People feel strain when they are exposed to cultural goals they are unable to obtain because they do not have the means to do so. this is the basic assertion of

This is the crux of strain theory. The strain that comes from not being able to attain culturally agreed-upon positive goals leads some people, who may lack the means, to commit acts of crime and deviance. This is a way of lessening the tension that a person feels when unable to attain these levels.