Which of the following individuals is the most likely to engage in deviance, according to Travis Hirschi’s control theory?A.Russell, a married man who works 14 hours a day to support his familyB.Monique, a young girl who comes from a wealthy home and wants to get into a good collegeC.Kelsey, a teenage girl who lives with her mother and plays in the marching band after schoolD.Blake, an angry boy with few friends who has lived with his older sister since his parents divorced
Question
Which of the following individuals is the most likely to engage in deviance, according to Travis Hirschi’s control theory?A.Russell, a married man who works 14 hours a day to support his familyB.Monique, a young girl who comes from a wealthy home and wants to get into a good collegeC.Kelsey, a teenage girl who lives with her mother and plays in the marching band after schoolD.Blake, an angry boy with few friends who has lived with his older sister since his parents divorced
Solution
To determine which individual is most likely to engage in deviance according to Travis Hirschi’s control theory, we need to understand the key components of the theory. Hirschi’s control theory posits that strong social bonds to family, school, and other institutions prevent individuals from engaging in deviant behavior. These social bonds are composed of four elements: attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief.
Let's analyze each individual based on these elements:
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Russell:
- Attachment: Likely has strong attachments to his family.
- Commitment: Highly committed to his job and supporting his family.
- Involvement: Very involved in his work, which takes up a significant amount of his time.
- Belief: Likely holds conventional beliefs about the importance of work and family.
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Monique:
- Attachment: Likely has strong attachments to her family.
- Commitment: Committed to her education and future goals.
- Involvement: Likely involved in activities that will help her get into a good college.
- Belief: Likely holds conventional beliefs about the importance of education and success.
-
Kelsey:
- Attachment: Likely has a strong attachment to her mother.
- Commitment: Committed to her school and extracurricular activities.
- Involvement: Involved in the marching band, which occupies her time after school.
- Belief: Likely holds conventional beliefs about the importance of school and extracurricular activities.
-
Blake:
- Attachment: Few friends and possibly weaker family attachments since he lives with his older sister after his parents' divorce.
- Commitment: No indication of strong commitment to school or other conventional activities.
- Involvement: No mention of involvement in structured activities.
- Belief: Potentially weaker belief in conventional norms due to his anger and family situation.
Based on Hirschi’s control theory, Blake is the most likely to engage in deviance. He appears to have weaker social bonds in terms of attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief compared to the other individuals.
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