Exceptions in certain provinces, where patterns of violence and unemployment differ from the rest, highlight the importance of local approaches to policymaking.
... Rappers commonly use references to violence in their tracks and refer to themselves as thugs, criminals, and outlaws (Kubrin 2005). This is like the nicknames in dangerous neighborhoodssome people might claim crime-related dangerous nicknames to appear violent and dangerous to improve their survivability (Anderson 2000). In a similar vein, some rappers claim such nicknames which make them appear dangerous in a world where impoliteness is the norm. ...
Using a line-by-line analysis of the key conversational instances identified in an asynchronous rap battle between Eminem (in Killshot) and Machine Gun Kelly (in Rap Devil), this study investigates diss tracks as manifestations of impoliteness. As a framework for our analysis, we adopt an overlay of Spencer-Oatey’s rapport management model/principles and Culpeper’s framework of impoliteness strategies/formulae. The results show that both rappers tried to out-diss each other by verbalizing a multitude of insults, curses, dismissals, and more. The paper builds on the relationship between power and impoliteness, the concept of authenticity in rap, prescribed and proscribed language use in hip-hop culture, and displays of identity roles of the rappers. The findings and discussion offer novel contributions to impoliteness research, as the current study is the first to investigate impoliteness in an asynchronous rap battle between two White rappers. In light of the analyses, we define diss track exchanges as asynchronous rap battles characterized by the abundant use of coercive impoliteness for entertainment.
... This coding uses a similar basis to previous translations of qualitative research into quantitative methods, notably Muir's (1979) assessment of officer personality schemas transferred to an empirical test (Snipes & Mastrofski, 1990) and Anderson's (2000) Code of the Street concepts examined via survey (Brezina et al., 2004). Although factor analysis was attempted on the state law indices, it did not produce a measure that explained a meaningful fraction of the variance or met the other requirements for exploratory factor analysis (EFA). ...
While the public debates whether law enforcement has a problem with mis- or over-using force, the field lacks critical information concerning how often officers use force when interacting with citizens. Moreover, researchers have not examined how differences in how states restrict officers’ ability to use force affect the frequency of force used. Consequently, the various reforms proposed have little evidence supporting them. Using data from Mapping Police Violence combined with census data, we examined the impact of the incorporation of U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence and the overall restrictiveness each state placed on law enforcement’s ability to use force when making an arrest and what constituted reasonable force within each state. We found that while the state’s population size and violent crime rate were strong predictors of the number and rate of officer-involved deaths (OIDs), state statutory restrictions on use of force had negligible effects. This has important implications for reforming state and national discussions around reforming use of force.
... The labor market approach reveals that the labor market, with its social and economic impacts such as deprivation and social inequality, contributes to segregation and creates unsafe living conditions for low-income families (Gerometta et al. 2005). The government and investment policies approach emphasizes how government actions can lead to segregation and perpetuate it through unequal capital distribution, extensive public housing projects, and regulatory tools like exclusive zoning (Anderson 1999;Glynn 2010;Massey and Denton 2001). ...
Although recent dramatic political changes in Afghanistan have brought that country to global attention, migration from Afghanistan to Iran has a long history. Nearly three quarters of Afghan immigrants in Iran are located in cities, particularly in Tehran's metropolitan area. However, despite the long-term presence of Afghan immigrants in Iran, research on patterns and drivers of spatial segregation of immigrants has been very limited. The research method involves a secondary analysis of census data. Therefore, this article utilizes 2006 Iran census tract data to examine patterns of spatial segregation of Afghan immigrants in the Tehran metropolis. The required data for two-group segregation indices, Getis-Ord statistics, and Geographically Weighted Regression, were analyzed as a map using ArcMap and Geo-Segregation Analyzer. The results reveal that the spatial segregation of Afghans is high and that most live in lower-SES census tracts. Multivariable analyses indicate that the extent of segregation can be explained by education, job class, and generation status. It can be concluded that generational transition and access to human capital have reduced various indicators of spatial segregation of Afghan immigrants in Tehran.
