Deviance and Social Control

What is Deviance? Refers to a violation of norms According to Howard S. Becker, it isn’t the act itself, but how society reacts to it, that makes an action deviant It is a relative concept – Different groups have different norms What is deviant to some, is not to others Varies from 1 time period to another Crime is a violation of rules that have been written into law

Deviance Sociologists use the term deviance nonjudgmental to refer to any act to which people respond negatively – All people are deviant bc everyone violates rules from time to time Erving Goffman used the term stigma to refer to attributes that discredit one’s claim to a “normal” identity – Physical deformities, skin color – Defines a person’s master status, superseding all other statuses the person occupies

Social Order A groups customary social arrangements Norms allow social order bc they lay out the basic guidelines for how we play our roles and how we interact with others

Deviance as a threat Deviance is often seen as threatening bc it violates a group’s customary social arrangements and undermines the predictability that is the foundation of social life Human groups develop a system of social control, formal and informal means of enforcing the norms

Society and deviance Society’s disapproval of deviance takes the form of negative sanctions and ranges from frowns and gossip to imprisonment and capital punishment

Sociological explanation of deviance Explain deviance by looking outside the individual Social influences ▫Socialization ▫Subculture group memberships ▫Social class  Education  Occupation  Income and wealth

Examples of deviance

2 types of Deviance Criminal deviance- involve violating a criminal law Noncriminal deviance- homophobia, use of pornography, mental disorders

Homicide More likely to be committed against acquaintance, friends, or relatives than strangers ▫Both a source of pleasure and frustration in a person’s life Usually carried out under uncontrollable rage Occurs most frequently during weekend evenings (Saturday night) Handguns is the most commonly used weapon

Rape Involves the use of force to get a person to do something sexual against his/her will 110,000 rapes are reported per year but the number is much higher than that Majority of these cases involve people in close relationships ▫Often times people don’t believe that what they are doing is forced

Culture of Rape 3 prevailing attitudes towards women: 1.Women have been treated as property of men ▫Some states a man cant be prosecuted for raping his wife ▫What about women who are prostitutes? 2.Women have been viewed as objects of masculinity contests ▫To be accepted a man is pressured to have sex with as many women as possible 3.The myth that deep down women want to be raped ▫The “no means yes” myth, “she asked for it” etc.

Binge Drinking Having at least 5 drinks in a row for men and 4 drinks in a row for women At least 50 college students throughout the United States drink themselves to death every year ▫40% of college students intend to binge drink or get drunk every time they drink Binge-drinking students are more likely to miss class, fall behind in schoolwork, have poor grades, engage in unprotected sex, get injured, etc. More likely to be male, white, involved in athletics or greek life

Corporate Crime Committed by company officials w/o the overt use of force and their effect on the victims is not readily traceable to the offender Can be perpetrated against employees and customers ▫Disregard for safety in the workplace, consumer fraud, price fixing, unsafe products, violation of environmental regulations More rationally executed, more profitable and less detectable by police 3 characteristics separate corporate crime from street crime

1. The Criminal’s Noncriminal Self- Image See themselves as respectable people Rationalize their actions ▫Example: violators of price fixing: insist they are helping the nation’s economy by “stabilizing prices” See themselves as the victims- unlucky to get caught for something that everyone does ▫“Everyone cheats on their income taxes” Denial of criminal intent ▫“I made a mistake”

2. The Victim’s unwitting cooperation Many victims unwittingly cooperate with the corporate criminal ▫Example: a home improvement scam- the victims don’t bother to check the work history of the company and don’t read the contracts they sign

3. Society’s Relative Indifference Little effort is made to catch corporate criminals If caught they seldom go to jail or receive a light sentence

Mental Problems About 22% of US adults suffer from mental problems serious enough to require help or hospitalization every year Psychosis- loss of touch with reality Neurosis- persistent fear, anxiety or worry Social class is a key factor in mental illness as well as gender, ethnicity and culture ▫Women experience more depression ▫Men tend to have more antisocial personalities

Suicide Bombings Evidence seems to suggest the opposite of the popular belief that suicide bombers are psychotic, irrational, poor and uneducated Come from relatively well off middle class families Believe they are martyrs for their cause Altruistic suicide- people are so strongly tied to their group that they effectively lose their selves and stand ready to do their group’s bidding