Sociology Exam 3 Chapters 7-9

Both Albert Cohen and Walter Miller argue that deviance is most likely to arise amoung?

Low income youths

In legal terms, a crime is composed of which two components?

The act and criminal intent

The likelihood a person will be arrested for a street crime rises sharply on?

During the late teenage years

In terms of racial categories, most people arrest for a violent crime in the United States are

White

The oldest justification for punishing an offender is

retribution

According to Elliot Currie, factors that explain the high crime rate in the United States by world standards include

our emphasis on individual economic success, at the expense of strong familes

In general, societies that have caste systems have economies that are

Agrarian

The common ideology of a class system states that success and wealth typically result from

personal talent and effort

Max Weber claimed that agrarian societies give special importance to which dimension of social inequality?

social prestige of honor

Which of the following class levels contain the least amount of racial and ethnic diversity?

the upper upper class

According to Karl Marx, which class forms the core of the industrial proletariat

the working class

which of the following factors tends to raise your social standing?

Mary and to Stay married

in the United States, an increasing percentage of the poor are

single women and their children

In the middle income nations, average personal income is in the range of

$2,500 to $12,000

Which world region contains the largest share of the world's street children?

Latin America

According to anti-slavery international, about how many men, women and children live today in conditions that amount to slavery?

12 million

Modernization theory identifies which of the following as the greatest barrier to economic development?

tradition

A social theorist who contributed to the development of dependency theory by tracing the growth of the capitalist world economy is

Immanuel Wallerstein

Over the course of the last century, the extent of global economic inequality has

increased

Which of the following is NOT a critisim of moderrnization theory

All of these are criticisms of this theory
-it tends to minimize the connection between rich and poor socieities
-tends to blame the low income countries for their own povery
-ignores historical facts that thwart development in poor countries
-held up the

Biological factors, including genetics, explain most criminal behavior

False

The United States is the only Western, high-income nation that routinely imposes the death penalty on convicted offenders

True

Individuals in class system typically exhibit more status inconsistency than people in caste system

False

Typically a familys wealth is greather than the familys income

true

low income countries are home to more than half of the worlds people

?

typically people in low income countries do more physical labor yet consume fewer calories than people in rich nations

true

Deviance

the recognized violation of cultural norms

crime

violation of a societys formally enacted criminal law

social control

attempts by society to regulate peoples thoughts and behavior

criminal justice system

the organization- police, courts and prison officials- that respond to alleged violations of the law

labeling theory

the idea that deviance and conformity result not so much from what people do as from how others respond to those actions

stigma

a powerfully negative label that greatly changes a persons self concept and social identity

medicalization of deviance

the transformation of moral and legal deviance into a medical condition

white collar crime

crime committed by people of high social position in the course of their occupation

corporate crime

the illegal actions of a corporation of people acting on its behalf

organized crime

a business supplying illegal goods or service

hate crime

a criminal act against a person or people property by an offender motivated by racial or other bias

plea bargaining

a legal negotiation in which a prosecutor reduces a charge in exchange for a defendants guilty plea

retribution

an act of moral vengeance by which society makes the offender suffer as much as the suffering caused by the crim

deterrence

the attempt to discourage criminality through the use of punishment

rehabilitation

a program for reforming the offender to prevent later offense

societal protection

rendering an offender incapable of further offenses temporaily through imprisonment or permently by execusition

criminal recidivism

later offenses by people previously conviected of crimes

community based corrections

correctional programs operating within society at large rather than behind prison walls

what is deviance?

Deviance refers to norm violations ranging from minor infractions, such as bad manners, to maajor infractions, such as a serious violence

Theories of Deviance- Bilogical theories

foucs on individual abnormality, explain human behavior as the result of biological instincts. Lombroso claimed criminals have apelike physical traits; later research links criminal behavior to certain body types and genetics.

Theories of Deviance- Psychologial theories

focus on individual abnormaility. See deviance as the result of unsuccessful socialization. Reckless and Dinitz's containment theory links delinquency to weak conscience.

Sociological theories

views all behavior- deviance as well as conformity- as products of society. Sociologist point out that- what is deviant varies from place to place to place according to cultural norms. Behavior and individuals become deviant as others define them that way

The function of Deviance: Structural Functional Theories

Durkheim claimed that deviance is a normal element of society that
-affirms cultural norms and values
-clarifies moral boundaries
-brings people together
-encourages social change

Stain theory

Merton's stain theory explains deviance in terms of a societys cultural goals and means available to achieve them

Symbolic interaction theories

Labeling theory claism that deviance depends less on what someone does than on how others react to that behavior. If people respond to primary deviance by stigmatizing a person, secondary deviance and deviant career may result

Medicalization of defience

is the transformation of moral and legal deviance into a medical condition. In practice, this means a change in labels, replacing good and bad with well and sick

Differential association theory

Sutherland links deviance to how much others encourage or discourage such behavior

