167-519: Robert King Merton (born Meyer Robert Schkolnick ; July 4, 1910 – February 23, 2003) was an American sociologist who is considered a founding father of modern sociology, and a major contributor to the subfield of criminology . He served as the 47th president of the American Sociological Association . He spent most of his career teaching at Columbia University , where he attained the rank of University Professor. In 1994 he
334-650: A 187-acre (757,000 m ) arboretum, 13 miles (21 km) from Temple's main campus in Ambler, Pennsylvania . Temple University Harrisburg (TUH), located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania , has a variety of graduate degree programs, certificate and professional development programs. The campus has an evening and weekend course schedule designed for working adults. The campus is located within the Strawberry Square complex. Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ)
501-400: A 199,000-square-foot facility west of Broad Street across from the entrance to Polett Walk. It will include several new theatres, a student media center, and a virtual reality/innovation lab. Sullivan Hall (then Sullivan Memorial Library) served as Temple's first free-standing library. President Franklin D. Roosevelt attended its dedication ceremony on February 22, 1936. Sullivan Hall houses
668-454: A bias on minority groups, without knowing for sure if they had committed a crime or not. British sub-cultural theorists focused more heavily on the issue of class , where some criminal activities were seen as "imaginary solutions" to the problem of belonging to a subordinate class. A further study by the Chicago school looked at gangs and the influence of the interaction of gang leaders under
835-491: A big yacht but does not have the means to buy one. If the person cannot exert self-control, he or she might try to get the yacht (or the means for it) in an illegal way, whereas someone with high self-control will (more likely) either wait, deny themselves of what want or seek an intelligent intermediate solution, such as joining a yacht club to use a yacht by group consolidation of resources without violating social norms. Social bonds, through peers , parents, and others can have
1002-778: A breakdown in the social structure and institutions , such as family and schools. This results in social disorganization , which reduces the ability of these institutions to control behavior and creates an environment ripe for deviant behavior . Other researchers suggested an added social-psychological link. Edwin Sutherland suggested that people learn criminal behavior from older, more experienced criminals with whom they may associate. Theoretical perspectives used in criminology include psychoanalysis , functionalism , interactionism , Marxism , econometrics , systems theory , postmodernism , behavioural genetics , personality psychology , evolutionary psychology , etc. This theory
1169-534: A certain threshold, because then the members of the group may become equally indulgent and fail to hold each other to high performance standards. Merton elaborates on his three main issues or flaws with functionalism, which he labels postulates : The postulate of the functional unity of society refers to the misunderstanding that societies are functional and harmonious unions. According to Merton's perception of functionalism , all standardized social and cultural beliefs and practices are functional for both society as
1336-403: A choice that puts in particular evidence the relationship that the researcher should assume in the direction of a pragmatic choice of the instruments and methodology it uses. In this way, the theory can be addressed for heuristic purposes and the empirical research results in the operative aspect of the analysis, where the sociologist is obliged to choose to represent always, not the universe of
1503-470: A countering effect on one's low self-control. For families of low socio-economic status, a factor that distinguishes families with delinquent children, from those who are not delinquent, is the control exerted by parents or chaperonage . In addition, theorists such as David Matza and Gresham Sykes argued that criminals are able to temporarily neutralize internal moral and social-behavioral constraints through techniques of neutralization . Psychoanalysis
1670-575: A differential opportunity for lower class youth. Such youths may be tempted to take up criminal activities, choosing an illegitimate path that provides them more lucrative economic benefits than conventional, over legal options such as minimum wage -paying jobs available to them. Delinquency tends to occur among the lower-working-class males who have a lack of resources available to them and live in impoverished areas, as mentioned extensively by Albert Cohen (Cohen, 1965). Bias has been known to occur among law enforcement agencies, where officers tend to place
1837-539: A lower socio-economic level might not be striving to achieve the 'American Dream', meaning they do not need to carry out illegal acts. For this reason and others, later adherents of so-called strain theory have developed revisions. Merton argues that the central orientation of functionalism is in interpreting data by their consequences for larger structures in which they are implicated. Like Durkheim and Parsons, he analyzes society with reference to whether cultural and social structures are well or badly integrated. Merton
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#17327732355932004-472: A motivated offender, suitable target or victim, and lack of a capable guardian. A guardian at a place, such as a street, could include security guards or even ordinary pedestrians who would witness the criminal act and possibly intervene or report it to law enforcement. Routine activity theory was expanded by John Eck, who added a fourth element of "place manager" such as rental property managers who can take nuisance abatement measures. Biosocial criminology
2171-496: A parking lot. Families of the deceased claimed about 8,000 of the 28,000 bodies on the site and the rest were moved to an unmarked mass grave at Lawnview Memorial Park . Many of the remaining headstones from the cemetery, including a monument to George Washington and Marquis de Lafayette, were used as riprap for the Betsy Ross Bridge . This land is now an athletic field, student recreation center, and parking lot, and
2338-566: A particular social setting. According to Merton, middle-range theory starts its theorizing with clearly defined aspects of social phenomena, rather than with broad, abstract entities such as society as a whole. Theories of the middle range should be firmly supported by empirical data. These theories must be constructed with observed data to create theoretical problems and to be incorporated in proposals that allow empirical testing. Middle-range theories , applicable to limited ranges of data, transcend sheer description of social phenomena and fill in
2505-585: A person assuming just one role and one status, they have a status set in the social structure that has, attached to it, a whole set of expected behaviors. Robert King Merton was born on July 4, 1910, in Philadelphia as Meyer Robert Schkolnick into a family of Yiddish -speaking Russian Jews who had immigrated to the United States in 1904. His mother was Ida Rasovskaya, an "unsynagogued" socialist who had freethinking radical sympathies. His father
2672-483: A person features those characteristics, the less likely he or she is to become deviant (or criminal). On the other hand, if these factors are not present, a person is more likely to become a criminal. Hirschi expanded on this theory with the idea that a person with low self-control is more likely to become criminal. As opposed to most criminology theories, these do not look at why people commit crime but rather why they do not commit crime. A simple example: Someone wants
2839-440: A person's creativity, leading to self-destructive behavior. Phillida Rosnick, in the article Mental Pain and Social Trauma, posits a difference in the thoughts of individuals suffering traumatic unconscious pain which corresponds to them having thoughts and feelings which are not reflections of their true selves. There is enough correlation between this altered state of mind and criminality to suggest causation. Sander Gilman , in
3006-668: A project dealing with race and media introduced Merton to sociology. Under Simpson's leadership, Merton attended an American Sociological Association annual meeting where he met Pitrim A. Sorokin , the founding chair of the Harvard University sociology department. Merton applied to Harvard and worked from 1931 to 1936 as a research assistant to Sorokin. By his second year at Harvard he had begun publishing with Sorokin. In 1934 he began publishing articles of his own, including "Recent French Sociology", "The Course of Arabian Intellectual Development, 700–1300 A.D.", "Fluctuations in
3173-793: A student at South Philadelphia High School , he was a frequent visitor to nearby cultural and educational venues, including the Andrew Carnegie Library , the Academy of Music , the Central Library, and the Museum of Arts. In 1994, Merton stated that growing up in South Philadelphia provided young people with "every sort of capital—social capital, cultural capital, human capital, and, above all, what we may call public capital—that is, with every sort of capital except
3340-587: A trusted colleague, and a close friend. His death, in many ways, puts a period at the end of 20th-century sociology. Through his theory and research during his many decades as a sociologist, Merton essentially created and sustained what is the modern sociology of science. Over his career, Merton published some 50 papers in the sociology of science. Among many other fields and topics to which he contributed his ideas and theories were deviance theory , Organization theory, and middle-range theory . Merton received many national and international honors for his research. He
