Social Bond Theory in the Wire

Hirschi’s Social Bond Theory Describes D’Angelo Barksdale in The Wire Travis Hirschi’s dissertation, which eventually became a well-respected and commonly used book in criminology, had within it one of the most influential theories of crime that was tested with data and supported with results. The dissertation became known as Causes of Delinquency and was published in 1969 (Kozey, 2012). The general theory states that delinquency takes place when a person’s bonds to society are weakened or broken, thus reducing personal stakes in conformity. D’Angelo Barksdale’s character from HBO’s series The Wire is a model of how this theory works, and throughout the first season of The Wire, he proves that his character fits into this theory. Hirschi’s Social Bond Theory focuses on when in the absence of control; a person is most likely to commit crimes. These controls are bonds to society; therefore, when those bonds to society are broken or weakened, a person tends to commit crime. Shoemaker states, “Variance in delinquency is to be explained by weakened social bonds” (Shoemaker 1996:244). People conform to societal bonds because people are afraid of disrupting these bonds; people do not want to harm their friends, family, or job. Those who do not commit crime aren’t doing so because they have developed certain things to be attached to, not because they have learned from their parents or friends not to and not because they have do not have strains in society. Hirschi defined his “social bonds” with four main elements that are interlinked with each other. His four social bonds are attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. Attachment was Hirschi’s most important social bond; Hirschi says “[the theory] assumes that the bond of affection for conventional persons is a major deterrent from crime” (Hirschi 1969:83). Attachment refers to one’s bond to others such as family or friends or institutions such as school or church. When a person has a weak attachment to a

Cited: Hagan, Frank E. 2008. Introduction to Criminology: Theories, Methods, and Criminal Behavior. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Hirschi, Travis. 1969. Cause of Delinquency. Berkley: University of California Press. Kozey, Kathryn. 2012. “Social Control, Self-Control.” Presented at Towson University, March 5, Towson, MD. Sheehan, Helena and Sweeney, Sheamus (2009) The Wire and the World: Narrative and Metanarrative. Jump Cut, 51 Shoemaker, Donald J. 1996. Theories of Delinquency: An Examination of Explanations of Delinquent Behavior. New York: Oxford University Press