Control theory

Hirschi states that imagining the possible consequences of deviance often discourages such behavior. People who are well integrated into society are less likely to engage in deviant behavior

Deviance and inequality: Social conflict theories

Based on Karl Marxs ideas, social conflict theory holds that laws and other norms operate to protect the interests of powerful members of any society

White collar offenses

are committed by people of high social position as part of their jobs. sutherland claimed that such offenses are rarely prosecuted and are most likely to end up in civil rather than criminal court

Corporate crime

refers to illegal actions by a corporation or people acting in its behalf. Although corporate crimes cause considerable public harm, most cases of corporate crime go unpunished

Organized crime

has a long history in the United States, among categories of people with few legitimate opportunites

Deviance, race and gender: Race conflict and Feminist theories

race conflict theory and feminist theory explains that what people consider deviant reflects the relative power and privilege of different categories of people

hate ctimes

are crimes motivated by racial or other bias; they target people who are already disadvantaged based on race, gener or sexual orientation

What is crime

crime is the violation of criminal laws enacted by local, state or federal governments. there are two major categories of serious crimes: crimes against the person (violent crime), including murder, aggravated assult, forcible rape and rovvery and crimes

Patterns of crime in the united states

-about 62% of people arrested for poverty crimes and 80% of people arrested for violent crimes are men
- offical statistics show that arrest rates peak and late adolence and drop steadily with age
-street crime is more common among people of lower social

Crimes against the person

crimes that direct violence or the threat of violence against others; aka violent crimes

crimes against povert

crimes that involve theft of money or poverty belonging to others; aka property crimes

victimless crimes

violations of law in which there are no obvious victims

Police

the police maintain public order by enforcing the low
-use personal discretion in deciding wheather and how to handle the situation
-research suggests that police are more likely to make an arrest if the offense is serious. if bystandarders are present or

courts

rely on adversarial process in where attorneys- one representing the defendant and one representng the state- present their cases in the presence of a judge who moniotrs legal procedures
-practice in the US courts resolve most cases through plea bargainin

punishment

there are four justifications for punishment
-retribution
-deterrence
-rehabitiation
-societal protection

death penalty

remains controversial in the united states, the only high income Western nation that routinely executes serious offenders. the trend is toward fewer executions

community bassed corrections

include probation and parole. these programs lower the cost of supervising the people convicted of crimes and reduced prison overcrowding bu have not been shown to reduce recidism

What is social stratification

is a system by which a scoiety ranks categories of people in a hierachy, so that some people have more money, power, and prestige than others

social stratification

-is a trait of society, not simply a reflection of individual differences
-carries over from one generation to the next
-is supported by a system of cultural beliefs that devines certain kinds of inequality as just
-takes two general forms: caste systems

caste systems

-are based on birth
-permit little or no social mobility
-shape a persons entire life including occupation and marriage
-common in traditional, argrarian socieities

class system

-are based on both birth and meritocracy
-permit some social mobility
-are common in modern industrial and postindustrial societies

Structural functional theory

points to ways social stratification helps society operate

Davis Moore thesis

states that social stratification is unerval because of its functional consequences

In caste system

people are rewarded for performing the duties of their position at birth. unequal rewards attract the ablest people to the most important jobs and encourage effort

social confluct theory

claims that stratification divides socieities in classes, benefitting some categories of people at the expense of others anc causing social conflict

Karl Marx

claiming that capitalism places economic production under the ownership of capitalists, who exploit the proletarians who sell their labor of wages

Max Weber

identified three distinct dimensions of social stratification: economic class, social status or prestige and power. conflict exists between people at various positions on a multidemensional hierachy of socioeconomic status

symbolic interaction theory

a micro level analysis that explores how inequality shapes everyday life, explains that we size people up byy looking for clues to their social standings

conspicuous consumption

refers to buying and displaying products that make a statement about social class. most people tend to socialize with others whose social standing is similar to their own.

social stratification

system by which a scoiety ranks categories of people in a hierarchy

social mobility

a change in position within social hierarchy

caste system

social stratification based ascription or birth

class system

social stratification based both birth and individual achievement

meritocracy

social stratification based on person merit

status consistency

a degree of uniformity in a persons social standing across carious dimensions of social inequality

structural social mobility

a shift in the social position in large numbers of people due more the changes in society itself than to individual effots

ideology

cultural beliefs that justify particular social arrangements, including patterns of inequality

davis moore thesis

the functional analysis claiming that social stratification has beneficial consequences for the operation of society

capitalists

people who own and operate factories and other buisnesses in pursuit of profits

proletarians

people who sell their labor for wages

alienation

the experience of isolation and misery resulting from pwoerlessness

blue colar occupations

lower prestige jobs that involve mostly manuel labor

White colar occupations

higher prestige jobs that involve mostly mental activitys

socieconomic status

a composite ranking based on various dimensions of social inequality

conspicuous consumption

buying and using products because of the statement they make about social position

