Challenges Of Leadership In Criminal Justice Agency
The concept that economic and political conditions are related to rates of crime is not new to criminal justice. Hence, the purpose of this paper is twofold. First, this work discusses the leadership theories that speak to the relationship between political-economic conditions and crime. Second, it proposes an alternative to these theories that consider the implications of the various political-economic transformations in the 21st century. In sum this paper critically examines the social disorganization theory from the criminal justice system’s point of view, focusing on policing and crime prevention in close connection with the contemporary environmental design as the methods of reducing crime in the urban settings.
Despite their shortcomings, modern criminological perspectives have greatly expanded one’s understanding of the relationship between economic conditions, political structures and aggregate rates of crime. The leading among these perspectives is social disorganization theory. Recent research, however, has also found support for both strain theory and theories emerging from critical criminology. The following review does not represent the full scope of theories that speak to the relationship between political economic conditions and crime, but instead focuses on those theories that are of particular relevance to this research.
As urban sociologists, such as Williams Julius Wilson, have reinvented social disorganization theory in an attempt to better understand the social problems that are characteristic of the contemporary urban environment, so too have criminologists (Kornhauser 67-69). Social disorganization explanations of crime draw heavily on the early work of Shaw and McKay. According to Shaw and McKay, community distress created social disorganization, defined as the disruption of primary relationships, the weakening of norms, and the erosion of shared culture (Kornhauser 74). In sum, the contemporary social disorganization theory of crime states that the loss of urban social structure has advanced the decline of social control, thereby leading to increases in rates of crime.
The social disorganization model defines communities as systems of interrelated networks (Kasarda and Janowitz 330-331). The role of an urban community network, according to social disorganization theory is to maintain itself through the continued socialization of its members, including, but not limited to the application of negative sanctions to various members. The maintenance of this system can be undermined by social disorganization manifested at the community-level as weak social networks, limited participation in local organizations and little social control. On the contrary, each aspect of social organization (networks, organizations, and control) forms the social fabric of a community (Kasarda and Janowitz 333)
dissertation academic services
Processing your request, Please wait....
