Containment Theory is attributed to which theorist?

Containment Theory is attributed to which theorist?

• A. Walter Reckless
• B. Edwin Sutherland
• C. Robert Merton
• D. Gabriel Tarde

Answer: (A)

Containment Theory focuses on protective forces that keep people from turning to crime. It explains crime as a result of a failure of containment—when social controls and internal self-control are not strong enough to counteract pressures toward wrongdoing. Walter Reckless developed this idea, describing two kinds of containment: outer containment (the influence of family, schools, and community norms) and inner containment (a person’s self-concept, self-control, and commitment to future goals). He also discusses pushes and pulls that push someone toward crime (like frustration or anger) and pulls toward crime (like temptations or opportunities). Because Reckless is the theorist who articulated this framework, he is the best attribution for Containment Theory. The other thinkers mentioned are associated with different ideas: Edwin Sutherland with differential association (crime learned through others), Robert Merton with strain theory (crime as adaptation to social pressures), and Gabriel Tarde with imitation and social contagion.

Containment Theory focuses on protective forces that keep people from turning to crime. It explains crime as a result of a failure of containment—when social controls and internal self-control are not strong enough to counteract pressures toward wrongdoing. Walter Reckless developed this idea, describing two kinds of containment: outer containment (the influence of family, schools, and community norms) and inner containment (a person’s self-concept, self-control, and commitment to future goals). He also discusses pushes and pulls that push someone toward crime (like frustration or anger) and pulls toward crime (like temptations or opportunities). Because Reckless is the theorist who articulated this framework, he is the best attribution for Containment Theory. The other thinkers mentioned are associated with different ideas: Edwin Sutherland with differential association (crime learned through others), Robert Merton with strain theory (crime as adaptation to social pressures), and Gabriel Tarde with imitation and social contagion.