Lecture 5 - Deviance & Social Control Flashcards
What is Deviance? (Statistical terms)
Rare or infrequent behaviour (outside of the norm)
What is Deviance? (Rarity terms)
Obscures distinctions between people who exceed and people who fall short of certain expectations
What is Deviance? (Harmful terms)
Although many people labelled as deviant cause harm, many do not
Is Deviance criminal or illegal?
Deviance need not be criminal or illegal, and crime may not be deviant.
Enforcing Laws is a form of ….
Social Control
What is Social Control?
The ways in which individuals, groups and institutions express their disapproval of people and behaviours.
- Intended to produce conformity and compliance with rules, norms, laws.
What is a Zombie Law?
Laws that are in the criminal code, but are not enforced
How do Sociologists view Law?
Law only exists as a process
- it has to be mobilized by actors, or brought into existence each time it is needed.
- law enforcement always involves the discretion of actors
What is Socio-Legal Studies?
Less interested in what law is, more interested in how law works - as a part of society
What is Learning from the Mundane?
Learning how law shapes our everyday life, why people engage with the law, what happens when they do
How do scholars of law and society see law?
Law is a resource for actors
What is the Strain Theory? (Merton)
Deviance as the result of strain caused by mal-integration of cultural and social structures of societies
- lack of fit between the cultural goals that people are encouraged to seek and the means available to achieve these goals
Why was Merton’s Strain Theory criticized?
He assumed reliability of official statistics and failure to account for middle-class and upper-class crime and deviance
What is Strain Theory (Agnew)
Looks at other kinds of strain, such as negative conditions (like abuse), or the loss of something that is valued
- broader understanding of strain
What is the Cultural Support Theory?
Considers how cultural beliefs create and sustain deviant behaviour
- learning specific drives, motives, attitudes
- deviant behaviour is acceptable when supported by a group’s cultural values
What is Control Theory
Humans beings are neither good nor evil, but are born with the capacity to do wrong
- no special motivation is needed to explain deviance
- it is conformity, not deviance, that needs to be explained - why don’y we all commit deviance?
What was Travis Hirschi’s Social Bond Theory?
Individuals are more likely to turn to illegitimate means if their bonds to society are weak or broken
What are the 4 aspects of Travis Hirschi & The Social Bond?
Attachment
Commitment
Involvement
Belief
What is the Transactional Character of Deviance?
Attention should be directed to situations rather than individuals
- murder is a result of situations in which people feel offended and turn to violence
- driving force is emotional rather than rational
What is Conservative Conflict Theory:
Social conflict surrounding moral conduct comes from many different sources
- Various ethnic, religious, professional, lifestyle and cultural groups pursue their social interests and come into conflict with others
What is Radical/Marxist Conflict Theory?
The social construction of deviance reflects economic realities of capitalism including class exploitation
What is Primary and Secondary Deviation
Crime Committed –> labelling process –> possibility of contributing more crimes
What is Master Status?
Trumps all other status considerations. Someone’s criminality can become their defining primary characteristic, overriding all others in importance
What is Stignma?
Disapproval of a person or group on the basis of some trait that can be perceived or understood to distinguish them from other members of a society
- sex offender
How do Social Constructionists view Deviance?
Social constructionists believe it is best to study how behaviours and people come to be considered deviant (discourse of social control)
- Actions are not inherently deviant
What is Negative and Positive Eugenics?
Eliminate bad traits and keep good traits by encouraging reproduction
