Anomie occurs when society fails to provide adequate norms or values, leading individuals to feel disconnected; which sociologist is often associated with this concept?

• A. Emile Durkheim
• B. Karl Marx
• C. Max Weber
• D. Robert Merton

Answer: (A)

Anomie is a state of normlessness in which the usual social norms and regulations that guide behavior weaken or break down, leaving individuals feeling disconnected from society. This concept is most closely associated with Emile Durkheim, who argued that rapid social change in modern life can erode the collective conscience and reduce social regulation, producing a sense of aimlessness and disintegration. Durkheim connected this to patterns like higher suicide rates when norms are tenuous and regulation is weak, highlighting how social structure and shared values keep people integrated.

While other thinkers touch on related ideas, they address different mechanisms. Marx focuses on class struggle and economic power; Weber emphasizes rationalization and legitimacy of authority; Merton later elaborates on strain and deviance and builds on Durkheim’s ideas, but the term anomie itself is most fundamentally tied to Durkheim’s work.