1. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviance The recognized violation of cultural norms

2. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviance Norms guide almost all human activities –Most familiar examples are negative instances of rule- breaking. –Especially righteous people also might be called “deviant.” –“Different” or “unexpected” are often used to describe deviance from a sociological perspective. Crime (laws) –Violation of a society’s formal criminal law –Criminal deviance spans a wide range of behaviors The recognized violation of cultural norms

3. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Social Control Criminal justice system –A formal response by police, courts, and prison officials to alleged violations of the law. Biological context –Biological factors might have a real but modest effect on whether a person becomes a criminal. Personality factors –Deviance is viewed as unsuccessful “socialization.” The attempts a society makes at regulating thought and behavior

4. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Social Foundations of Deviance Deviance varies according to cultural norms. –No thought or action is inherently deviant. People become deviant as others define them that way. –How other perceive and label us Both norms and the way people define rule-breaking involve social power. –Rule-makers, rule-breakers, and rule- enforcers –Norms and applying them are linked to social position.

5. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviance affirms cultural values and norms. –There can be no good without evil and no justice without crime. Responding to deviance clarifies moral boundaries. –People draw a boundary between right and wrong. Responding to deviance brings people together. –People typically react to serious deviance with shared outrage. Deviance encourages social change. –Deviant people push a society’s moral boundaries. Durkheim's Basic Insight

6. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Merton’s Strain Theory Conformity –Pursuing conventional goals through normal means Innovation –Unconventional means to achieve approved goals Ritualism –Accept institutional means; reject goals Rebellion –Define new goals and means to achieve goals

7. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviant Subcultures Cloward and Ohlin –Extended Merton’s theory Cohen –Delinquency is most common among lower-class youths because they have the least opportunity for conventional success. Miller –Delinquent subcultures: trouble, toughness, smartness, need for excitement, belief in fate, desire for freedom Anderson –In poor urban neighborhoods, most people conform to conventional values.

8. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Labeling Deviance Symbolic-interaction analysis –The assertion that deviance and conformity result not so much from what people do as from how others respond to those actions. Primary deviance –Norm violations that most people take part in with little harm to self-concept Secondary deviance –When people “make something” of another’s deviant behavior Stigma –Powerful negative label that greatly changes a person’s self-concept and social identity

9. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Labeling Deviance Retrospective labeling –Re-interpreting someone’s past in light of present deviance Projective labeling –Predicts future deviant behavior Medicalization of deviance –Transform moral and legal deviance into a medical condition –How people respond –Personal competence of the deviant person

10. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Sutherland’s Differential Association –Deviant behavior is learned. –Frequency of association is central to the development of deviance. –If associates are prone to violation of norms, then one is also more likely to take part. –Conformity reaps rewards while the lack of it reaps punishment.

11. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Hirschi’s Control Theory Attachment –Strong social attachments encourage conformity. Opportunity –The greater the access to legitimate opportunity, the greater the advantages of conformity. Involvement –Extensive involvement in legitimate activities inhibits deviance. Belief –Strong belief in conventional morality and respect for authority controls deviance.

12. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Social-Conflict Analysis Deviance and Power Norms or laws reflect interests of rich and powerful. Powerful have resources to resist deviant labels. Belief that norms and laws are natural and good masks political character

13. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviance and Capitalism Steven Spitzer’s likely targets of labeling People who interfere with capitalism. People who cannot or will not work. People who resist authority. Anyone who directly challenges the status quo White-collar crime –Those committed by people of high social position in the course of their occupations Corporate crime –Illegal actions of a corporation or people acting on its behalf Organized crime –A business supplying illegal goods or services

14. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Deviance, Race, and Gender Hate crime –A criminal act against a person or person’s property by an offender motivated by racial or other bias Gender –The world applies more stringent normative controls to women. –Strain due to reality of gender-based inequality –Judge the behavior of women and men differently –Why do women commit fewer crimes than men?

15. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Crime The violation of criminal laws enacted by a locality, state, or the federal government Two elements –The act itself –Criminal intent Crimes against the person –Direct violence or threat of it Crimes against property –Involves theft of property Criminal statistics –Victimization surveys: Crime rate is two to four times higher than official reports

16. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. The Street Criminal: A Profile Ages 15-24 –14% of population –39% of arrests for violent crime, 45% of property crimes Gender –Males commit 68% of property crimes and 82% of violent crimes Social class –Violent crimes committed by a few in poor neighborhoods –White collar and corporate crime committed by more affluent Race and ethnicity –70% of arrests involve white people –People of color are over-criminalized

17. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Crime in Global Perspective United States –The US crime rate is high by world standards. –The rate of US violent crime is several times higher than in Europe. –Elliott Currie: Crime stems from our culture’s emphasis on individual economic success, frequently at the expense of strong families and neighborhoods. Other countries –Crime rates are high in some of the world’s largest cities, which have rapid population growth and millions of poor. –The traditional character of low-income societies and their strong families allow informal crime control outside of big cities. –Different countries have different strategies for dealing with crime.

18. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. The criminal justice system must operate according to law. This principle is grounded in the Bill of Rights. Anyone charged with a crime must receive: 1.Fair notice of the proceedings 2.A hearing on the charges conducted according to law and with the ability to present a defense, 3.A judge or jury that weighs evidence impartially US Criminal Justice System Due Process

19. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Police: Primary point of contact between population and criminal justice system –The police maintain public order by enforcing the law. –Officers quickly size up situations in terms of six factors. Gravity of situation Victim’s wishes Cooperation of suspect Has suspect been arrested before? Presence of observers increases chances of arrest Officers are more likely to arrest people of color. US Criminal Justice System Due Process

20. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. US Criminal Justice System Courts Plea bargaining: A legal negotiation in which a prosecutor reduces a charge in exchange for a defendant’s guilty plea. Widespread because it spares the system the time and expense of trials. Pressures defendants to plead guilty. Undercuts both the adversarial process and the rights of defendants

21. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Justifications for Punishment Retribution –An act of moral vengeance by which society makes the offender suffer as much as the suffering caused by the crime Deterrence –The attempt to discourage criminality through the use of punishment Rehabilitation –A program for reforming the offender to prevent later offenses Societal protection –Rendering an offender incapable of further offenses temporarily through imprisonment or permanently by execution.

22. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Community-Based Corrections Probation –A policy permitting a convicted offender to remain in the community under conditions imposed by a court Shock probation –When a judge orders a convicted offender to prison for a short time, then suspends the remainder of the sentence. Parole –Releasing inmates from prison to serve the remainder of their sentences in the community. Correctional programs operating within society at large rather than behind prison walls.

23. Sociology, 12 th Edition by John Macionis Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Violent Crime Is Down Reduction in youth population Changes in policing More prisons Better economy Declining drug trade