NCJ Number
148907
Journal
Human Organization Volume: 30 Issue: 2 Dated: (Summer 1971) Pages: 111-125
Date Published
1971
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This essay focuses on issues involved in applying the concept of subculture to social problems in general and to the problem of low-status populations in particular.
Abstract
The analysis concludes that Oscar Lewis's concept of the culture of poverty is inadequate on both conceptual and ideological grounds. Thus, it is insufficiently differentiated, fails to provide a systematic basis for comparative analysis, is confused with respect to a crucial element, and is infused with a variety of unexamined and evaluative elements. The discussion outlines an alternative approach that centers on the concepts of status class, focal concern, prime and nonprime subcultures, and elemental and compound subcultures. The process of deriving explanations for customary forms of behavioral practice is approached through the concept of subcultural conjunction. Two polar positions, one focusing on social relevance and the other focusing on pure knowledge, are also discussed. The argument is presented that an intellectual climate that restricts the freedom to pursue pure knowledge defeats the purposes both of scholarship and of reform. 29 reference notes (Author abstract modified)