Chapter 6

Question 1

Approaches to Social Deviance

Answer 1

Statistical Approach
Legalistic Approach
Normative Approach
Relativist v. Absolutist Perspective

Question 2

Relativist Perspective

Answer 2

deviance depends on culture, time, and context

Question 3

Absolutest Perspective

Answer 3

there are some behaviors that are deviant across all cultures and times

Question 4

Social Deviance

Answer 4

any transgression of socially established norms, differs across time and place and even within societies

Question 5

Phrenology

Answer 5

linking bumps in the skull to certain behaviors

Question 6

Lombroso

Answer 6

father of modern criminology, believed people were born criminal, influenced by Darwin’s natural selection, link criminality to atavism, positivist criminology

Question 7

Atavism

Answer 7

“throwbacks” to an earlier stage of evolution, Lombroso

Question 8

Functionalism

Answer 8

while deviance is an abnormality to eliminate, a certain amount is functional, Durkheim

Question 9

Durkheim

Answer 9

deviance contributes to social cohesion by enhancing the sense of what is right and wrong, anomie, normative theory of suicide

Question 10

Anomie

Answer 10

a state in which society’s norms fail to regular behavior

Question 11

Normative Theory of Suicide

Answer 11

different levels of social regulation and integration affect suicide

Question 12

Anomic

Answer 12

too little social regulation, the world doesn’t always behave the way you expect it to behave, people think they’re doing the right thing and it still goes wrong

Question 13

Fatalistic

Answer 13

too much social regulation, nothing to look forward to, everything has been decided and is always the same, no surprises

Question 14

Altruistic

Answer 14

too much social integration, group dominates life of individual to the point where individual feels no purpose beyond group, if something happens to the group they will have no purpose

Question 15

Egoistic

Answer 15

too little social integration, feeling insignificant, no connections or meaning in life

Question 16

Robert Merton

Answer 16

people share a common understanding of goals and legitimate means for achieving goals

Question 17

Strain theory

Answer 17

when a gap exists between cultural goals for success and means available to achieve those goals, rates of deviance will be high

Question 18

Conformists: Merton’s Strain Theory

Answer 18

accept the goals of the society and the means of achieving those goals

Question 19

Innovators: Merton’s Strain Theory

Answer 19

accept the goals of the society, but they look for new, or innovative, ways of achieving those goals, Bill Gates didn’t go to college, criminals

Question 20

Ritualists: Merton’s Strain Theory

Answer 20

not interested in the goals of the society, but they do accept the means of achieving those goals, go to college but still live with parents

Question 21

Retreatists: Merton’s Strain Theory

Answer 21

don’t accept the goals of the society or the means of achieving this goals, Into the Wild

Question 22

Rebels: Merton’s Strain Theory

Answer 22

don’t accept the goals of the society or the means of achieving this goals, so they create their own goals using new means

Question 23

Opportunity Theory

Answer 23

people differ not only in motivation to engage in deviant acts, but also in opportunity to do so (Cloward and Ohlin), can’t sell drugs if you don’t have access to drugs

Question 24

Control Theory

Answer 24

deviance arises from (lack of) social bonds, or connections to others, close bonds to people that would disapprove will stop you, people without close bonds have nothing to lose

Question 25

Conflict Perspective: Class-dominant Theory

Answer 25

dominant class interests determine what is labeled deviant of criminal, benefits the elite, those who commit deviant acts are not bad just powerless, doesn’t account for laws that protect everyone like murder, doesn’t explain why laws that hurt the elite have been made (labor laws)

Question 26

Feminist Perspective

Answer 26

majority of research done by and about males
differences in socialization of boys and girls plays partial role of different rates of deviance in sizes
stigmatization
women victimized by virtue of gender, female behavior more likely to be stigmatized and seen as negatively but same behavior positive for men, disproportionally victims of assault

Question 27

Symbolic Interactionism

Answer 27

Primary Deviance
Labeled Deviant
Internalizes Deviant Label
Secondary Deviance

can skip primary deviance if falsely labeled

Question 28

Primary Deviance

Answer 28

doesn’t have to be first act, can be later act if you haven’t received label

Question 29

Secondary Deviance

Answer 29

additional deviant behavior that occurs after they’ve been labeled and internalize it

Question 30

Differential Association Theory

Answer 30

part of symbolic interactionism, deviant and criminal behavior results from associating with people with attitudes favorable to deviant or criminal behavior, depends on frequency, intensity (how close we are), length (how long wee see them), and chronology (how long we have known them)

Question 31

Informal Social Control

Answer 31

unofficial means of sanctioning deviance in everyday interactions

Question 32

Formal Social Control

Answer 32

attempts to officially sanction certain behaviors and visibly punish others, justice system

Question 33

Rising Prison Populations

Answer 33

mandatory minimum sentencing
“three strikes” laws
war on drugs

Question 34

Race and Ethnicity

Answer 34

“war on drugs” policing focused on poor neighborhoods in the inner city, crowded, urban neighborhoods more likely to attract police attention

Question 35

Discrimination

Answer 35

more whites arrested for crimes, but people of color more likely to actually serve time in prison or jail

Question 36

Techniques of neutralization

Answer 36

denial of responsibility, denial of injury, denial of victim, condemning the
condemners, appeal to higher loyalties

Question 37

Denial of responsibility

Answer 37

they are not to blame, they were a victim or it was an accident, reduce social stigma and feeling of failing oneself morally

Question 38

Denial of injury

Answer 38

the act produced little or no harm or their intentions were not to cause harm, drug use is “victimless”

Question 39

Denial of victim

Answer 39

acknowledge that the act is harmful but don’t acknowledge a legitimate victim, victim deserved it or victim is unknown, in identity theft they never interact with victim

Question 40

Condemning the condemners

Answer 40

direct attention to those who judge them rather than their own behavior, those who judge have no right to because they are hypocrites or deviants in disguise

Question 41

Appeal to higher loyalties

Answer 41

the act was necessary to meet the moral obligations of a group even though they violated a set of rules, broke the law to help their family