3507-447: A whole as well as individuals in society. This outlook maintains that various parts of social systems must show a high level of integration, but Merton argues that a generalization like this cannot be extended to larger, more complex societies. Merton points out that not all societies are happy and well-integrated, where the people function well together and all involved prosper. Merton cites examples, such as civil wars, African-Americans in
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#17327732355933674-646: Is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation at the Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia , then called Baptist Temple . Today, Temple is the second-largest university in Pennsylvania by enrollment and awarded 9,128 degrees in the 2023-24 academic year. It has a worldwide alumni base of 378,012, with 352,175 alumni residing in
3841-707: Is a branch campus in Setagaya-ku , Tokyo , Japan just outside of Shibuya. Temple University Japan was the oldest and largest campus of any foreign university in Japan. TUJ students are taught in English and receive a degree from the main campus in Philadelphia. In addition to its core undergraduate program with over 2,500 students from 70 different countries. In 1966, Temple established its first campus in Rome in
4008-404: Is a contradiction to what is seen in the real world; not every structure, idea, belief, etc., has positive functions. Merton believes that some things may have consequences that are generally dysfunctional or which are dysfunctional for some and functional for others. For example, poverty may benefit the rich because they are allowed to maintain more of their wealth, but it certainly does not benefit
4175-537: Is a major cause of delinquency. Reinforcing criminal behavior makes it chronic. Where there are criminal subcultures , many individuals learn crime, and crime rates swell in those areas. The Chicago school arose in the early twentieth century, through the work of Robert E. Park , Ernest Burgess , and other urban sociologists at the University of Chicago . In the 1920s, Park and Burgess identified five concentric zones that often exist as cities grow, including
4342-487: Is a psychological theory (and therapy) which regards the unconscious mind, repressed memories and trauma , as the key drivers of behavior, especially deviant behavior. Sigmund Freud talks about how the unconscious desire for pain relates to psychoanalysis in his essay, Beyond the Pleasure Principle, . Freud suggested that unconscious impulses such as 'repetition compulsion' and a 'death drive' can dominate
4509-407: Is a reaction against the social norms of the middle class. Some youth, especially from poorer areas where opportunities are scarce, might adopt social norms specific to those places that may include "toughness" and disrespect for authority. Criminal acts may result when youths conform to norms of the deviant subculture. Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin suggested that delinquency can result from
4676-466: Is a short-term response (unlike the other four). Like retreaters, rebels reject both existing societal goals and means, but unlike retreaters, rebels work at the macro level to replace those existing societal goals and means with new goals and means embodying other values. Innovation and ritualism are the pure cases of anomie as Merton defined it because in both cases there is a contradiction or discontinuity between goals and means. The sociology of science
4843-483: Is a subsequent modification of Merton's norm set, as he did not refer to Originality in the 1942 essay that introduced the norms, "The Normative Structure of Science". Merton introduced many concepts to the sociology of science, including: " obliteration by incorporation ", referring to when a concept becomes so popularized that its inventor is forgotten; and " multiples ", referring to independent similar discoveries. Merton and his colleagues spent much time studying "how
5010-576: Is also interested in the persistence of societies and defines functions that make for the adaptation of a given social system . He believed that the way these early functionalists put emphasis on functions of one social structure or institution for another, created bias when focusing only on adaptation or adjustment because they would always have a positive consequence. Finally, Merton thinks that shared values are central in explaining how societies and institutions work; however, he disagrees with Parsons on some issues. His belief in empirical testing led to
5177-515: Is an interdisciplinary field that aims to explain crime and antisocial behavior by exploring both biological factors and environmental factors. While contemporary criminology has been dominated by sociological theories, biosocial criminology also recognizes the potential contributions of fields such as behavioral genetics , personality psychology , and evolutionary psychology . Various theoretical frameworks such as evolutionary neuroandrogenic theory have sought to explain trends in criminality through
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5344-688: Is applied to a variety of approaches within the bases of criminology in particular and in sociology more generally as a conflict theory or structural conflict perspective in sociology and sociology of crime. As this perspective is itself broad enough, embracing as it does a diversity of positions. Social disorganization theory is based on the work of Henry McKay and Clifford R. Shaw of the Chicago School. Social disorganization theory postulates that neighborhoods plagued with poverty and economic deprivation tend to experience high rates of population turnover . This theory suggests that crime and deviance
5511-400: Is aware of the intended consequences, but the unintended are more difficult to recognize, and therefore, sociological analysis is required to uncover what they may be. In his 1936 essay, "The Unanticipated Consequences of Purposive Social Action", Merton uncovered the wide field of human activity where things do not go as planned, and paradoxes and strange outcomes are seen. One of these outcomes
5678-442: Is based on the utilitarian , classical school philosophies of Cesare Beccaria , which were popularized by Jeremy Bentham . They argued that punishment, if certain, swift, and proportionate to the crime, was a deterrent for crime, with risks outweighing possible benefits to the offender. In Dei delitti e delle pene (On Crimes and Punishments, 1763–1764), Beccaria advocated a rational penology . Beccaria conceived of punishment as
5845-544: Is evidence of correlation, but not causation, between these personality traits and criminal actions. Cesare Lombroso (1835–1909), an Italian sociologist working in the late 19th century, is often called "the father of criminology ". He was one of the key contributors to biological positivism and founded the Italian school of criminology . Lombroso took a scientific approach, insisting on empirical evidence for studying crime. He suggested physiological traits such as
6012-676: Is home to the Community and Regional Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Horticulture Departments, changed its name in 2009 to the School of Environmental Design. The campus is also home to the Center for Sustainable Communities, a Sustainability-based research center. Since 2008, the university has enacted policies that include purchasing from green vendors and conserving water and energy across campus; offered 46 undergraduate courses, 22 graduate courses and 12 General Education courses focusing on
6179-525: Is in the Cecil B. Moore neighborhood of North Philadelphia , about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north of Center City . It occupies 118 acres (48 ha). Upon its founding, the Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia built two buildings on North Broad Street between Montgomery and Norris: a Baptist Temple in 1891, and an academic building (College Hall, now Barrack Hall) in 1893. The Baptist Temple
6346-439: Is innate and within a person. Philosophers within this school applied the scientific method to study human behavior. Positivism comprises three segments: biological , psychological and social positivism . Psychological Positivism is the concept that criminal acts or the people doing said crimes do them because of internal factors driving them. Social Positivism, which is often referred to as Sociological Positivism, discusses
6513-507: Is known as general strain theory . Following the Chicago school and strain theory, and also drawing on Edwin Sutherland 's idea of differential association , sub-cultural theorists focused on small cultural groups fragmenting away from the mainstream to form their own values and meanings about life. Albert K. Cohen tied anomie theory with Sigmund Freud 's reaction formation idea, suggesting that delinquency among lower-class youths
6680-613: Is located at this intersection. Past Polett Walk, the facade of 1810 Liacouras Walk is the only remnant of old Park Avenue rowhomes, most of which were demolished in the 20th century. Temple offers eight residence halls. In 2023, 4,231 students lived in Temple-owned and -sponsored housing. The Health Sciences Campus in North Philadelphia covers about 20 acres and extends to either side of North Broad Street from Allegheny Avenue to just above Tioga Street. This location
