Social Disorganization Report

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Indianapolis, Indiana’s capital and the largest city in the state has one of the highest crime rates in the United States, which was ranked number nine in 2014 with a crime rate of 62 per one thousand residents (McQuaid). With a population of 6,596,855, based on the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR) of 2014, the violent crime rate in Indianapolis was 365.3 per 100,000 residents. Furthermore, according to the UCR of 2014, Indianapolis had a murder rate of 5.0 per 100,000 residents, a first-degree rape rate of 24.5 per 100,000 residents, a robbery rate of 104.5 per 100,000 residents, and an aggravated assault rate of 222.6 per 100,000 residents. According to City-Data, the poverty rate of Indianapolis was 14.2%, evidently emphasizing poverty as …show more content…
& Holland-Davis, L.). It is the theory that states that physical and social environments are primarily responsible for the behavioral choices that a person makes. A core principle of social disorganization theory is that the environment in which a person grows up in matters. An individuals neighborhood is a substantial factor in shaping an individual, predominantly youths, likelihood in engaging in illegal activities. Residential locations are more significant than the person 's individual characteristics, such as gender and race. For example, the theory suggests that youths from disadvantaged neighborhoods participate in a subcultural which approves of delinquency, and that these youths thus acquire criminality in this social and cultural setting. In accordance with the social disorganization theory, there are ecological factors that lead to high rates of crime in these communities, and these factors linked to constantly elevated levels of "high school dropouts, unemployment, deteriorating infrastructures, and single-parent homes" (Gaines and Miller). Social disorganization theory is not intended to be applied to all crimes committed, alternatively it is indicated to be applied to street crimes at the neighborhood …show more content…
The institute of social control is made up of social beliefs, ethnics and social values that encourage juveniles to refrain from criminal behavior. Schools teach juveniles how to be a positive influence in their society, and when they are effective, the crime rate substantially lowers. However, lack of education is a major factor in high crime rates as well. Indianapolis has an extremely high dropout rate. According to WNDU-Education, in Indianapolis there is an average of 22 percent of the students who entered high school and were still there during their senior year. The state however, said the school had a 44 percent graduation rate in 2014. Unfortunately social institutions in the disorganized neighborhoods of Indianapolis are ineffective, which keeps the crime rate

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