... For example, Gambetta (1996) argues that Sicily's Mafia could efficiently operate in that region because they cultivated social trust and prestige. Prestige is also a crucial motivation for young men who get into gangs (Anderson, 2000). ...
Scholars have long debated what is the role of inequalities in organised violence, but the causal mechanisms remain unclear. I argue that mainstream approaches (e.g. deviance, subcultures, grievances, rational choice and Marxism) fall short because they overlook that organised violence is an intensive form of work. These perspectives often exoticise individuals involved in violence for profit or political purposes. Violence is not a deviant feature of social life but an integral part of collective action. By applying occupational lenses, I position those engaged in violence as a specialised class of manual workers recruited in the protection labour market. Scholars can acknowledge the occupational stratification observed before in research about organised violence by understanding violence specialists as workers. This essay explores how the sociology of work can enhance our understanding of inequality reproduction within criminal organisations, guerrillas, armies, police forces, mercenaries and private military companies.
... This is in line with prior work that shows that the stigma of incarceration extends to all men and young black men in particular regardless of their own incarceration histories since they align more closely with the gendered narrative of 'dangerous young men' and are subject to employment discrimination as a result (Pager 2003;Pettit and Western 2004). Additionally, opportunities for and pressure to engage in illicit work in disadvantaged areas, such as those with higher prison release rates, are more likely to present themselves to men compared to women (Anderson 1999). ...
... Richardson and associates (2013) conducted qualitative research with young offenders to understand pathways to violence. They utilized Anderson's (1999) Code of the Street to theoretically frame their questions, and they found the answers youth gave resonated with Anderson's findings. This was particularly true in that youth spoke of the drive for respect as a principal determinant of decision-making. ...
A mixed-methods study was carried out to better characterize the life course experiences, with a focus on trauma, of men who had perpetrated gun violence and other violent crime, and who had multiple arrests and incarcerations. A small sample of 13 men with a history of a minimum of 12 arrests each as well as histories of gun violence, other violent crime, and incarceration was drawn from a social program providing cognitive therapy and job skills training in a major urban center. Participants completed the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 and completed an in-depth interview. Results demonstrated that the participants had extraordinarily significant levels of trauma exposure but that they had minimal avowed trauma symptoms. The exception is that every participant demonstrated a clinically relevant score on the Arousal subscale (Criterion E). Participants in interviews discussed a number of characteristics of their developmental years. They described near constant exposure to traumatic events, in some cases starting from very young ages. Most participants described a personal experience of numbing or desensitization to their experiences. They described the impact of gangs on both protecting them from trauma and exposing them to trauma, and they described their subsequent experiences of incarceration. They offered recommendations for strategies to minimize violent crime in communities.
his study investigates the phenomenon of Street Workout (SW) in Strasbourg, France, as a contemporary avenue for redefining masculinities, examining intersections with established practices, evolving norms and aesthetic capital. Through ethnographic observations and qualitative analysis, the research explores how SW participants from French working-class neighbourhoods navigate gender roles, socioeconomic pressures, and global cultural influences. Findings reveal a complex dynamic: SW reinforces dominant masculine traits, such as strength and discipline, while fostering diverse expressions of masculinities characterised by creativity, emotional expression, and aesthetic refinement. The study highlights the role of social media and global pop culture in shaping perceptions of masculinities, identifying ‘aesthetic capital’ as a key framework for understanding these transformations. However, the persistence of hegemonic norms within ‘hybrid masculinities’ limits inclusivity, with marginalised groups, including women and subordinate masculinities, experiencing minimal representation and integration in SW contexts. By elucidating the tensions between established norms and evolving practices, inclusion and exclusion, and resilience and vulnerability, this research contributes to broader gender studies discourse. Future research should investigate the experiences and roles of marginalised groups in SW, particularly women, to deepen our understanding of inclusivity in evolving constructions of masculinities.
