...Now a days we hear of many events that are taking place all over the world that involve stealing, abusing children and drunk driving. All of these events are categorized as criminal deviance. One of the events that I consider to be occurring a lot, especially on popular television shows is stalking underaged kids and abusing them. Pretty Little Liars is a popular television show that many teenagers watch. It's about a group of 5 girl best friends that always hid secrets from one another until on of them was killed and many secrets began to be revealed. After Allison's death the group of girls starting receiving messages form s person referred to as "A". These messages were sometimes threats and other times just gossip about someone whom they cared about. "The people of a community spend most of their lives in close contact with one another, sharing a common sphere of existence which makes them feel that they belong to a special "kind" and live in a special "place" (Heiner 8). In Pretty Little Liars the girls manage to keep "A" a secret for more than a year, I feel that this can be considered deviance because these girl did not say anything about what was going on, and their families did not realize that people were breaking into their houses. The group of girls were literally being harassed, "A" would sneak into their house, threatened to kill them and even harm their families. If I were in their situation the first thing I would do would be contacting the authorities...
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...How does labelling theory affect crime and deviance in society? (21) In sociology's study of crime and deviance, basically all of the theorists, excluding notably the Marxist theory, suggest that there is a difference between those who offend and those who do not, and search for key factors that lead people to offend. However, there are a group of theorists who reject this idea and instead suggest that most people commit deviant and criminal acts, but only some people are caught and stigmatised for it and that stress should be placed upon understanding the reaction to and definition of deviance rather than on the causes of the initial act. Although the labelling theory is quite prominent in the study of crime and deviance, there are still criticisers who both give valid accounts to why this theory should or shouldn't be taken as a valid theory. Firstly, Becker, one of the exponents of the labelling theory, who states that "Deviancy is not a quality of the act a person commits but rather a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an offender. Deviant behaviour is behaviour that people so label." The study was of a traditional culture on a Pacific Island conducted by Malinowski which describes how a youth killed himself because he had been publically accused of incest. When first asked about incest, the islanders had retorted in disgust, but when pressed on the matter, it was revealed that many had committed acts of incest and that it was not...
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...Asses the contribution of postmodernism to sociologists understanding of crime and deviance in todays society. Some sociologists believe that we now live in a post-modern society that has a distinct set of characteristics in comparison to modern society; Postmodernists reject the views of the modernist theorists as they claim that they are metanarratives (big stories). They believe that sociology needs to develop new theories so we can fully understand postmodern society, as society is constantly changing it is marked with uncertainty and therefore society is split into a variety of groups. This essay will discuss the changes that have taken place in postmodern society and how this impacts upon our understanding of crime and deviance. Postmodernity has brought changes from modernity these changes include independence and choice. There is less focus on science, postmodernists reject scientific research methods in their research therefore postmodernists are criticised for being subjective. Lyotard argues that society is expanding due to the economic and scientific growth, knowledge is no longer a tool of the authorities, and we now have choice and freedom to believe what we want. Whereas Baudrillard argued that we are isolated and knowledge is filtered through businesses such as the media. We pursue the images attached to products; we now live in hyper-realities in which appearances are everything. This has lead to ‘death of the social’ which is a breakdown in social solidarity;...
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...‘Assess the contribution of subcultural theories in explaining ‘subcultural crime and deviance’ in society today’ (21 marks – January 2011 examination) The theories of subcultural sociologists are based on the idea of subcultures, which are made up of a group of people who share the same norms and values as one another. These norms and values are of contrast to those of mainstream society. The individuals within these groups have rejected these mainstream views due to a variety of problems such as material deprivation, which many blame on the main society for not fulfilling their needs. Cohen believed that crime was a result of status frustration; this was the result of an extensive study on lower working class boys, who he noted blamed wider society for their lack of success in attaining the same successes as those in mainstream society. This meant that they deviated into collective crime as a means of attaining higher status within a subculture. Cohen’s ideas are very similar to that of Merton’s however he suggested that rather than taking part in individual crime they rather turn to the values of a delinquent subculture. By joining these subcultures he also noted that they tend to turn to crime, this is due to the high subcultural value placed upon acts such as vandalism and stealing. Cohen’s theory is positive due to the explanation of non-utilitarian crimes, which other theories have failed to explain; Cohen views crime as an attempt to gain respect or status. There...
