...definition of abnormality is deviation from the social norm. This means that the person is not conforming to the expected and accepted patterns of behaviour in society. There are two types of social norms which can be broken by ‘not normal’ patterns of behaviour, Implicit and Explicit. Implicit rules are those which are implied, for example using cutlery to eat a roast dinner. Whilst there is no law stating that this must be done, it would be deemed unusual by other members of society. The other rule, explicit, refers to stated rules, for example the law. One example of an individual breaking an explicit rule would be committing Murder. There are however several issues with using deviation from social norm to determine abnormality. The first being cultural relativism, meaning social norms vary between cultures. For example in many African-American tribes, hearing the voices of the recently deceased is seen as a blessing. In the west, it is diagnosed as schizophrenia. Further to this, the definition does not allow for eccentric behaviour, which does not necessarily mean a person is mentally ill, ie. A rugby streaker may not be abnormal, but may just seek attention. A final drawback to this approach is that it does not define the difference between a criminal and a person with a mental health issue. A burglar, for example, may simply have a criminal mind but not be abnormal. The second definition of abnormality is the failure to function, and essentially means that the person...
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...Running Head: SOCIAL INFLUENCES ON BEHAVIOR Social Influences on Behavior Paper Destiny Kloepfer Psych 300 March 20, 2011 Mr. Avery Social Influences on Behavior Behaviorism, explores ways in which observable behavior is learned and shaped by the environment (McAdams, D. P., 2006). “Social influence, refers to the influence of the presence of other people on thought, feeling, and behavior” (Kowalski & Westen, 2009, p. 663). The affects of social influence from environments can have both positive and negative consequences. Each individual approaches situations with their own set of personal characteristics (McAdams, D. P., 2006); however different aspects of influence determine how an individual may modify their behaviors to react in a given situation. Let us explore two examples of socially influenced behaviors to better understand the affects they may have on an individual. Obedience The blind obedience to authority study conducted by Stanley Milgram is an example of how social influence can actually change the way an individual will behave regardless of personal belief in the presence of an authority figure in a hierarchical situation (Kowalski & Westen, 2009). The Milgram experiment measured obedience to an authority figure through electric shocks which were given by study participants to another person upon directives given from whom the participants thought of as an authority figure (Kowalski & Westen...
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...Case 1: Jack Welch at General Electric Bujar Berisha – G1217167 Mirza Zia – G1213229 Nik Badriah Binti Nik Rahimi – G1215608 Nur Auni Afifah Hanapi – G1210096 Nurul Izzah Aziz – G1214870 QUESTION 1 Based on the definition in chapter, GE under Jack Welch was not able to fulfill his duty. Even though he did create considerable wealth during his tenure as CEO, he did so at the cost the societal harmony and environmental well-being. According to the case, during his time as the CEO of GE, he fired a large number of employees due to underperformance, or because of outsourcing. Additionally, it was under his leadership that GE had severely polluted in the Hudson River, and more importantly, lobbied against its clean up at GE’s expense. Furthermore, while he enjoyed a large number of perks during and after his time at GE, he created a pension fund that was unfair to workers at GE. Based on his actions, we believe he did not fulfill his duty, as defined by Chapter 5. We believe he could certainly have done better. The phenomenal growth GE achieved during his time was by prioritizing wealth creation over responsibilities to stakeholders such as employees and the environment. Be believe that there is a middle path that can be pursued, which allowed GE to grow in a much more sustainable manner. We feel he could have paid more attention to employee well-being by being slightly more flexible in their performance evaluation and should have promoted diversity. Based on his actions,...
