Ch 6: Deviance & Crime Flashcards
deviance
behaviors/traits that are contrary to the dominant social expectations
informal deviance
minor transgressions of norms (ex: wearing pajamas to class)
formal deviance
crime, involves violation of laws (relative across cultures with differing social expectations; violates norms of a particular group at a particular time)
crime
behavior that violates criminal law; formal deviance (labeled as a crime by authority/government)
social control
mechanisms that create normative compliance in individuals (social sanctions involve criminal charges (formal) or shame (informal))
functionalism’s view on deviance
- society is based on value consensus, which deviance threatens
- but a certain amount of deviance/crime can be helpful (clarify boundaries and promote social reform)
Robert Merton - strain theory
deviance occurs when people cannot achieve society’s goals by legitimate means (a result of society not giving all members equal means; frustration = strain)
Robert Merton strain theory categories
- conformity (accept institution x accept goals)
- innovation (reject institution x accept goals)
- ritualism (accept institution x reject goals)
- retreatism (reject institution x reject goals)
- rebellion (new means x new goals)
symbolic interactionism: labeling theory
deviance results from being labeled a deviant; not deviant until others have judged it and labeled it (results in self-fulfilling prophecy)
symbolic interactionism: stigma
a negative label that changes your behavior toward a person and also changes that person’s self-concept and social identity (results in serious consequences in that person’s opportunity)
symbolic interactionism: broken window theory
neighborhood disorder creates fear and gives out crime-promoting signals
- appears to be more accepted
- can lead to things getting more out of control
street crime
committed in public and is often associated with violence, gangs, and poverty (ex: homicide, robbery, assault)
corporate/white-collar crime
committed by corporate employees or owners in the pursuit of profit or other organization goals (nonviolent but not victimless; harder to detect; more costly)
who gets punished and for what?
depends on social class of the perpetrator and the victim; pattern:
- black > white
- poor > rich
- male > female
retribution/punitive
moral vengeance, make the defender suffer as the victim suffers
rehabilitation
views punishment as an opportunity to reform offenders and return them to society as productive citizens
recidivism
commission of crimes by people who have been released from prison (those who have been have higher chances of returning)