6847-536: Is saturated with dreams of opportunity, freedom, and prosperity—as Merton put it, the American Dream . Most people buy into this dream, and it becomes a powerful cultural and psychological motivator. Merton also used the term anomie , but it meant something slightly different for him than it did for Durkheim . Merton saw the term as meaning a dichotomy between what society expected of its citizens and what those citizens could actually achieve. Therefore, if
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7014-410: Is slated to be a new media and performance center. Temple hired Philadelphia architecture firm Nolen & Swinburne Associates to devise a university expansion plan in 1955. The plan called for the demolition of historic row houses and proposed a classic campus quadrangle comprising large Modernist towers, a central plaza, a bell tower, walkways, lawns, and cloistered gardens. The firm complained that
7181-429: Is the "self-defeating prophecy", which through the very fact of its being publicized, is actually wrong. Merton was able to illustrate this by referencing Karl Marx 's prediction that as societies become more modern, the wealth will be concentrated amongst fewer people, and the majority of society would suffer from poverty and misery. This prediction helped to stimulate the socialist movement, which in some countries slowed
7348-434: Is the interdisciplinary study of crime and deviant behaviour . Criminology is a multidisciplinary field in both the behavioural and social sciences , which draws primarily upon the research of sociologists , political scientists , economists , legal sociologists , psychologists , philosophers , psychiatrists , social workers , biologists , social anthropologists , scholars of law and jurisprudence , as well as
7515-478: Is the largest university police force in the United States, with 130 campus police officers, including supervisors and detectives. The campus has more than 600 security cameras and more than a thousand lamps mounted on campus roofs to mimic daylight. The Office of Sustainability was established on July 1, 2008, as a central resource focusing on four key areas: operations, academics, research, and outreach and engagement. The Ambler campus' "Ambler College", which
7682-557: Is the only public-private hybrid system of higher education of its particular type in the United States. In the spring of 1969, the Steering Committee for Black Students pushed for more community voices involved in Temple’s plans for expansion, as well as an Afro-Asian Institute and special admissions for Hispanic and African-American students. Then-university President Paul R. Anderson feigned cooperation, but meetings between
7849-729: Is the site of the Samaritan Hospital, founded by Russell Conwell in 1892. The campus is home to Temple University Hospital , a teaching hospital; the Lewis Katz School of Medicine ; the School of Pharmacy ; the Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry ; and the College of Public Health. Podiatric Medicine Campus is located at 8th and Race Streets. The Foot and Ankle Institute, the School of Podiatric Medicine, as well as
8016-502: Is the visual icon of the university and a major campus landmark. Nearby Founder's Garden is the burial place of Russell Conwell, founder and 38-year president of Temple. A bust of Conwell marks his grave. O'Connor Plaza surrounds the Founder's Garden between Polett Walk and Liacouras Walk. A renovated plaza and Founder's Garden opened in 2017, featuring a large bronze owl statue, a water wall, and an inlaid Temple T (the university's logo) in
8183-669: Is valued within groups in society, 'subcultures' or 'gangs'. These groups have different values to the social norm . These neighborhoods also tend to have high population heterogeneity . With high turnover, informal social structure often fails to develop, which in turn makes it difficult to maintain social order in a community. Since the 1950s, social ecology studies have built on the social disorganization theories. Many studies have found that crime rates are associated with poverty, disorder, high numbers of abandoned buildings, and other signs of community deterioration. As working and middle-class people leave deteriorating neighborhoods,
8350-458: Is viewed as one of the founding fathers of modern-day sociology. His works are seen as the driving force of many of today's sociologists' studies. Merton's friends and colleagues credit his guidance to the positive direction of modern sociology as well. In particular, Columbia provost Jonathan R. Cole who studied under Merton praised him shortly after his death, saying: Bob Merton became the leader of structural-functional analysis in sociology, and
8517-651: The Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection, one of the most prestigious collections of African American artifacts in the United States. In 1966, the university library moved one block east to the Samuel L. Paley Library. Paley Library was designed, as common at the time, as a book warehouse rather than a modern academic library. It was designed by Philadelphia architects Nolen & Swinburne and named for Sam Paley, Philadelphia cigar manufacturer and philanthropist. Its brutalist architecture and large concrete facade matched
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#17327732355938684-511: The French Revolution , and the development of the legal system in the United States . The Positivist school argues criminal behaviour comes from internal and external factors out of the individual's control. Its key method of thought is that criminals are born as criminals and not made into them; this school of thought also supports theory of nature in the debate between nature versus nurture. They also argue that criminal behavior
8851-639: The Israel–Hamas war and criticized a pro-Israel administration response to the war. The protesters called for justice in Palestine and demanded financial divestment from companies that profit from the war in Gaza. The ACLU became involved when administration started disciplinary action against students for participating in a “ Gaza Solidarity ” encampment off-campus. The ACLU alleged violation of First Amendment rights . The protests continued into
9018-596: The Market Reduction Approach to theft by Mike Sutton , which is a systematic toolkit for those seeking to focus attention on "crime facilitators" by tackling the markets for stolen goods that provide motivation for thieves to supply them by theft. Routine activity theory, developed by Marcus Felson and Lawrence Cohen, draws upon control theories and explains crime in terms of crime opportunities that occur in everyday life. A crime opportunity requires that elements converge in time and place including
9185-551: The Mods and Rockers in the UK in 1964, AIDS epidemic and football hooliganism ). Labeling theory refers to an individual who is labeled by others in a particular way. The theory was studied in great detail by Becker. It was originally derived from sociology, but is regularly used in criminological studies. When someone is given the label of a criminal they may reject or accept it and continue to commit crime. Even those who initially reject
9352-683: The National Science Foundation . Temple has 18 NCAA Division 1 varsity sports team and competes as a member of the American Athletic Conference , or The American. Temple's varsity teams, known as the Temple Owls , have won three team national championships. Temple University was founded in 1884 by Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia and its pastor Russell Conwell , a Yale -educated lawyer, orator, and ordained Baptist minister, who served in
9519-697: The Statistical Society of London on their studies of crime and its distribution. Henry Mayhew used empirical methods and an ethnographic approach to address social questions and poverty, and gave his studies in London Labour and the London Poor . Émile Durkheim viewed crime as an inevitable aspect of a society with uneven distribution of wealth and other differences among people. Differential association (sub-cultural) posits that people learn crime through association . This theory
9686-588: The Union Army during the American Civil War. Conwell came to Pennsylvania in 1882 to lead the Grace Baptist Church. One evening in June 1884, a young aspiring minister named Charles Davies approached Conwell after a service to express his desire to prepare for the ministry, but did not have the means to attend college. Conwell offered to teach Davies, who showed up to the first class with six friends. By
9853-533: The postulate of indispensability refers to the social function for customs, ideals, or institutions as a whole. This postulate states that the standardized parts of society have positive functions, and also represent indispensable parts of the working whole, which implies that structures and functions are functionally necessary for society. Here, Merton argues, people must be willing to admit that there exist various structural and functional alternatives within society. In terms of structural functionalism, Merton felt that
10020-562: The " Matthew effect ". (See also Stigler's law of eponymy .) As a result of the Matilda effect , Harriet Zuckerman is credited by Merton as co-author of the Matthew effect . With his study of the Matthew effect , Merton showed how the social system of science sometimes deviated structurally from the ethos of science, in this case by violating the norm of universalism: a few top scientists enjoying large chunks of awards, grants and jobs, and
10187-436: The " zone of transition ", which was identified as the most volatile and subject to disorder. In the 1940s, Henry McKay and Clifford R. Shaw focused on juvenile delinquents , finding that they were concentrated in the zone of transition. The Chicago School was a school of thought developed that blames social structures for human behaviors. This thought can be associated or used within criminology, because it essentially takes