First articulated more than 250 years ago, deterrence remains a central theory in criminology and continues to be the bedrock of the vast bulk of criminal justice policy. But few updates to the original theory of deterrence have been made, and crime-based punishment has only grown tougher, resulting in a historically unprecedented growth in imprisonment and an even greater reliance on deterrence to justify all kinds of punishment. These changes have occurred despite consistent or strong evidence to show that such punishments actually deter crime. In this book, renowned criminologists Daniel P. Mears and Mark C. Stafford provide an in-depth understanding of the classical account of deterrence theory, its limitations, and a reconceptualized version that establishes a more complete and powerful picture of how legal punishments can deter crime. Thorough and corrective, Comprehensive Deterrence Theory gives readers a new way of thinking about and understanding legal punishment.
Two closely related strategies are currently being used in efforts to ‘decolonise’ sociology: subjecting the writings normally included in the sociological ‘canon’ to close scrutiny as regards their treatment, or neglect, of colonialism; and introducing the work of people of colour into the canon, for example that of W. E. B. Du Bois. Both these strategies are used by Bhambra and Holmwood in their influential book Colonialism and Modern Social Theory. They focus mainly on the work of Tocqueville, Marx, Durkheim and Weber, emphasising the significance of colonialism, but they also include a chapter on Du Bois. In this paper I address a series of issues raised by their book. These concern: the nature of the discipline that is being decolonised; the approach that the authors take towards sociological work of the past; their rejection of stadial theory; and their arguments for the centrality of colonialism to sociology. I also critically assess their accounts of the main sociologists they discuss, suggesting that, in some key respects, these are misleading.
Creating and sustaining safe, healthy urban environments requires active collaboration between residents and local governments. Public safety and the upkeep of public spaces depend, in a large part, on residents’ reports of crime and service needs. However, in underserved areas, factors such as urban decay, inadequate public services, and concentrated disadvantage have weakened these cooperative dynamics. This breakdown can exacerbate the underreporting of crime and service needs and deepen neighborhood inequalities. In Buffalo, NY, the city-led initiative “Clean Sweeps” works to reduce neighborhood disparities through rapid beautification and community outreach in targeted city blocks. The program aims to improve quality of life by reducing crime and blight while fostering greater community engagement. In an analysis of data from 77,955 matched properties (published elsewhere), we found that residents were more likely to report drug-related crimes (via 911) and blight-related service needs (via 311) compared to untreated properties in the 6 months following the Clean Sweep. In this study, we analyze data from 21 interviews with city staff and four focus groups with residents to explore how interventions in the social and physical environment of neighborhoods, like the Clean Sweep innovation, can influence residents’ willingness to coproduce with local government. We identify improved responsiveness, trust, and self-efficacy as key mechanisms impacting residents’ reporting behavior. The findings show how relatively simple environmental interventions paired with outreach can help create safer, healthier neighborhoods.
ABSTRACT
The article explores the operational logic of morality within superdiverse contexts. It is argued that moralisation transforms the complexity of representations, configurations and encounters of superdiversity into a relatively simple set of oppositions, such as good and bad, threatening and trustworthy, native and foreign. For the case of two exemplary dynamics, moral othering and threat communication, it is shown how especially negative moralisations gain influence on how social complexity is perceived and processed. One mechanism through which negative moral dynamics reduce complexity is to spread fear and contempt. This often results in the creation of empathy walls, especially towards migrants and minorities The article concludes that moral sociology can add an important dimension of difference to the super-diversity debate.
In Drill music, Chicago’s subgenre of Gangsta rap, Black male gang-affiliated recording artists (Drillers) often distribute content on social media platforms to solidify the authenticity of their song lyrics and music videos and validate their own embeddedness in gang territories. Using content analysis of two prominent Drillers’ vlogs, this study examines how YouTube channels serves as important intermediaries to not only circulate one’s music but provide Drillers a valuable reputation management tool. Results of this analysis suggests there are three primary ways that Drillers relate audiences: “signifying” (using humor to discredit a rival’s accusations and appear unbothered), “calling bluffs” (threatening or challenging a rival to retaliate by inviting them to their physical location) and cross referencing (calling attention to private information that contradicts one’s public image through storytelling). These findings show that though publicly crafting violent personas remains central in Black male youth gaining visibility in the corporate rap music industry, through social media entertainment, there are newer and riskier labor practices required for Black male youth seeking to self-authenticate street reputations, monetize, and create community around personas communicated within their music.