social stratifications invlolve many dimensions

income- earning from work and investments are unequal, with the richest 20% of familiees earning more than twelve times as much as the poorest 20% of familes. Wealth- the total value of all assests minus debts, wealth and distrubed more unequally than inc

income

earnings from work or investment

wealth

the total value of money and other assets, minus outstanding debts

upper class

5% of the population. most members of the upper upper class or old rich inherited their wealth; the lower upper class or new rich work at high paying jobs

middle class

40-45% of the population. people the upper middle class have significat wealth; average middles have less prestige do white collar work and most attend college

working class

30-35% of the population. people in the lower middle class do blue collar work; only about one third of children attend college

lower class

20% of the population. most people in the lower class lack financial security due to low income, many live below poverty line; half do not complete highschool

people with higher social standing:

have bettter health, hold certain values and political attitudes and pass on advantages in the form of cultural capital to their children

social mobility

is common in the us as it is in other high income countries, bit typicaly only smal changes occur from one generation to the next

intragenerational social mobity

a change in social position occuring during a persons lifetime

intergenerational social mobility

upward or downward social mobility of children in relation to their parents

relative povery

the lack of resources of some people inrelation to those who have

absolute poverty

a lack of resources that is life threatening

feminization of poverty

the trend of women making up an increasing proportion of the poor

poverty profile

the government classifies 46.2 million people- 15.1% of the popluation is poor.
-about 50% of the poor are under age 25
-70% of the poor are white, but in relation to their population, african americans and hispanics are too

the ferminization of poverty

means that more poor families are headed by women

blame individuals

the culture of poverty thesis states that poverty is caused by shortcomings in the poor themselves

blame society

poevery is caused by societys unequal distribution of wealth and lack of good jobs

High income countries

-contains 23% of the worlds people
-receive 75% of the global income
-have high standard of living based on advanced technology
-produce enough economic good to enable their people to lead comfortable lives
-includes 72 nations, among them are the united

middle income countries

-contain 61% of the worlds people
-receive 23% of global income
-have a standard of living about average for thhe world as a whole
-include 70 nations

low income countries

-contains 17% of the worldsp eople
-receieve 1% of global income
-have low standard of living due to limited industral technilogy
-include 53 nations

global stratification

patterns of social inequalityy in the world as a holw

high income countries

the nations with the highest overall standards of living

middle income countries

nations with a standard of living about average for the world as a whole

low income coutnries

nations with a low standard living in which most people are poor

colonialism

the process by which some nations enrich themselves through political and economic control of other nations

necolonalism

a new form of global power relationships that invole not direcct political control but economic explotiation by multinuational corporations

multinational corportation

large business that operates in many countries

relative poverty

all socieiteis contain this- but low income nations face widespread absolute poverty that is life threatening

world wide about 929 million people are at risk due to poor nutrition

..

Women

are more likely to be poor

factors causing poverty

lack of technology limits production
-high birth rates produce rapid population increase
-traditional ccultural patterns make people resist change
-extreme social inequality distributes wealt very unequal
-extreme gender inequality limites opportunities f

modernization theory

a model of economic and social development that explains global inequality in terms of technological and cultural differences between nations

dependency theory

a model of economic and social development that explains global inequality in terms of the historical exploitation of por nations by rich ones

modernization theory

maintains that nations achieve affleucen by developing advanced technology. process depends on a culture that encourages innovation and change toward higher living standard

walt rostow

identified four stages of development
1- traditional stage- peoples lives are built around families and local communites (ex. Bangadesh)
2- take off stage- a merket emerges as people produce goods not just for their own use but to trade with others for pr

modernization theory claimes

rich nations can help poor nations by providing technology to control population size, increasing food production and expand industrial and info economy output and by providing foreign aid to pay for new economic development. rapid economic development in

criticx claim

rich nations do little to help poor countries and benefit from the status quo. low living standards in much of african and south america result from the policies of rich nations. because rich nations, including the united states, control the global econom

dependency theory

maintaings that global wealth and poverty were created by the colonial process beggining 500 years ago that overdeveloped rich nations and underdeveloped poor nations. this capitalist process continues today in the form of neocolnaism- economic explotatio

immanuel wallersteins model of the capitalist world economy identied three categories of nations

-core- the worlds high income countries, which areh ome to mulitnational corpotations
- semipheraery- the worlds middle income countries, with ties to core nations
- periphery- the worlds low income countries, which provide low cost labor and vast market

dependency theory claims

three factors- export, oriented economies, a lack of industrail capacity and foreign debt- make poor countries dependendt on rich nations and prevent their economic development. radical reform of the entire world economy is needed so that it operates in t

critics claim

dependency theory overlooks the tenfold increase of global wealth since 1950 and that the worlds poorest countries have had weak not strong ties to rich countries. rich nations are not responsbile for cultural patterns and political corruption that blocks