Deviance
behavior that violates significant social norms.
Anomie
confusion that results when norms of society are no longer applicable.
Techniques of Neutralization
people suspend their moral beliefs to commit deviant acts.
Degradation Ceremony
occurrence in a public setting in which an individual acquires a new identity of deviant.
Crime Syndicate
pursues crime as a big business.
Plea Bargaining
the process of legal negotiation that allows an accused person to plead guilty to a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence.
Stigma
mark of social disgrace that sets the deviant apart from the rest of society.
Control Theory
theory that focuses on why people conform rather than on the causes of deviance.
Labeling Theory
theory that focuses on how individuals come to be identified as deviant.
Crime
any act that is so labeled by those in authority, is prohibited by law, and is punishable by the government.
Criminal-Justice System
police, courts, corrections, and juvenile-justice system.
Corrections
the sanctions such as imprisonment, parole, and probation used to punish criminals.
Criminologists
the scientific study of crime, criminals, criminal behavior, and corrections.
Cultural Transmission
theory that views deviance as a learned behavior.
Primary Deviance
nonconformity that goes undetected by those in authority.
Terrorism
the threat, or actual use of violence to achieve political goals.
Police Discretion
the power of the police to decide who to actually arrest is referred to as
Recidivism
habitual relapse into crime.
Strain Theory
theory that views deviance as the natural outgrowth of the values, norms, and structure of society.
Differential Association
if the majority of a persons interactions are with deviant individuals, the person is likely to be socialized into patterns of deviant behavior.
Secondary Deviance
nonconformity that results in the individual being labeled as deviant and accepting the label as true.
White-Collar Crime
describes offenses committed by individuals of high social status in the course of their professional lives.
Racial Profiling
many people charge that the high rate of arrests among African Americans is a result of a police use of
Conflict Theory
social life is a struggle between those who possess power (ruling classes) and those who do not (lower classes) (Quinney)