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...sees individuals as entirely shaped by the way society is structured or organised, this means that the subcultures share norms and values that are different to those that are shared by mainstream society as those within the subculture have rejected mainstream norms and have become inverted because the mainstream values have failed them as is illustrated by item A. These subcultural theories are used and developed by different sociologists in order to explain why crime and deviance happens, functionalists see society as socialising individuals into shared norms and values that dictate how they will behave showing why those who are part of a subculture reject society and participate in crime and deviance because they enable a person to have a sense of identification. However theses subcultural theories cannot always explain the trend in crime and deviance as there are many contributing factors as to why crime and deviance happens. Merton is a functionalist who has developed a theory in order to explain why crime and deviance happens which has then been developed further by other sociologists in to the form of subcultural theories. Merton’s strain theory is the basis of subcultural theories and he explains that the reason for deviance is the result of strain between the goals that society encourages individuals to achieve and what society actually allows them to achieve through legitimate means which leads them to commit deviance acts because they are frustrated at not being able...
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...elsewhere, assess the usefulness of subcultural theories in explaining ‘subcultural crime and deviance’ in society today (21 marks) Subcultural theories believe that people who commit a crime share different values to the rest of society. Subculture theories come from two different schools of sociology which are appreciative sociology and strain theory. Appreciative sociology came from the University of Chicago in the early 20th Century; Chicago sociologists were determined to appreciate other lifestyles and cultures in Chicago using a participant observation which existed after a huge number of migrants from Europe and Southern USA. Whyte’s Street Corner Society (1943) suggests that deviant groups in society have clear norms and values which justify their behaviour. The Chicago study would say that it is useful in explaining subcultural crime and deviance because they used participant observations to get more accurate results within different subcultures and Whyte would also agree that it is useful because they could justify their behaviour by the norms and values in which they share. In item A “some sociologists link subcultural crime and deviance to the nature of capitalism” this shows that some sociologists believe that it doesn’t matter about what your norms and values are but depending on the amount of money that you have will determine you to turn to crime. In a stratified society they have goals which are linked with their position in the social system, each layer share...
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...Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the view that the mass media are a major cause of crime and deviance in today’s society. (21 marks) It could be argued that with some issues, the media plays a heavy role in influencing people to commit crime. Interactionist sociologists could argue that the media provide a form of database for imitation/copy cat crimes and from seeing these crimes the public are more likely to do them. In the media people are exposed to various types of crime, mainly violent and sexual and so might feel the want to copy these. For example, the copies of Jack the Ripper, the serial killer named the Zodiac or other serious crimes such as school shootings inspired by coverage of the Columbine shooting in America. Therefore it could be argued that the mass media which exposes these crimes to the population could cause these crimes, as they directly relate the crimes reported on. However it could be argued that these crimes which are reported as copy cat actually occur at a much lesser scale than we think. For instance these school shooings and serial killings do not happen as occasionally as might be thought. Although sociologists might argue that the main source of influence even for the small amount of crimes is the mainstream media which reported on them and exaggerated them in the first place. Meaning that media could be seen as a major cause of some crime in this aspect. Left realists argue that media is a major cause of crime also for...
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...To define subculture, it’s where a number of individuals choose to be a part of a separate group that follow distinct norms and values different to those in mainstream society as stated in item A. Subcultures may contain norms and values that would be considered deviant in society and involve criminal activity. In Stanley Cohen’s view the subcultural crime and deviance today results from the inability of lower classes to achieve mainstream success by legitimate means. Once the person fails to achieve success they may try to do so in other ways. Status frustration is a key element to Cohen's theory which states that when individuals are faced with failure they choose a delinquent subculture, as they no longer feel part of society or that they can achieve this leads to for example school dropouts. More often than not status frustration is resolved through creating or joining a subculture because it offers and alternative status hierarchy. It is this illegitimate opportunity structure where status can be won via delinquency. However Cohen’s theory has been criticized as it assumes that the working classes start off sharing the same goals as the middle class only to reject them when the lower class fails to achieve them. Cloward and Ohlin also explain working class crime in terms of goals and means however they believe delinquents share their own deviant subcultural values different to those of the middle class. In their view there are 3 delinquent subcultures that emerge as a...
