General Strain Theory Paper
A theory that can be applied to Sam’s circumstances, is the General Strain Theory. Because Sam grew up in an impoverished neighborhood, he had to deal with the stress of not being able to achieve goals that would have been valued by society. This idea is illustrated by the idea that Sam was constantly in trouble wherever he went. The lack of positive stimuli in Sam’s life, and the overflowing amount of negative stimuli, being unsuccessful in school, having a deceased parent, being constantly moved around by his mother, and being beaten by his mother’s numerous boyfriends, would have caused Sam to try to seek success in any way possible would have. These negative stimuli would have caused Sam to become frustrated, antisocial, and violent until