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#173277323559310354-575: The 1800 block of Park Avenue is a group of facades that have been incorporated into a single building (called 1810 Liacouras Walk) and a small church (Shusterman Hall). The Ambler Junior College of Temple University was formed by the merging of the Pennsylvania School of Horticulture for Women with Temple University. This created Temple University Ambler , which is approximately 15 miles (24 km) from Temple's Main Campus. That same year,
10521-411: The 1950s, and South African blacks during the apartheid regime as instances where societies were not necessarily functional for all people. The postulate of universal functionalism refers to the idea that all ideals work for everyone in a society. The claim of universal functionalism argues that all standardized social and cultural structures and forms have a positive function. Merton argues that this
10688-402: The 1970s with the writings of James Q. Wilson , Gary Becker 's 1965 article Crime and Punishment and George Stigler 's 1970 article The Optimum Enforcement of Laws . Rational choice theory argues that criminals, like other people, weigh costs or risks and benefits when deciding whether to commit crime and think in economic terms. They will also try to minimize risks of crime by considering
10855-479: The 1997 Nobel Prize in economics , and two daughters, Stephanie Merton Tombrello and Vanessa Merton, professor of law at Pace University School of Law . In 1968 Merton and Carhart separated; she died in 1992. In 1993 Merton married his fellow sociologist and collaborator, Harriet Zuckerman . After years of failing health, and battling six forms of cancer, Merton died in Manhattan on 23 February 2003, aged 92. He
11022-433: The 19th-century French magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin , widely considered the father of modern-style conjuring . Thus his stage name became "Robert Merton", and he kept it as his personal name upon receiving a scholarship to Temple University . Merton began his sociological career under the guidance of George E. Simpson at Philadelphia's Temple University (1927–1931). Merton's work as Simpson's research assistant on
11189-404: The 19th-century Italian School of "criminal anthropology", which according to the historian Mary Gibson "caused a radical refocusing of criminological discussion throughout Europe and the United States from law to the criminal. While this 'Italian School' was in turn attacked and partially supplanted in countries such as France by 'sociological' theories of delinquency, they retained the new focus on
11356-491: The Ambler Campus of Temple University began accepting men, two of which applied that year. In 1965, Temple became a Pennsylvania state-related university, meaning the university receives state funds, subject to state appropriations, but is independently operated. It is one of four schools to have this designation, alongside Lincoln University , Pennsylvania State University , and the University of Pittsburgh . This
11523-609: The Bachelor of Oratory degree. However, state and federal education agencies would not identify Temple as a legitimate college level institution. Philadelphia granted a charter in 1888 to establish the Temple College of Philadelphia , but the city refused to grant authority to award academic degrees. By 1888, the enrollment of the college was nearly 600: because of Temple's aim of offering an education to Philadelphia's working class, there were no admissions requirements and tuition
11690-433: The Grace Baptist Church appointed a new board of trustees, printed official admissions files, and issued stock to raise funds for new teaching facilities. The church provided classrooms, and teachers, and financed the school in its early years. The church and Conwell's desire was "to give education to those who were unable to get it through the usual channels". In 1891, Temple's first graduating class of eighteen men received
11857-613: The National Academy of Education, and Academica Europaea . Merton is also credited as the creator of the focus group research method. Criminology 1800s: Martineau · Tocqueville · Marx · Spencer · Le Bon · Ward · Pareto · Tönnies · Veblen · Simmel · Durkheim · Addams · Mead · Weber · Du Bois · Mannheim · Elias Criminology (from Latin crimen , 'accusation', and Ancient Greek -λογία , -logia , from λόγος logos , 'word, reason')
12024-593: The Rate of Industrial Invention", and "Science and Military Technique". In 1936 he graduated from Harvard, having obtained an MA and PhD in sociology. By the end of his student career in 1938 he embarked on works that brought him renown, publishing his first major study, Science, Technology, and Society in Seventeenth-Century England , which helped create the sociology of science . Merton's dissertation committee comprised Sorokin, Talcott Parsons ,
12191-459: The Shoe Museum, are at this location. Center City Campus is across the street from Philadelphia City Hall . The Campus offers undergraduate and graduate courses and full degree programs in the evening, as well as non-credit workshops and seminars. Ambler Campus , originally a junior college , has 325 faculty and 4,600 students, with bachelor's and master's degree programs on a site with
12358-572: The Spirit of Capitalism (1905). Weber had suggested a strong relationship between Protestant beliefs and the Economic activity that gave rise to capitalism. Merton's extensive research highlighted a complementarity between puritanical Protestant beliefs and science, which developed rapidly in the seventeenth century. Merton believed that middle range theories bypassed the failures of larger theories, which are too distant from observing social behavior in
12525-463: The Teacher's College in 1914. Russell Conwell died in 1925 after a 38-year presidency at Temple, and is buried at the Founder's Garden on campus. In 1954, Temple's board of trustees made a pledge to grow the campus to 210 acres. That year, Temple University agreed to terms to purchase 11 + 1 ⁄ 2 acres (4.7 ha) of the adjacent Monument Cemetery and repurpose it for athletic fields and
12692-450: The United States. The university consists of 17 schools and colleges, including five professional schools, offering over 640+ academic programs and over 160 undergraduate majors. As of 2024, about 30,005 undergraduate, graduate and professional students were enrolled at the university. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity," spending $ 301,395 million on research and development in 2022 according to
12859-489: The United States: (1) Golden Age of Research (1900–1930) which has been described as a multiple-factor approach, (2) Golden Age of Theory (1930–1960) which endeavored to show the limits of systematically connecting criminological research to theory, and (3) a 1960–2000 period, which was seen as a significant turning point for criminology. There were three main schools of thought in early criminological theory, spanning
13026-595: The Villa Caproni, just north of Piazza del Popolo along the Tiber river. The Villa Caproni is the historic home of Giovanni Battista Caproni . Its facilities included a 15,000-volume library, a computing center, academic classrooms, art and architecture studios, an art gallery and student lounges. In the Fall of 2024, Temple Rome moved to a new, central location, establishing its new campus at Piazza di Spagna —one of
13193-492: The analysis of society as a whole, Merton argued that analysis could and should also be done on an organization, institution or group. Some of the crucial innovations that Merton made to sociology include the description of the unanticipated consequences of social action, of latent functions vs. manifest functions, and, as previously mentioned, of dysfunctions. According to Merton, unanticipated consequences are actions that have both intended and unintended consequences. Everyone
13360-529: The article Freud and the Making of Psychoanalysis , looks for evidence in the physical mechanisms of the human brain and the nervous system and suggests there is a direct link between an unconscious desire for pain or punishment and the impulse to commit crime or deviant acts. Symbolic interactionism draws on the phenomenology of Edmund Husserl and George Herbert Mead , as well as subcultural theory and conflict theory . This school of thought focused on
13527-410: The attaining of societal goals by socially accepted means, while innovation refers to the attaining of those goals in unaccepted ways (such as crime and deviance). Innovators find and create their own ways to obtain what they want, and a majority of the time, these new means are considered to be socially unaccepted and deviant. Merton considers ritualism the acceptance of the means but the forfeit of
13694-514: The beginning, a false definition of the situation evoking a new behavior, which makes the originally false conception come true". Merton's concept of the "role model" first appeared in a study on the socialization of medical students at Columbia University. The term grew from his theory of the reference group , the group to which individuals compare themselves but to which they do not necessarily belong. Social roles were central to Merton's theory of social groups . Merton emphasized that, rather than