The Abril discusses the need for forking racial categories into culturally-based sub-categories for research. The Abril argues culturally-based descriptive characteristics are more robust to use not only within tribal communities but possibly within other communities to better understand criminogenic community profiles. Culturally-based behavioral characteristics might lead to better predictive capabilities for such areas as terrorist activities, victimization profiling, and other areas. Theoretical developments are facilitated when alternative measures to broad racial categories are proffered, such as the notion of cultural efficacy. Cultural efficacy is the idea that internalized cultural values work in conjunction with cultural identity to (1) restrain an individual from deviant behavior while (2) motivating one to respond to cultural or social deviance. Ideas for research are provided.
Koncepční příloha Metodiky prevence kriminality v sociálně vyloučených lokalitách
How is it possible that Donald Trump, a champion of racist and anti-immigrant policies, has only attracted more minority voters since 2016? Drawing on extensive statistical analysis, this book challenges the conventional wisdom on Black, Latino, and Asian American voters.
Positing a host of theoretical innovations based on diverse data sources,The Emerging Republican Minoritiesestablishes that some of the most heated debates of the Trump era—race, immigration, and relations with China—had effects on minority voters that challenged a paradigm ascribing their automatic loyalty to the Democrats. For Black, Latino, and Asian American constituents, much like for their white counterparts, minority-hostile positions are critical in explaining how members of those same minority groups vote, even for candidates whoprima facieshould not win any of their support.
Udi Sommer and Idan Franco analyze detailed regression models and conduct robust empirical tests to demonstrate how minority constituencies are more ideologically diverse than commonly thought, even on such issues where we would expect near unanimity, such as opinions toward their own communities. Moreover, this diversity complicates the way we think and theorize not only about minority political behavior but also about democracy and its vitality in the Trump and post-Trump eras.
This study explored whether authoritarian or authoritative parenting practices for young adolescents would mediate the association between involvement in bullying and severe forms of violent behaviors. Cross-sectional data were collected from a matched sample of 120 African-American adolescents, ages 13-24 (Mage = 14.79 years, 27.5% boys), and their caregivers. The survey included self-report measures of severe forms of violent behaviors, bullying perpetration and victimization, authoritative and authoritarian parenting, and demographics. Results indicated that authoritative parenting moderated the relationship between bullying perpetration and severe forms of violent behaviors and bullying victimization and severe forms of violent behaviors. Low authoritative parenting was related to higher levels of severe forms of violent behaviors among adolescents reporting higher bullying while low authoritative parenting was related to lower levels of severe forms of violent behaviors among adolescents reporting lower bullying. In addition, for victims, authoritative parenting was associated with a reduction in severe forms of violent behaviors at both low and high levels of victimization. Results suggest that an authoritative parenting style should be considered in prevention and intervention to avoid the escalation of severe forms of violent behaviors among African-American youth.
This chapter offers a framework for criminologists to examine the social nature of image sensitivity relative to social media. We draw on the notion of affordances in communication-and-technology (CAT) research and specifically a theory of communication visibility (CV) by Treem and colleagues (2020). CV theory integrates three dimensions of communication visibility—the activities of actors, activities of observers, and the sociomaterial environment—to understand visibility as an emergent outcome of iterative processes of presenting and perceiving. This framework, we argue and demonstrate, can be used to explain the construction of sensitive images, and the evolving criminological outcomes of these images in settings that flow on/offline. We provide empirical examples of ways to conceptualize criminological studies of sensitive visual data with the framework of communication visibility.
