Merton의 거시 수준 아노미 이론은 여전히 유효한가? - 미국 50개 주의 세 가지 유형의 범죄율을 중심으로

The present study aims to examine whether the criminogenic mechanism proposed by Robert K. Merton (1938, 1968) is applicable to explain a variation in macro-level crime rates. Using the fifty states in the U.S. as the units of analysis, I measured the core theoretical concepts of the theory, cultural and social structures, and examined whether the categories of society based on the combinations of both types of structures can predict state level crime rates. As a result of the analysis, I found different outcomes depending on type of crime, which includes a partial support for the theory as well as evidence conflicting with the theory. In both instrumental crime and violent crime, crime rates tend to be higher in the states where the level of the anomic cultural structure is low and that of the unequal social structure is high, which is contrary to the propositions of the theory. In cybercrime, in contrast, rates of cybercrime tend to be higher in states with stronger anomic cultural structure and unequal social structure, which is consistent with the theory. The research findings suggest the possibility that the macro-level mechanism of crime proposed by Merton is better applicable to explain cybercrime than traditional forms of crime today.