13861-489: The biological "positivism" perspective represented by Lombroso, Hans Eysenck and Gordon Trasler. According to the Marxist perspective on crime, "defiance is normal – the sense that men are now consciously involved ... in assuring their human diversity." Thus Marxists criminologists argued in support of society in which the facts of human diversity, be it social or personal, would not be criminalized. They further attributed
14028-438: The blanks between raw empiricism and grand or all-inclusive theory. The identification of middle-range theories or "intermediate provisions", as defined by Rinzivillo (2019), is typical of the specification that passes through functional analysis, developed by Merton in the course of his research on the relationship between theory and empirical research. Unlike the functionalist theorisation proposed by Parsons, Merton proposes
14195-401: The brickwork of the plaza. Liacouras Walk, named after Temple President Peter J. Liacouras , is the campus' main internal north/south pedestrian corridor. It runs through the campus parallel to Broad Street and was once part of Park Avenue. It intersects Polett Walk, the east/west pedestrian corridor where a segment of Berks Street once stood. The Conwell Inn, the university's on-campus hotel,
14362-482: The committee and school administration went nowhere. It wasn't until Pennsylvania Governor Raymond Shafer forced one: Temple would limit the height of buildings on the campus perimeter and keep 10 of 22 disputed acres. Marvin Wachman , Anderson's successor, sought to be more open with students than Anderson was. When students protested over campus cafeteria food prices and seating arrangements, Wachman delivered what
14529-400: The concept of net balance . Because the issues are complex and based on a lot of subjective judgement, they cannot be calculated and weighed easily. Therefore, positive functions and dysfunctions cannot be simply added up and objectively determine which outweighs the other. To deal with these issues, Merton believed that there must be levels of functional analysis. Rather than solely focusing on
14696-576: The cost of increasing the fine is marginal to that of the cost of increasing surveillance , one can conclude that the best policy is to maximize the fine and minimize surveillance. With this perspective, crime prevention or reduction measures can be devised to increase the effort required to commit the crime, such as target hardening . Rational choice theories also suggest that increasing risk and likelihood of being caught, through added surveillance, law enforcement presence, added street lighting, and other measures, are effective in reducing crime. One of
14863-458: The criminal." According to Gibson, the term criminology was most likely coined in 1885 by Italian law professor Raffaele Garofalo as Criminologia . In the late 19th century, French anthropologist Paul Topinard used the analogous French term Criminologie . Criminology grew substantially as a discipline in the first quarter of the twentieth century. From 1900 through to 2000 this field of research underwent three significant phases in
15030-485: The development of his "paradigm" of functional analysis. According to Merton, paradigm refers to: exemplars of codified basic and often tacit assumptions, problem sets, key concepts, logic of procedure, and selectively accumulated knowledge that guide [theoretical and empirical] inquiry in all scientific fields. In Merton's writing on dysfunctions , he highlights problems that tend to keep social systems from meeting all of their functional requirements. In doing this, he
15197-410: The development that Marx had predicted. Struggles for economic equality tend to spread economic benefit rather than concentrating it. The opposite of the "self-defeating prophecy" then, is the "self-fulfilling prophecy", when an originally unfounded prophecy turns out to be correct because it is believed and acted upon. The distinction implied between manifest and latent functions was devised to preclude
15364-496: The disciplined investigation of what is first entertained as an interesting idea. E.F. Gay also played a role in Merton's thought, as did the famous historian of science George Sarton , who allowed Merton to work with him at Harvard and is believed to have inspired Merton to have interest in science. Émile Durkheim and Georg Simmel also greatly contributed to Merton's understanding of sociology and to his own ideas. Today, Merton
15531-450: The environment and sustainability; set in place programs to administer grants and offer incentives for any research related to the environment or sustainability; and offered programs to help create a green culture, both at Temple and beyond. In 2014, Temple University unveiled "Visualize Temple," a campus development plan, with signature projects including a new library and quad in the heart of campus. A companion project, Verdant Temple,
15698-443: The focus should be on social functions rather than on individual motives. He raises the question and doubt of whether every social institution performs a specific function, believing that several institutions can provide the same function or none at all, so it is impossible to decipher what functions are vital or not to a society. To help people determine whether positive functions outweigh dysfunctions, and vice versa, Merton developed
15865-491: The gap between culturally determined goals and the institutionalized tools available to fulfill these goals. Merton uses the progress of achieving the ' American Dream ' as an example. If an individual can not achieve the culturally dominant goal (of success), it can prove frustrating for the individual and may lead to breaking free into illegal escape routes or delinquency. The theory has been criticized for not or insufficiently factoring in an individual's social class as someone as
16032-422: The goals. Ritualists continue to subscribe to the means, but they have rejected the overall goal; they are not viewed as deviant. Retreatism is the rejection of both the means and the goals. Retreaters want to find a way to escape from everything and therefore reject both the goals and the means and are seen as deviant. Rebellion differs from the other four approaches in a number of ways. Temporally, rebellion
16199-490: The historian George Sarton , and the biochemist Lawrence Joseph Henderson . Merton's thesis —similar to Max Weber 's famous claim about a link between the Protestant work ethic and the capitalist economy —proposed a positive correlation between the rise of Protestant pietism , Puritanism , and early experimental science. In 1934 Merton married Suzanne Carhart, with whom he had a son, Robert C. Merton , winner of
16366-400: The label can eventually accept it as the label becomes more well known, particularly among their peers. This stigma can become even more profound when the labels are about deviancy, and it is thought that this stigmatization can lead to deviancy amplification . Malcolm Klein conducted a test which showed that labeling theory affected some youth offenders but not others. At the other side of
16533-471: The label on board, indulge in crime more readily, and become actors in the " self-fulfilling prophecy " of the powerful groups. Later developments in this set of theories were by Howard Becker and Edwin Lemert , in the mid-20th century. Stanley Cohen developed the concept of " moral panic " describing the societal reaction to spectacular, alarming social phenomena (e.g. post-World War 2 youth cultures like
16700-514: The leader of those sociologists who attempted to create social theories that could be empirically tested. He was an inspirational teacher and editor, and with his students, such as James S. Coleman and Seymour Martin Lipset , among many others who would become leading figures in the field, he helped to build and legitimate the field of sociology in America. For me, he was a model teacher and mentor,
16867-597: The legitimate avenues to attaining the Dream. In other words, Merton believes that the American Dream is a cultural ideal, but the ways in which people go about obtaining it are not the same. This can lead to a considerable amount of deviance (in the Parsonian sense). This theory is commonly used in the study of criminology (specifically the strain theory ). In 1938, Merton's “Social Structure and Anomie,” one of
17034-625: The lens of evolutionary biology. Specifically, they seek to explain why criminality is so much higher in men than in women and why young men are most likely to exhibit criminal behavior. See also: genetics of aggression . Aggressive behavior has been associated with abnormalities in three principal regulatory systems in the body: serotonin systems, catecholamine systems, and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis . Abnormalities in these systems also are known to be induced by stress , either severe, acute stress or chronic low-grade stress. Biosocial approaches remain very controversial within
17201-549: The main differences between this theory and Bentham's rational choice theory, which had been abandoned in criminology, is that if Bentham considered it possible to completely annihilate crime (through the panopticon ), Becker's theory acknowledged that a society could not eradicate crime beneath a certain level. For example, if 25% of a supermarket's products were stolen, it would be very easy to reduce this rate to 15%, quite easy to reduce it until 5%, difficult to reduce it under 3% and nearly impossible to reduce it to zero (a feat which
17368-811: The measurements of cheekbones or hairline, or a cleft palate could indicate " atavistic " criminal tendencies. This approach, whose influence came via the theory of phrenology and by Charles Darwin 's theory of evolution , has been superseded. Enrico Ferri , a student of Lombroso, believed social as well as biological factors played a role, and believed criminals should not be held responsible when factors causing their criminality were beyond their control. Criminologists have since rejected Lombroso's biological theories since control groups were not used in his studies. Sociological positivism suggests societal factors such as poverty , membership of subcultures, or low levels of education can predispose people to crime. Adolphe Quetelet used data and statistical analysis to study
