LECTURE OUTLINE

I. What Is Deviance? A. DEVIANCE is variation from a set of norms or shared social expectations. 1. Because all societies have social norms, rules, and expectations about appropriate and inappropriate behavior, deviance and social control are universal features of social life. II. Traditional Views of Deviance and Deviants A. The ABSOLUTIST and MORAL VIEWS, often found in conservative political and religious contexts are that particular behaviors (such as extramarital sexual relationships, criminal acts, etc.) are ALWAYS deviant (absolutism) and BAD (immoral). Deviant people are deviant people by nature. B. The MEDICAL and SOCIAL-PATHOLOGICAL views of deviance assume that deviance is essentially pathological, that deviants are sick people, and that society is unhealthy. Deviance and deviants are expressed in terms of health or illness. The STATISTICAL VIEW assumes that any behavior that is atypical or that varies from the average or the mode is considered deviant. Any variation from a statistical norm is deviant.

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III. The Relative Nature of Deviance The RELATIVISTIC view suggests that deviance can be interpreted only in the sociocultural context in which it occurs. A. Variation by Time 1. An act considered deviant in one time period may be considered nondeviant in another. The research of Neuhring and Markie (1974) illustrates this point with an example such as cigarette smoking, which has a long history of changing normative definitions. 2. Other examples, such as the use of various other psychoactive drugs, appropriate bathing attire, and nonmarital sexual behavior, all illustrate how behaviors defined as deviant change over time. B. Variation by Place 1. Behavior considered deviant in one location, society, or culture may be considered nondeviant in another. 2. Polygamy inmost African cultures, topless bathing at many public beaches in Southern Europe, and bullfighting in Spain and Mexico are forbidden in the United States; but American dating practices, divorce rates, and crime rates are considered shocking by much of the rest of the world. C. Variation by Situation 1. Behavior that is deviant in one situation or locality may be considered acceptable in another. 2. One must carefully select situations in which to behave in particular ways.

D. Variation by Social Status 1. Deviance varies with social statusthe position a person occupies in society. 2. The status associated with a persons sex, race, and age influences which of his/her behaviors are considered deviant. E. Applying the Relativistic View of Deviance 1. The relativistic view of deviance has many important practical implications. a. It is a mistake to practice a process known as BLAMING THE VICTIM, which implies that social problems are caused by the people facing them. b. It can be useful in many work- and family-related roles. IV. Theories Explaining Deviance A. Biological theories of Deviance argue that particular defects or weaknesses in an individuals physical constitution produce deviant behaviors. 1. Biological theories are often traced back to the Italian physician-psychiatrist Cesare Lombroso (18351909). a. Lombroso, sometimes called the father of modern criminology, believed in a born criminal type. b. The American anthropologist Hooten argued, in the 1930s, that criminals were organically inferior to those he called normal people. c. William Sheldon (1940s) developed a classification system to link body types to criminal behavior. He classified people into three categoriesthe ENDOMORPHS (soft, round, and fat); the MESOMORPHS (muscular, stocky, and athletic) and the ECTOMORPHS (skinny and fragile). Sheldon found a disproportionate percentage of criminals were found to be mesomorphs. d. Recent biological studies have focused on the relationship between an extra Y chromosome (XYY) and physical violence; other findings indicate that the great majority of XYY males have never been convicted of any crime. B. Psychological theories of deviance focus on the person who engages in deviant behavior, emphasizing the mind rather than the body. 1. Psychological theories are sometimes tied to the medical model, associating deviance with a sickness or a mental illness. 2. Some psychological theories suggest that deviance results from frustration, which may then lead to aggression and antisocial deviant behaviors.

V. Sociological Theories Explaining Deviance Sociological theories attempt to explain deviance by looking at sociocultural processes and organizational structures, although acts and actors are considered as well. A. Strain and Anomie Theory 1. STRAIN THEORIES suggest that in one way or another the experience of socially induced strain forces people to engage in deviant activities. 2. ANOMIE THEORY, an extension of Durkheims explanation of anomie (a condition of social normlessness), was fostered by Merton. A structural-functional theory, it focuses on value conflicts between culturally prescribed goals and socially approved ways of achieving them. a. Merton identified five modes of individual adaptation to the strain between a societys culturally prescribed goals and its social structure and institutionalized means of achieving them. The five modes are: (1) CONFORMITY, in which the person accepts both goals and means; (2) INNOVATION, in which the person accepts goals but rejects means; (3) RITUALISM, in which the person rejects goals but accepts means; (4) RETREATISM, in which the person rejects both goals and means; and (5) REBELLION, in which the person withdraws his or her allegiance to a society and seeks to bring in a new social structure. b. Some of the criticisms of Mertons theory are that it erroneously assumes that a single system of cultural goals is shared by the entire society, that it fails to explain why some people choose one response while others choose another, and that the theory ignores the influence of societal reactions in shaping deviance. c. The strengths of anomie theory are that it provides a framework for examining a wide range of social behavior, it has stimulated research, and it has raised the social consciousness of deviance analysts. B. CONFLICT THEORY contends that most societies contain many groups that have different, often conflicting, values and that the strongest groups in a society have the power to define the values of weaker groups as deviant. 1. Drawing from Marx, Quinney (1979) and Spitzer (1975) agree that deviance and deviants are defined and controlled by the powerful, and blame the lack of justice directly on the capitalist system. 2. According to the conflict perspective, deviance definitions are determined largely by the dominant class; deviance rates are determined primarily by the extent to which certain behaviors threaten dominant class interests; and deviance control is, in a large part, determined by the extent to which the powerful can socialize and reward those who meet their demands. 3. Conflict theory has been criticized for its inability to explain nonpolitical crimes.

