Deviance
Behavior that is recognized as violating expected rules and norms.
Formal Deviance
A behavior that breaks laws or rules (results in jail, fines)
Informal Deviance
Violates customary norms (Gays kissing in public)
Four main characteristics of deviant behavior
1. Emerges in a social context, not just the behavior of individuals; group processes and judgments
2. Not all behaviors are judged similarly by all groups; what is deviant to one group may not be to another
3. Established rules and norms are socially cre
Functionalist Theory of Deviance
Creates social cohesion, results from structural strains in society and occurs when people's attachment to social bonds is diminished
Symbolic Theory of Deviance
Deviance is a learned behavior that's reinforced through group membership, results from social labeling regardless of the actual commission of deviance, and those with power assign deviant labels themselves produce deviance
Conflict Theory of Deviance
Dominant classes control the definition of and sanctions attached to deviance, results from social inequality in society and elite deviance and corporate deviance go largely unrecognized and unpunished
Merton's Structural Strain Theory
Traces the origin of deviance to the tensions caused by the gap between cultural goals and the means available to achieve those goals (4 types: innovation, ritualism, retreatism, and rebellion)
Innovation
When goals are available but means are not (Drug dealer)
Ritualism
Goals are unrealistic and means are available (Priest)
Retreatism
Neither goals or means are available (Drug addict)
Rebellion
When both new goals and new means substitute traditional ones
Social Control Theory
Suggests that deviance occurs when a person's attachment to social bonds is weakened. People feel some impulse towards deviance but the attachment to social norms prevents them from participating in deviant behavior (Type of functionalist theory)
Conflict Perspective
Argues that the economic structure of capitalism produces deviance and crime
Differential Association Theory
Interprets deviance, including criminal behavior, as behavior one learns through interaction with others. One's primary group associations and interactions hold great influence over one's actions (type of symbolic interaction theory)
Labeling Theory
Interprets the responses of others as the most significant factor in understanding how deviant behavior is bother created and sustained (W.I Thomas). It's the reactions, not the actions themselves. (Symbolic theory)
Label
The assignment or attachment of a deviant identity to a person b others including by agents of social institutions
Stigma
An attribute that is socially devalued and discredited
Master Status
A characteristic that overrides all other features of that person's identity ("That blind girl")
Personal Crimes
Are either violent or nonviolent crimes directed against people such as rape, assault, or murder
Property Crimes
Involve theft of property without threat or bodily harm and are the most frequent criminal infractions. Such as larceny, burglary, auto theft, and arson
Corporate Crime and Deviance
Wrongdoing that occurs within the context of a formal organization or bureaucracy and is actually sanctioned by the norms and operating principles of the bureaucracy.
Race, class, gender, and crime
Latinos in urban areas have high rates of lethal violence. There is a strong correlation between social class and crime. More poor = more arrests. People who are better off are better at hiding their crimes and are removed from police scrutiny. Women comm
Functionalist Theory on Crime
Societies require a certain level of crime in order to clarify norms, crime results from social structural strains (like inequality) within society, and crime may be functional to society making it hard to eradicate
Symbolic Theory on Crime
Crime is a behavior learned through social interaction, labeling criminals tends to reinforce rather than deter crime, and institutions with the power to label (like prisons) actually produce rather than lessen crime
Conflict Theory on Crime
The lower the social class, the more the individual is forced into criminality, inequalities in society by race, class, and gender and other forces tend to produce criminal activity, and reducing social inequality in society is likely to reduce crime