17535-402: The measures required would cost the supermarket so much that it would outweigh the benefits). This reveals that the goals of utilitarianism and classical liberalism have to be tempered and reduced to more modest proposals to be practically applicable. Such rational choice theories, linked to neoliberalism , have been at the basics of crime prevention through environmental design and underpin
17702-438: The mid-18th century and reflects ideas from utilitarian philosophy. Cesare Beccaria , author of On Crimes and Punishments (1763–64), Jeremy Bentham (inventor of the panopticon ), and other early criminological philosophers proposed ideas including: This school developed during a major reform in penology when society began designing prisons for the sake of extreme punishment. This period also saw many legal reforms,
17869-402: The most disadvantaged portions of the population may remain. William Julius Wilson suggested a poverty "concentration effect", which may cause neighborhoods to be isolated from the mainstream of society and become prone to violence. Strain theory, also known as Mertonian Anomie, advanced by American sociologist Robert Merton , suggests that mainstream culture, especially in the United States,
18036-569: The most important works of structural theory in American sociology, Merton's basic assumption was that the individual is not just in a structured system of action but that his or her actions may be forced by the demands of the system. Merton argued that when the economic system fails to provide legitimate means to earn an income, and status, the cultural logic of the social system may force the individual to act in ways that are culturally logical, even if illegal. In this rubric, conformity refers to
18203-503: The most notable landmarks in the Eternal City and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Facilities include state-of-the-art classrooms, art studios and an art gallery, a science lab, a conference center, a library, and open-air terraces and a courtyard for events. Additionally, it will feature full disability access and a new 50-bed residence hall, offering a true campus experience in the heart of Rome. The Temple University Police department
18370-508: The nature of criminal law and its administration and conditions under which it develops; second, it analyzes the causation of crime and the personality of criminals; and third, it studies the control of crime and the rehabilitation of offenders. Thus, criminology includes within its scope the activities of legislative bodies, law-enforcement agencies, judicial institutions, correctional institutions and educational, private and public social agencies. Modern academic criminology has direct roots in
18537-408: The necessary application of the law for a crime; thus, the judge was simply to confirm his or her sentence to the law. Beccaria also distinguished between crime and sin , and advocated against the death penalty , as well as torture and inhumane treatments, as he did not consider them as rational deterrents. This philosophy was replaced by the positivist and Chicago schools and was not revived until
18704-478: The necessity for social science to establish a general foundation, Merton preferred more limited, middle-range theories. Merton later explained in his writings that "although much impressed by Parsons as a master-builder of sociological theory, I found myself departing from his mode of theorizing (as well as his mode of exposition)." Merton himself fashioned his theory very similarly to that of Emile Durkheim 's Suicide (1897) or Max Weber 's Protestant Ethic and
18871-491: The neighboring Bell Tower and served as a campus landmark. In 2019, the university opened Charles Library, a four-story tall study facility. The building was designed by international architectural design office, Snøhetta . As of 2020 , the library holdings amounted to 4 million physical items, including 1.5 million books, and 1.5 million electronic books. The library includes both an automated search and retrieval system and browsable stacks for physical volumes. The library
19038-550: The next academic year with the University amending its campus guidelines to further discourage protests. On July 3, 2024, Temple's Board of Trustees announced it has appointed John Fry as its 15th president, with Fry's official start date to be determined once new leadership is in place at Drexel University , where Fry is currently president. Temple University has six campuses and sites across Pennsylvania, plus international campuses in Rome and Japan. Temple's main campus
19205-560: The observation of adults. Sociologists such as Raymond D. Gastil have explored the impact of a Southern culture of honor on violent crime rates. Another approach is made by the social bond or social control theory . Instead of looking for factors that make people become criminal, these theories try to explain why people do not become criminal. Travis Hirschi identified four main characteristics: "attachment to others", "belief in moral validity of rules", "commitment to achievement", and "involvement in conventional activities". The more
19372-431: The period from the mid-18th century to the mid-twentieth century: Classical , Positivist , and Chicago . These schools of thought were superseded by several contemporary paradigms of criminology, such as the sub-culture, control, strain, labelling, critical criminology , cultural criminology , postmodern criminology , feminist criminology , Queer criminology, and others discussed below. The Classical school arose in
19539-426: The personally financial." He adopted the name Robert K. Merton initially as a stage name for his magic performances. Young Merton developed a strong interest in magic, heavily influenced by his sister's boyfriend. For his magic acts he initially chose the stage name "Merlin", but eventually settled on the surname "Merton" to further "Americanize" his immigrant-family name. He picked the given name "Robert" in honor of
19706-438: The poor who struggle. On this point he approaches conflict theory , although he does believe that institutions and values can be functional for society as a whole. Merton states that only by recognizing the dysfunctional aspects of institutions, can we explain the development and persistence of alternatives. Merton's concept of dysfunctions is also central to his argument that functionalism is not essentially conservative. Lastly,
19873-727: The processes of crime creation not to genetic or psychological facts, but rather to the material basis of a given society. State crime is a distinct field of crimes that is studied by Marxist criminology , which considers these crimes to be some of the most costly to society in terms of overall harm/injury. In a Marxist framework, genocides , environmental degradation , and war are not crimes that occur out of contempt for one's fellow man, but are crimes of power. They continue systems of control and hegemony which allow state crime and state-corporate crime , along with state-corporate non-profit criminals, to continue governing people. Temple University Temple University ( Temple or TU )
20040-426: The processes that define administration of justice and the criminal justice system. The interests of criminologists include the study of nature of crime and criminals, origins of criminal law, etiology of crime, social reaction to crime, and the functioning of law enforcement agencies and the penal institutions. It can be broadly said that criminology directs its inquiries along three lines: first, it investigates
20207-416: The rambling style of Laurence Sterne 's The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman . Merton was heavily influenced by Talcott Parsons and to a much lesser degree by Pitirim Sorokin . Indeed, Merton's choice of dissertation topic reflect profoundly the interest from Parsons and was not of Sorokin's liking. Hence, Sorokin was strongly opposed to the emphasis of the creativity of Puritanism, which
20374-461: The relationship between crime and sociological factors. He found age, gender, poverty, education, and alcohol consumption were important factors to crime. Lance Lochner performed three different research experiments, each one proving education reduces crime. Rawson W. Rawson used crime statistics to suggest a link between population density and crime rates , with crowded cities producing more crime. Joseph Fletcher and John Glyde read papers to
20541-445: The relationship between culture, structure and anomie. Merton argued that deviance is most likely to occur when there is a discrepancy between culturally prescribed goals and the legitimate means of obtaining them. Merton defines culture as an "organized set of normative values governing behavior which is common to members of a designated society or group". Social structures are the "organized set of social relationships in which members of
20708-414: The relationship between state, media, and conservative-ruling elite and other less powerful groups. The powerful groups had the ability to become the "significant other" in the less powerful groups' processes of generating meaning . The former could to some extent impose their meanings on the latter; therefore they were able to "label" minor delinquent youngsters as criminal. These youngsters would often take