Author discusses the need for forking racial categories into culturally-based sub-categories for research. The Abril argues culturally-based descriptive characteristics are more robust to use not only within tribal communities but possibly within other communities to better understand criminogenic community profiles. Culturally-based behavioral characteristics might lead to better predictive capabilities for such areas as terrorist activities, victimization profiling, and other areas. Theoretical developments are facilitated when alternative measures to broad racial categories are proffered, such as the notion of cultural efficacy. Cultural efficacy is the idea that internalized cultural values work in conjunction with cultural identity to (1) restrain an individual from deviant behavior while (2) motivating one to respond to cultural or social deviance. Ideas for research are provided.
An interdisciplinary discussion of using culturally-based behavioral characteristics instead of race in criminology.
This book offers a comprehensive examination of trust and its relationship with mental illness and wellbeing. Engaging with a broad range of mental health research, theory, and practice through various transdisciplinary theoretical models of trust, this book highlights the social and family contexts surrounding the making and breaking of trust and mental health. It examines various sociological conceptual and theoretical frameworks of risk and trust while also engaging with evolutionary perspectives on the human need for cooperation and trust. The author describes how, in a world of
constant connectivity, the drawing of boundaries assigns some people as strangers, using stigma as a form of power. The book concludes by considering the future of mental health and where trust-building may be possible. Each chapter is interspersed
with observations and insights from the author’s personal research covering many populations, communities, and issues over several decades. Drawing on a wide range of interdisciplinary literature, the book will be of interest to mental health practitioners, researchers, and scholars interested in the psychosocial aspects of mental illness and stigma.
‘Professor Leavey’s book throws light on a far too long neglected factor with a powerful impact on structures of society and the management of problems ranging from care for people with diseases to the continuation of war or the maintenance of peace’.
– Professor Norman Sartorius (MD, PhD, FRCPsych) is a leading
international expert in psychiatry. He has been the President of the World Psychiatric Association and of the European Psychiatric Association, and Director of the Mental health Division of the World Health Organization
‘This remarkable book takes the concepts of trust and mental health and moves them around each other as if they were reciprocal moons of our planetary existence. Trust is a concept perfectly central to individuals, families, communities and society. For almost a thousand years the idea of ‘trust’ has grown from the ancient roots of meaning that include: integrity, alliance, faithful, steadfast, shelter, safety,
hope, and consolation. This book is a fascinating tour-de-force which gazes at trust and hope, and their inversions, from multiple perspectives, and asks how we can strengthen trust and hope and mental health in the future’.
– Sir Graham Thornicroft is Emeritus Professor of Community Psychiatry at King’s College London. He was Knighted in 2017 for services to mental health; Graham has authored over 30 books and written over 670 peer-reviewed scientific papers, shaping global mental health policies.
Growing up in socioeconomic disadvantage is a consistent predictor of poor mental health. Although research has largely focused on objective socioeconomic position, studies exploring how subjective social status confers risk for psychopathology have consistently found that youth with lower subjective social status are at increased risk for mental health problems compared to their higher subjective social status peers, regardless of the objective socioeconomic environment. Yet, it remains relatively unknown how subjective social status relates to objective socioeconomic measures and to mental health in marginalized groups. The current study tested whether subjective social status predicts mental health above and beyond objective socioeconomic indicators in a community-based sample of Black adolescents living in poverty (N = 270; Mage = 16.32). Perhaps surprisingly, the majority of mental health outcomes analyzed were not significantly associated with either objective or subjective socioeconomic measures. Cultural, contextual, and racial considerations should be considered in future research on subjective social status and adolescent mental health.
This study explores the associations between a Native American Indian ethnic identity and its accompanying cultural values to an individual's decision to refrain from criminal behavior. Data were gathered during the Southern Ute Indian Community Safety Survey, a study of crime and violence on the reservation involving Indian (n = 312) and non-Indian (n = 355) respondents who completed a 72-item survey questionnaire. Qualitative data from Indians (n = 85) who participated in one-hour face-to-face structured interviews were quantified and analyzed. Using a variety of analytical techniques, it was found Indians have primarily culturally-based reasons for refraining from criminal behavior. The implications from these findings are broad and span multiple disciplines beyond criminology to include psychology, anthropology, and ethnic studies.
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