Offenders in America are often faced with consequences of their incarceration long after they have been released. Programs such as the restriction of voting rights and the mandatory reporting of criminal history on job applications prohibit rehabilitation and reintegration after conviction. Consequently, they are forced into a state of Anomie, experience strain, and often may choose to reoffend. Voting rights of convicted criminals are suspended while they are serving out their sentence in prison, probation, or parole. After they have been out of any one of these institutional programs for two years, they are allowed to reregister to vote. A similar policy that prohibits offenders from rehabilitation and reintegration is the fact that many job applications require disclosure of any criminal conviction, even non-violent offenses. These programs restrict the ability of offenders to reintegrate into society.
Emile Durkheim defines anomie as a state of normlessness or norm confusion within society. Within a community, anomie can lead to a breakdown of social order as a result of a loss of community standards or values. This anomie is caused by strain, which can be defined as disruptions to societies normal functioning where the norms people live by suddenly change. One example of strain could be incarceration, because it can disrupt an individual’s life, but it can also disrupt the lives of their family or the community they live and work in. According to Durkheim, strain leads to anomie, which can lead to crime.
Robert Merton builds further on strain theory, specifically relating in to American Society. Merton claims that America in itself is an Anomic Society, because American values place so much emphasis on the “American Dream” and monetary goals, by does not focus on the means by which to achieve these goals. Because some people are unable to achieve these goals by legitimate means, they resort to illegitimate means. This anomie is permanent, which affects the offender’s ability to turn their life around post-conviction—they feel the anomie is inescapable. Because of this a criminal may turn to any of the following behaviors to cope with the strain and anomie. First, the offender could become an innovator, where they maintain traditional commitment to societies’ goals, but use illegitimate means to attain them. Second, the offender could become a Rebel, where they reject the system completely and resort to their own “system,” which could include crime or other acts of violence. Lastly, the offender could become a Retreatist, where they find some sort of escape to society, such as the use of drugs or alcohol to cope with the anomie. No matter which of these behaviors the offender resorts to as a response to strain, they all typically lead back to criminal activity, rather than rehabilitation.
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