20875-464: The same time particular institutions are not the only ones able to fulfill these functions; a wide range of functional alternatives may be able to perform the same task. This notion of functional alternative is important because it alerts sociologists to the similar functions different institutions may perform and it further reduces the tendency of functionalism to imply approval of the status quo. Merton's theory on deviance stems from his 1938 analysis of
21042-550: The scientific field. In 1968, young British sociologists formed the National Deviance Conference (NDC) group. The group was restricted to academics and consisted of 300 members. Ian Taylor , Paul Walton and Jock Young – members of the NDC – rejected previous explanations of crime and deviance. Thus, they decided to pursue a new Marxist criminological approach. In The New Criminology , they argued against
21209-402: The social needs not met by government institutions. Merton made it very clear however, that unanticipated consequences and latent functions are not the same. Latent functions are one type of unanticipated consequences; functional for the designated system. According to Merton, there are also two other types of unanticipated consequences: Merton sees attention to latent functions as increasing
21376-428: The social structure of opportunities is unequal and prevents the majority from realizing the dream, some of those dejected will turn to illegitimate means (crime) in order to realize it. Others will retreat or drop out into deviant subcultures (such as gang members , or what he calls " hobos "). Robert Agnew developed this theory further to include types of strain which were not derived from financial constraints. This
21543-473: The social structure, they do not have the same opportunity of realizing the shared values. This can create deviance. The term anomie , derived from Émile Durkheim , for Merton means a discord between cultural goals and the legitimate means available to reach them. Applied to the United States, he sees the American dream as an emphasis on the goal of monetary success, but without a corresponding emphasis on
21710-468: The social system of science works in accordance with, and often also in contradiction to, the ethos of science." This newer focus on the social organization of science led Merton to study the reward system in science, priority disputes between scientists, and the way in which famous scientists often receive disproportionate credit for their contributions, while less-known scientists receive less credit than their contributions merit. Merton called this phenomenon
21877-471: The society or group are variously implicated." Anomie, the state of normlessness, arises when there is "an acute disjunction between the cultural norms and goals and the socially structured capacities of members of the group to act in accord with them." In his theory, Merton links anomie with deviance and argues that the discontinuity between culture and structure have the dysfunctional consequence of leading to deviance within society. The goal of material success
22044-676: The sociology of science, developing the Merton Thesis explaining some of the religious causes of the Scientific Revolution , and the Mertonian norms of science, often referred to by the acronym " CUDOS ". This is a set of ideals that are dictated by what Merton takes to be the goals and methods of science and to be binding on scientists. They include: The "OS" in "CUDOS" is sometimes identified as "Originality" (i.e. novelty in research contributions) and "Skepticism". This
22211-415: The spectrum, criminologist Lonnie Athens developed a theory about how a process of brutalization by parents or peers that usually occurs in childhood results in violent crimes in adulthood. Richard Rhodes ' Why They Kill describes Athens' observations about domestic and societal violence in the criminals' backgrounds. Both Athens and Rhodes reject the genetic inheritance theories. Rational choice theory
22378-475: The spread and distribution of resources and recognition among scientists being highly skewed. Merton referred to his book On the Shoulders of Giants: A Shandean Postscript as "OTSOG"—"part parody and part history of ideas", according to the publisher. In OTSOG , he traces the history of Newton's famous comment "If I have seen farther, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants" back to centuries earlier, in
22545-498: The spread of COVID-19. However, in September, Temple suspended in-person classes for remainder of fall semester, three days after deciding to stop in-person classes for two weeks as a precaution after 103 students on campus tested positive for COVID-19. In May 2022, Temple held its first in-person, university-wide graduation ceremony since 2019. On November 29, 2021, Moshe Porat, former dean of Temple University's business school
22712-467: The stance of defending criminals and criminal behaviors. The defense and argument lies in the thoughts that these people and their acts are not their faults but they are actually the result of society (i.e. unemployment, poverty, etc.), and these people are actually, in fact, behaving properly. Chicago school sociologists adopted a social ecology approach to studying cities and postulated that urban neighborhoods with high levels of poverty often experience
22879-443: The strikers' health insurance and tuition benefits, an action that propelled the strike to national news. The strike ended in mid-March. Shortly after graduate student strike ended, university president Jason Wingard resigned. In the months prior to his resignation, he had come under fire for his decisions during the strike as well as a rise in crime and violence on and near the university's campus. Shortly before his resignation,
23046-521: The students wanted: food trucks on campus. To this day, food trucks line the streets of Temple's Main Campus, offering students an alternative to the dining halls. Peter J. Liacouras , namesake of the Liacouras Center and Liacouras Walk, served as Temple’s seventh president from 1982 to 2000. Under Liacouras, Temple's profile began to grow: men's basketball coach John Chaney helped the team reach national prominence. Temple's iconic "T" logo
23213-555: The surrounding urban environment. The open plan of the structure enables collaboration within the design studios. The Science and Education Research Center (SERC) was completed in spring of 2014. The Project has attained LEED Gold Certification. In November 2024, Temple announced the development of a new home for the Klein College of Media and Communication and the Center for the Performing and Cinematic Arts. It will be
23380-399: The terms " role model " and " self-fulfilling prophecy ". The concept of self-fulfilling prophecy , which is a central element in modern sociological, political, and economic theory, is one type of process through which a belief or expectation affects the outcome of a situation or the way a person or group will behave. More specifically, as Merton defined, "the self-fulfilling prophecy is, in
23547-478: The third class, this number had reached forty. where he began tutoring working-class citizens at night in the basement of Conwell's Baptist Temple (hence the origin of the university's name and mascot). Conwell's night classes quickly grew popular within the North Philadelphia area. The Grace Baptist Church created a board of trustees, which named Russell Conwell president of the Temple College . Following an unsuccessful meeting with 34 Philadelphia Baptist churches,
23714-531: The thought process that criminals are produced by society. This school claims that low income levels, high poverty/unemployment rates, and poor educational systems create and motivate criminals. The notion of having a criminal personality is achieved from the school of thought of psychological positivism. It essentially means that parts of an individual's personality have traits that align with many of those possessed by criminals, such as neuroticism, anti-social tendencies, aggressive behaviors, and other factors. There
23881-417: The time, place, and other situational factors. Becker, for example, acknowledged that many people operate under a high moral and ethical constraint but considered that criminals rationally see that the benefits of their crime outweigh the cost, such as the probability of apprehension and conviction, severity of punishment, as well as their current set of opportunities. From the public policy perspective, since
24048-458: The understanding of society: the distinction between manifest and latent forces the sociologist to go beyond the reasons individuals give for their actions or for the existence of customs and institutions; it makes them look for other social consequences that allow these practices' survival and illuminate the way society works. Functionalists believe societies must have certain characteristics to survive. Merton shares this view but stresses that at
24215-467: The unintentional confusion between conscious motivations for our social behavior and its objective consequences. Manifest functions are the consequences that people observe or expect, or what is intended; latent functions are those that are neither recognized nor intended. In distinguishing between manifest and latent functions, Merton argued that one must dig to discover latent functions. His example from his 1949 piece, "Manifest and Latent Functions",
24382-695: The university ended in-person instruction due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Liacouras Center, Temple's basketball arena, was converted into a 200-bed “COVID-19 Surge Facility” due to the potential of hospitals reaching patient capacity, although only 14 patients were admitted. Temple reopened Main Campus for the Fall 2020 semester under a hybrid model, offering a mix of online classes and in-person learning. The university required COVID-19 tests for all students moving into campus housing, face coverings to be worn in all buildings, and students and faculty maintain six feet of physical distance from one another to mitigate