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...and Deviance 1. Basic Concepts Sociology Central www.sociology.org.uk Crime and Deviance Basic Concepts In this section of the course we will be exploring the nature of conformity to - and deviation from social rules in both our own and other societies. In order to do this, we will initially need to understand a number of basic concepts that we can develop. In more detail at a later point. Before we start to do this, however, it might be useful to briefly map-out the various general areas covered by the syllabus. In this respect, we will be looking at a major aspect of deviant behaviour in our society (crime) and the way such behaviour is associated with various social categories such as: Class Age Gender Ethnicity Locality / Region In simple terms, we need to look at the various explanations of crime and deviance that have been produced by sociologists over the past 100 or so years. The concept of power is a very significant one in relation to the way social rules are created and applied and, for this reason, we need to examine this concept as a means of understanding the nature of social conformity and deviance. A significant aspect of (deviant) behaviour is the reaction of others to that behaviour and, in this respect, we will be particularly concerned with an examination of the role of the mass media in the process of Deviancy Amplification. The concern here will be to outline the role of "official" agencies of social control in our society. Over...
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...Cavaneyro, Naomi Grace A. January 30, 2016 11 – Benevolence T. Francis Deviance Deviance is a behavior or action that goes against the social norms of a society. I choose Deviance as my topic because there have been a lot of social norms that have been broken through the years like how same-sex marriage, abortion, divorce, and euthanasia are a few examples of act that were not permitted and so was considered an act of deviance. Knowing this, a study of deviance in sociology would be relevant because there would many factors to consider in identifying what is a deviance in society. Like in the table made by Robert K. Merton, deviance can be affected by conformity, innovation, ritualism, and retreatism. If all four are failed to be met then rebellion becomes the new means which leads to deviance. Another example would be the hippy movement of the mid-1960’s where in people around the world wanted peace so they banded together and made communities that propagated about ending the war and making peace, but that ended badly as these hippies were not only propagating peace, but also rebellion against the government for letting the war go on. There are several theories about deviance like social pathology, biological theory, psychological theory, social disorganization theory, labeling theory, anomie or structural stress theory, conflict theory, and cultural transmissions or differential association theory. Social Pathology is how deviant behavior is caused by physical...
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...Ari Denburger AJ-1 Mr. Lacasso 2/16/2014 Deviance related to crime Deviance is a title that insinuates the violation of social norms in society which has been defined through law. Deviance can be described as adjacent to criminal and improper behavior imposed by the people who break the social norms of a society, thus becoming subjective to a label of “deviant”. Deviants often have punishment bestowed upon them by law enforcement officers and their local court systems. The question asked by criminologist throughout time is, “what is the underlying cause of crime?” “Is crime a learned behavior forced by strain due to the depleting environment an individual inhabits?” “Are individuals with a genetic mutation destined to become deviant?” All of these may be a result of biological and social constructionist theories of deviance, this essay will define the opposing differences and the relation of the two in this essay. Both hold contributing factors to the construction of deviance in society, but are both highly conflicting theories. Before going into the theories of deviance, the definition of deviance must be further explained. The codification of deviance can vary widely between different cultures, a norm in one culture can be considered deviant in another. For example, the notion of cannibalism has been proved by anthropologists to be a spiritually divine form of ritualistic sacrifice in the ancient Aztec culture of Mexico. Yet in Western culture murder and...
