Deviance

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Deviance
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Deviance

• Definition
• Violation of norms
• Relative - Varies by culture, subculture,
  position
• Norms
• Rules of behavior
• Make social life possible predictable
• Sanctions
• an expression of approval or disapproval for
  conforming to or violating norms G-9
• Positive ? Informal
• Negative ? Formal

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Explanations of deviance

• Biological focus on genetic predispositions
• Low intelligence
• XYY chromosome
• Body types
• Psychological focus on individual
• Personality disorders
• Subconscious motives from childhood experience
• Sociological focus on on social structure or
  social interaction

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Sociological explanations

• Symbolic interactionist
• Differential association theory
• Labeling theory
• Functionalist
• Durkheim
• Structural strain theory
• Conflict

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Differential association theory

• Sutherland
• Learn through social interaction
• Based on who associate with
• Families, peers, neighborhoods, subcultures
• Can received mixed message must choose
• Process
• Learn techniques first
• Then learn to value criminal behavior rather than
  conventional

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Labeling theory

• Response of others is important factor in
  producing deviance
• Everyone engages in crime at some timeprimary
  deviance (Lemert)
• Secondary/career deviancethe deviant behavior
  that a person adopts in response to reaction of
  others to primary deviance (Sullivan, 301)
• Process
• Deviance observed labeled
• Label becomes public
• Stigma attached
• Socially isolated

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Deviance is functional

• Durkheim
• Clarifies moral boundaries affirms groups
  norms
• Promotes social unity
• Promotes social change

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Structural strain theory

• Merton
• Also anomie theory
• Social structure contributes to crime
• Taught to work toward certain goals,
• e.g., U.S. financial success
• Not always have access to socially approved means
  to goals
• Inconsistency/structural strain can result in
  anomie

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Mertons Anomie Theory
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Structural strain theory

• Four deviant paths
• Innovators
• Armed robber
• Drug dealer
• Ritualists
• Burned out social worker or teacher
• Worker in dead-end job
• Retreatists
• Drug addict
• Alcoholic
• Rebels
• Revolutionary
• Hippie in a commune

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Conflict theory

• Who controls criminal justice system
• Marx capitalist class (bourgeiosie)
• C. Wright Mills - Power elite
• Law instrument of oppression
• Working class has potential to take over power
• Prison for working class
• Rarely prison for elite

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Conflict theory class related to definition of
crime punishment

• Blue collar crime
• Property crime burglary, larceny-theft, auto
  theft, arson
• Violent crime murder/manslaughter, rape,
  robbery, assault
• FBI Uniform Crime Report
• Violators populate prisons

• White collar crime
• Fraud, embezzlement, insider trading
• Antitrust violations, monopoly, price fixing
• Defined as less serious
• Punishments less significant
• Jail rare

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Research using labeling theory

• Chambliss
• The Saints and the Roughnecks 1973
• Field study using participant observation in high
  school
• Saints 8 middle class boys
• Roughnecks 6 lower class boys
• Behaviors same
• Truant ? Vandalism
• Drunk ? Fighting

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The Saints and the Roughnecks

• Different reputations
• Saints
• Good boys
• Teachers expected be success
• Police never arrested
• Roughnecks
• Bad boys
• Teachers expected them get in trouble
• Police many arrests

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Outcomes Saints Roughnecks

• 78 graduated from college
• 3 advanced degrees
• 4 managerial training in corporations
• 1 repeated senior year after divorce never
  graduated from college unemployed

• 46 finished high school
• 24 went to college on athletic scholarships
  became coaches
• 26 working class
• Gambler
• Truck driver
• 26 went to prison for murder

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Explanation

• Due to social class background
• Impacts others perceptions, expectations
• Impacts visibility
• Saints cars
• Roughnecks hung out on own street corners
• Impacts interaction
• Saints apologetic, respectful face-to-face
• Roughnecks hostile, disrespectful
• Lived up to communitys labels

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Consider this

• Unintended consequences of Three Strikes and
  Your Out laws
• What are these laws and why were they passed?
• What are the unintended consequences?
• Should we change them or leave them alone?
• Why?