Robert Merton Theory Of Deviance

Born into a Jewish family in 1910 in Philadelphia as Meyer R. Schkolnick, Merton later adopted the name Robert Merton from a combination of several famous magician names and grew up to be one of the most decorated sociologists that delved into the field of science. He was often influenced by other well-known sociologists including Marx and Weber and features of these other sociologists’ concepts can often be found in his work, as he often agreed or disagreed with these concepts, such as his teacher, Talcott Parson’s ‘grand Theory’. Merton’s work was often heavily associated and involved in the field of science, and he also developed the fields of bureaucracy, deviance and psychology through his extensive work.
An example of his work which

Within his topic of deviance is Merton’s idea of ritualism which falls under his 5 types of adaption, and which can be described as a form of deviance in which people can obey norms in an outwardly fashion by going ‘through the motions’, however it is said these people lack commitment to their given roles that involve achieving power or monetary rewards, and to the underlying values that are present in society. However, the fact that ritualism is about commitment and motivation, those that are negative and have a certain lack of commitment stand out to the majority which can affect society and its linkage as a whole, as the majority aim to achieve success and wish to be rewarded with money and esteem. Ritualism would often be considered one of the least common component of his 5 types of adaptation as it is mainly based on the unusual desires of people although they achieve these desires using legitimate methods. Although the Ritualist achieves success of their goals, in contrast, the Retreatist does not as they do not wish to achieve their goals or to abide by any methods available to them that they can use to achieve these goals, these people tend to not achieve success in their

Merton’s attention to detail and focus on more focused aspects of sociology and his scientific influence may explain his popularity and interest especially in the era in which he presented his ideas, in the mid 1900’s in which the ideas of science and sociology were rapidly