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SOCIOCULTURAL LEARNING THEORIES suggest that deviant behaviors are learned through essentially the same processes as other behaviors. The theories emphasize the groups to which people belong and the norms prescribed by those groups. 1. CULTURAL TRANSMISSION THEORY (or subculture theory) explains the continuity of crime and deviance in geographical areas as the result of the transmission of deviant norms from one generation to another. 2. DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION THEORY suggests that deviance results when individuals have more contact with groups that define deviance favorably than with groups that define it unfavorably. 3. SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY focuses on the influence of operant conditioning and argues that the acquisition and persistence of deviant and conforming behavior are a function of what behaviors have been rewarded or punished in the past (DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT). 4. Sociocultural learning theories, in general, have been criticized because they fail to account for deviant acts committed alone, they are difficult to test empirically, and they do not explain how deviance originated.

D. LABELING THEORY is concerned primarily with how certain behaviors are labeled deviant and how being given such a label influences a persons behavior. 1. Most labeling theorists are interactionists who regard deviance as a product of social interaction and the interpretations and definitions that people have of one anothers behavior. 2. The labeling perspective considers deviance to be a relative condition that results when certain groups create rules and label people as outsiders. 3. Lemert (1951) identified two types of deviance. Primary deviance is temporary normviolating behavior and does not usually involve the persons self-concept, while secondary deviance involves habitual norm-violating behavior in which the deviants regard themselves as deviant. 4. A deviance career results when deviance becomes routine, resulting in a label that perpetuates further deviance. 5. Becker (1974) suggests that the imposition of definitions is generally a consequence of social power: those who have it apply labels; those who lack it receive labels. 6. The successful application of labels has negative consequences inasmuch as it tends to promote a career of deviance by stigmatizing and isolating those labeled; it also encourages the development of deviant subcultures. 7. Labeling theory has been criticized because it does not explain the causes of deviance, it fails to predict who will be labeled and in what context, and it is difficult to examine empirically.

VI. The Social Consequences of Deviance A. Social Functions of DevianceWhile traditionally viewed as a sign of social disorganization, deviance performs various social functions: 1. It can define the limits of social tolerance; 2. It can increase the solidarity and integration of a group; 3. It can serve as a safety valve for social discontent; 4. It can indicate defects or inadequacies in the existing social organization; and 5. It can set in motion steps that lead to social change. B. C. Social Dysfunctions of DevianceIf norm violations are widespread, long-term and more extreme, deviance can disrupt, establish, or lead to the complete breakdown of social systems. Deviance and Crime 1. Deviance is variation from a set of norms or shared expectations, while crime is a violation of criminal statutory law, having specific punishment applied by some governmental authority. 2. Many types of deviant acts are crimes; some are not. 3. Accurate estimates of crime rates are difficult to make because a high percentage of most crimes go undetected and unreported. 4. Official data on crime in the United States are collected by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and reported in a yearly volume entitled UNIFORM CRIME REPORTS (UCR). a. The crimes recorded are divided into categories: violent crimes and property crimes. 5. WHITE-COLLAR CRIMEcrimes committed by respectable people of high social status in the course of their business or professional activitiesrarely result in prison sentences. 6. ORGANIZED CRIME consists of groups expressly organized to carry out illegal activities. a. Organized crime has a strict hierarchy; control is maintained through threats, intimidation, and violence. VII. Deviance and Social Control Social control consists of the means that a society uses to encourage conformity and to discourage deviance. A. INTERNAL CONTROLS OF DEVIANCE are those that exist within the particular individuals moral and social codes of behavior. 1. Most social control is directly related to a persons sense of social self through the process of socialization. 2. The looking-glass self and the self-fulfilling prophecy concepts can be applied in the maintaining of social control. Knowledge of these theories can be useful in personal and professional relationships.

3. The internalization of social norms, a direct result of socialization experiences in early childhood and later in life, is a major factor in the relatively high prevalence of conformity. B. EXTERNAL CONTROLS OF DEVIANCE are those that come from outside an individual and can be either informal or formal. 1. INFORMAL EXTERNAL CONTROLS involve peers, friends, parents, or other regular associates. Kraut (1976) found that informal sanctions are a stronger deterrent than formal sanctions. 2. FORMAL EXTERNAL CONTROLSthe systems created by society specifically to control deviance (courts, police officers, and prisons)are probably the least influential type of controls.