Stress and Recession Theory Most citizens in the United States have always tried to achieve what is known as the American Dream. That dream usually involves having a high-paying career, a family, and having a big house in a crime-free neighborhood. Second, Robert Merton in his strain theory believes that these goals are instilled at an early age and that these goals are expected of all its members in society; however the means to achieve these objectives are not equally distributed. Means defined as education, hard work concepts are ways to achieve these goals. Merton's effort theory is an explanation of criminal behavior, according to the textbook, Adler, Mueller, and Laufer (2010) defined effort theory as “that people are law-abiding citizens, but when they are under great pressure they resort to crime. The disparity between goals and means provides this pressure.” (p.106) Merton argues that in a class-oriented society, opportunities to rise to the top are not equally distributed. There are two important elements in every society. (1) cultural aspirations, or goals that people believe are worth striving for, and (2) institutionalized means of finding accepted ways to achieve desired ends. Inequality between goals and means fosters frustrations, which lead to tension. (Alder, Mueller, and Laufer 2010). The United States recently faced an economic recession that led to the bankruptcy of businesses, thus causing spikes in unemployment and home foreclosures. In the media, two feature films have recently been released featuring recently unemployed middle class families who are struggling to keep up with their standard of living and are at risk of bankruptcy. In the movie Mad Money, the main protagonist... of the newspaper... discovers that crime will increase when unemployment and house closings increase, thus not supporting the Strain theory. Perhaps, there are underlying factors that influence whether the middle class will not engage in crime. One example is that the government implemented sufficient social programs that were not enacted during the last recession that prevent members of society from resorting to crime as a last resort. . Past economic experience has prepared people for another economic downturn if it ever occurs, such as saving, investing in property that holds its value like gold. An individual's ethics and morals can influence one's view of situations that prevent one from committing crimes because they may have altered goals other than those of society. There are many factors that have demonstrated the different relationship between crime and recession.