Race and Anomie: A Comparison of Crime Among Rural Whites and Urban Blacks Based on Social Structural Conditions.

• Main Author: Carter, Mical Dominique
• Format: Others
• Published: Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University 2011
• Subjects: Race and Crime; Urban Crime; Rural Crime; Anomie; Criminology; Race and Ethnicity; Social and Behavioral Sciences; Sociology
• Online Access: https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1305; https://dc.etsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2496&context=etd

This study examined the relationship between social structures and crime among rural white and urban black males in North Carolina through the theoretical framework of Merton's Anomie. Using demographic information on the state's inmate population provided by the North Carolina Department of Corrections, the subjects' individual characteristics were studied alongside community level conditions to establish whether anomic conditions did coincide with specific types of crimes and whether individuals from each group would commit the same types of crimes. The study population came from the rural counties of Graham, Alleghany, Swain, and Mitchell and the urban communities within Charlotte of Mecklenburg County. Univariate and Bivariate analysis were used to establish the significance and strength of any relationships between the variables. The findings indicated that while the category of offense was different for each group, the implied intent was the same. Both committed crimes that would benefit them in a pecuniary manner.