24549-463: The university's board of trustees had announced increased oversight of the university. The university's faculty had also planned a no-confidence vote. JoAnne Epps agreed to postpone her planned retirement and was named Acting President on April 11, 2023. Epps died after suffering a sudden, as yet undisclosed, medical episode during a university event on September 19, 2023. In October of 2023, Temple University students started protests against
24716-514: The variables in play, but a reduction of the field of scientific interest. A strategy, in short, in favor of the survey . Merton argued that deviance may result as a consequence of a blockage in an individual's life which does not allow them to achieve their goal, essentially leading to deviant behavior. According to Merton’s strain theory, criminality is determined by acceptance or rejection of cultural ideals and/or institutionalized mechanisms of accomplishing those goals. The term “strain” refers to
24883-433: The “squeeze of the slum area is becoming intolerable” and went on to say that Temple was positioned, finally, “to wipe the slate clean from the ground up. Hundreds of North Philadelphia residents were displaced when Temple demolished rowhomes, churches, and businesses to make room for its expansion. In 1966, Nolen & Swinburne returned to work for Temple University, this time creating a development plan. All that remains of
25050-445: Was Aaron Schkolnickoff, a tailor who had officially been registered at port of entry to the United States as "Harrie Skolnick". Merton's family lived in strained financial circumstances after his father's uninsured dairy-product shop in South Philadelphia burned down. His father later became a carpenter's assistant to support the family. Even though Merton grew up fairly poor, he believed that he had been afforded many opportunities. As
25217-483: Was a central element in Merton's discussion. Merton, however, managed to have both men on his dissertation committee. Merton worked with Sorokin as a graduate student at Harvard University. However, intellectuals like Paul Lazarsfeld influenced Merton to occupy himself with middle-range theories . Yet Merton's general theoretical perspectives were much closer to Parsons than Sorokin. He was also influenced by Lawrence Joseph (L.J.) Henderson , who taught him something about
25384-452: Was a field that Merton was very interested in and remained very passionate about throughout his career. Merton was interested in the interactions and importance between social and cultural structures and science. For example, he did pioneering historical research in his PhD dissertation on the role of military institutions in stimulating scientific research during the era of the Scientific Revolution . Merton carried out extensive research into
25551-444: Was able to point out the details as well as the contradictions of the overall concept. One group's function could serve as another group's dysfunction, and a general incident could turn out to be both functional and dysfunctional for the same group. Merton clarified the concept by stating that a certain degree of social cohesion eases the productivity of a group and is therefore functional, but it can become dysfunctional when it surpasses
25718-420: Was accepted, but the legitimate means were abandoned in preference for illegitimate ones. So, theft might replace hard work as the means for achieving goals. Merton argued deviance results not from pathological personalities but from the culture and structure of society itself. Value consensus is when all members of society share the same values; however, since members of society are placed in different positions in
25885-415: Was advocated by Edwin Sutherland , who focused on how "a person becomes delinquent because of an excess of definitions favorable to violation of law over definitions unfavorable to violation of law." Associating with people who may condone criminal conduct, or justify crime under specific circumstances makes one more likely to take that view, under his theory. Interacting with this type of " antisocial " peer
26052-601: Was an adjunct faculty member at Rockefeller University , and was also the first Foundation Scholar at the Russell Sage Foundation . He withdrew from teaching in 1984. In recognition of his lasting contributions to scholarship and the university, Columbia established the Robert K. Merton Professorship in the Social Sciences in 1990. Upon moving to Columbia in 1941, Merton joined Paul Lazarsfeld , who
26219-411: Was an analysis of political machines. Manifest and latent functions were devised to prelude the inadvertent confusion between conscious motivations for social behavior and its objective consequences. Merton began by describing the negative consequences of political machines, and then changed the angle and demonstrated how the people in charge of the machines, acting in their own interest, were meeting
26386-565: Was announced in 2015 as a university strategy for updating and beautifying the school's open spaces, walkways and landscaping. In January 2006, the university opened the TECH Center, a 75,000 sq ft (7,000 m ) technology facility. The Architecture building opened in January 2012. The design incorporates a glass curtain wall exterior "skin" that allows daylight into interior studios and classrooms while also providing views of
26553-416: Was associate director of the university's Bureau of Applied Social Research from 1942 to 1971, and named Giddings Professor of Sociology in 1963. He was also named to the university's highest academic rank, University Professor, in 1974 and became a Special Service Professor, a title reserved by the trustees for emeritus faculty who "render special services to the University", upon his retirement in 1979. He
26720-485: Was awarded the National Medal of Science for his contributions to the field and for having founded the sociology of science . Merton's contribution to sociology falls into three areas: (1) sociology of science; (2) sociology of crime and deviance; (3) sociological theory. He developed notable concepts, such as " unintended consequences ", the " reference group ", and " role strain ", but is perhaps best known for
26887-561: Was certified by the Philadelphia Historical Commission as an Historical Building in 1984, and in 2003 it was designated by the American Institute of Architects as a Landmark Building. In 2010, it was converted into a 1200-seat, multipurpose performance venue, with the church's stained glass window as a centerpiece. Temple's campus has several landmarks. The 110 feet (34 m)-tall Bell Tower
27054-477: Was convicted on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud for a scheme in which he and others used false data to boost the school's position on the US News & World Report rankings. On January 31, 2023, the graduate student workers' union at Temple University declared an ongoing labor strike , following a year of stalled negotiations for a labor contract. Temple University retaliated on February 8 by terminating
27221-540: Was designed under Liacouras's presidency. Liacouras expanded both the school's academics and budget: the university’s endowment rose from $ 15 million in 1982 to $ 109 million in 1999. In 2016, Temple was classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a research university with very high research activity, with research expenditures reaching $ 242 million. On March 13, 2020,
27388-503: Was free. Over time, Temple expanded. Samaritan Hospital now Temple University Hospital ) was founded by the Grace Baptist Church in 1892, and Temple added a medical school in 1901. Temple merged with Garretson Hospital the Philadelphia Dental College in 1906. After the merger, Temple officially reincorporated as Temple University on December 12, 1907. The School of Nursing was established in 1911, followed by
27555-672: Was introducing quantitative methods into empirical research in sociology. Lazarsfeld and Merton emphasized the importance of “systematic data,” collected in a systematic way through representative sampling. Merton sought to develop a theoretical approach "that would turn the results from this research into sociology." Merton's work is often compared to that of Talcott Parsons . Merton enrolled in Parsons' theory course while at Harvard, admiring Parsons' work because it introduced him to European methods of theory, while also broadening his own ideas about sociology. However, unlike Parsons, who emphasized
27722-854: Was one of the first sociologists elected to the National Academy of Sciences , and the first American sociologist to be elected a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences , foreign member of the Polish Academy of Sciences , and a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy . He was also a member of the American Philosophical Society , the American Academy of Arts and Sciences , which awarded him its Parsons Prize,
27889-548: Was survived by his wife, three children, nine grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren. Merton taught at Harvard until 1938, when he became professor and chairman of the Department of Sociology at Tulane University . In 1941, he joined the Columbia University faculty, where he spent the vast majority of his teaching career. Over his five decades at Columbia University he held numerous prestigious titles. He
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