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...crime. (21 Marks) Crime is the act which breaks the criminal laws of society. The functionalists approach to crime and deviance gives us some insight into how society copes with deviant behaviour. However it has limitations for example it only looks at the functions of deviance and not the causes. Durkheim says that to allow social solidarity to occur in society there are two key mechanisms which are socialisation and social control. He states that crime and deviance is inevitable and that it is needed in society as it preforms two positive functions; boundary maintenance and adaption. In Durkheim’s view, the purpose of punishment is to reaffirm society’s shared rules. As it states in Item A the publicity given to crime highlights the boundaries of acceptable behaviour and this reinforces social solidarity through for example court rooms which dramatizes the wrong doing and stigmatises the offender and therefore discourages others from breaking society’s rules. For individuals that want adaption, there must be some scope for them to challenge and change the existing norms and values which is deviance. However, in time there values may give way to a new culture and morality. For example gay marriage would be seen as deviant but in current times it has become less deviant in countries such as the United Kingdom because it has become more popular over the last decade. If those new ideas are supressed, society will stagnate and unable to make the right adaptive changes. Therefore...
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...Throughout the study of sociology, a reoccurring theme is that deviance seems to exist in the eye of the beholder, much like beauty. No act committed is automatically deviant, but must be defined as such. From as far back as medieval times to the present, it has always been the upper class dominating the lower class, those on the higher end of the social ladder that shapes the society people live in and define what deviant behaviour is and what is not. Those who have the power over such decisions can be classified as Moral Entrepreneurs, They strongly believe that their set of norms is the “right” way to live, their foundation is built on the belief that deviance lies within the individual, and therefore if you want to understand the deviance you must first seek out the problem within the individual and then treat them to get rid of deviance. Those who lack power and social standing are classified as the Cultural Paradigm and they have the complete opposite view of the Moral Entrepreneurs, they believe that the problem lies within society rather than in the individual therefore in order to deter deviance the problem that lies within society must be fixed. A clash of two titans in a one sided battle, however who is correct in terms of which manner is the better one to deter deviance. Should people be looking at the individual or at the society in which they live in? Through the eyes of great minds such as Becker, Kaplan, Denton and Parnaby it will become clearer that it is indeed...
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...norms Norms are rules and expectations by which members of society are guided.[2] . They are not necessarily moral, or even found grounded in morality; in fact, they are just as often pragmatic and, paradoxically, irrational. (A great many of what we call manners, having no logical grounds, would make for good examples here.) Norms are rules of conduct, not neutral or universal, but ever changing; shifting as society shifts; mutable, emergent, loose, reflective of inherent biases and interests, and highly selfish and one-sided. They vary from class to class, and in the generational "gap." They are, in other words, contextual. Deviance can be described as a violation of these norms.[3] Deviance is a failure to conform to culturally reinforced norms. This definition can be interpreted in many different ways. Social norms are different in one culture as opposed to another. For example, a deviant act can be committed in one society or culture that breaks a social norm there, but may be considered normal for another culture and society. Some acts of deviance may be criminal acts, but also, according to the society or culture, deviance can be strictly breaking social norms that are intact. Viewing deviance as a violation of social norms, sociologists have characterized it as "any thought, feeling or action that members of a social group judge to be a violation of their values or rules";[4] "violation of the norms of a society or group";[5] "conduct that violates definitions of appropriate...
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...explaining crime and deviance. (21 marks) Labelling theory is a micro theory that explains how self-identity and behaviour of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe them. As Item A states, it is a micro approach that examines how individuals construct society. Labelling theory is useful in explaining crime and deviance through the way in which Lemert distinguishes between primary and secondary deviance. However, the usefulness of labelling theory can be criticised as they fail to explain why individuals commit primary deviance. The usefulness of labelling theory in explaining crime and deviance will be explored. Labelling theory is useful in explaining crime and deviance as it distinguishes between primary and secondary deviance. Lemert (1972) makes this distinction, he argues primary deviance is a deviant act that has not been publicly labelled and has little or no significance, whereas secondary deviance is an act that gets a negative social reaction and consequently incurs a label. This implies that, as Item A states, that an action is criminal only when society views it as criminal. This is useful in explaining crime and deviance as it indicates how deviant acts can escalate from primary to secondary deviance and when this occurs how an individual is labelled and excluded from society. This progression is illustrated in Jock Young’s study of hippies who smoked recreationally, which only began as an act of primary deviance. They were then caught...
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