Search

In this paper, we build on Parnaby and Leyden's (2011) modified Mertonian approach to police deviance by incorporating elements of evolutionary psychology. It is our contention that an infusion of evolutionary psychology will lead to a more robust theoretical model. Specifically, we argue that an anomic social structure helps create the social conditions within which specific adaptive psychological mechanisms manifest behaviorally in ways that coincide with Merton's modes of adaptation. The importance of integrating sociology and evolutionary psychology is emphasized while a number of misunderstandings about the latter are addressed. Ce papier utilise la perspective de Parnaby et Leyden's (2011) qui adapte l'approche de Merton de la deviance policiere en incorporant des elements de psychologie evolutionniste. Nous proposons que l'integration de la psychologie evolutionniste contribue a un module theorique plus robuste. Plus precisement, nous considerons qu'une structure sociale anomique cree les conditions sociales par lesquelles des mecanismes psychologiques adaptifs qui coincident avec les modes d'adaptation de Merton et se manifestent dans le comportement. Nous soulignons l'importance d'une integration de la sociologie et de la psychologie evolutionniste et adressons certains malentendus sur cette derniere., USING A MODIFIED version of Robert Merton's classic model of social structure and anomie (1938), Parnaby and Leyden (2011) argued police deviance stems from an anomic social structure insofar as [...]