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...approaches these include ‘failure to function adequately’ ‘deviation from social norms’ and ‘deviation from mental health. All three of these definitions are all subjective, therefore by having only subjective definitions no experiments to find direct cause and effect can not be found as you can only do this by having facts. Deviation from social norms shows how implicit and explicit rules effect whom is abnormal. Anyone who breaks either set of rules is therefore abnormal. Implicit rules are rules that or not illegal but are looked down upon by society such as public affection. Explicit rules are the opposite as they are illegal which can therefore end in imprisonment. Actions such as rape and murder are explicit. This definition does acknowledge the concept of cultural relativism (culture bound syndromes). However can not have a universal definition as it varies from culture to culture. Although Kraepelin ‘23 has found that disorders such as depression are worldwide disorders as it is the symptoms and effects are the same from culture to culture. The definition suggests that if a certain behaviour from a person is socially acceptable from their society than it is not abnormal. Therefore no society is ‘bad’ even if they appear that way to someone or another culture. An example of this is the japanese ‘Kamikazes’ As the culture was acceptant of their behaviour it was not abnormal although it may have seemed to other cultures. This approach encourages people to conform to society. In some...
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...DEVIANCE Sociology defines social deviance as an act of omission or commission of an offense where perpetrators risk facing state prosecution and legal punishment. Therefore, the sociological study of deviance looks at various social laws, their influence on the individual and societal behavior, and potential punishments for lawbreakers. Indeed, Kubrin, Stucky, & Krohn, (2009) note that sociology appreciates the fact that social norms vary in description across societies. This implies that an action that is deviant to one community may be morally acceptable to another. Moreover, sociology recognizes that while societies play a more important role than individuals do in creating and imposing norms and rules. This means that views on deviant acts existing in individuals more likely relate to their society’s responses to the behavior (Kubrin, Stucky, & Krohn, 2009). Norms are rules and expectations by which members of society are conventionally guided. Deviance is a failure to conform to these norms. Social norms differ from culture to culture. For example, a deviant act can be committed in one society that breaks a social norm there, but may be normal for another society. Over the years, sociologists have come up with numerous theories and concepts that help explain the causes, effects, and solutions to deviance. For instance, originally studied at the Chicago School, the social disorganization theory owes its application to deviance as a social issue to Roger Miller and...
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...to the socially disapproved violations of important norms and expectations of a society. nWho is deviant differs from one culture to another. nStigma is the mark of deviance (the Scarlet Letter). n 5/17/2002 1 Social control n n Social controls are sanctions which try to keep people from deviance. Internal social controls are behaviors and attitudes socialized into the individual to protect them from deviance. External controls are society’s mechanisms like the law and the police. Since everyone breaks social rules and norms, the sociology of deviance usually refers to those who do it big-time. 2 5/17/2002 Theories of deviance Who becomes deviant? Why do they do it? 5/17/2002 3 Labeling theory n Labeling theory: a person becomes deviant when they get labeled as such. Getting a deviant identity means distinguishing between primary and secondary deviance. Primary deviance is where most people do something deviant but it is not discovered; secondary deviance is where a person takes on the identity of a deviant and may be thrust into a “deviant career.” Labeling theory fails to explain when being labeled deviant can jolt someone out of becoming a career deviant. Deviants are seen here as helpless victims rather than bad guys 4 5/17/2002 Transmission theory n 5/17/2002 Cultural transmission theory or differential association theory: deviance is learned through “transmission,” social interactions with others who are deviant. Criminals...
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...individuals incites a revolution and takes down those individuals currently in power then I would agree they would be considered an enemy of the state. People can also be divided based on their roles and functions in society without force or coercion. Their culture or customs of a society may dictate roles and functions. An individual may be born into this society with fixed expectations of their roles or functions. This agreement can be the seen in the case of Changez, in the Reluctant Fundamentalist. Changez was born into a caste system where his family held some form of power and influence based on their wealth even as their wealth was depleted across generations. The family’s status and role in society did not change. Some values or norms may be so ingrained in individuals that they are will to anything to uphold these values. These individuals may feel they owe a duty to their society and will make sacrifices to protect their ideologies and way of living. Changez choose what he is...
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...buy into the collective sentiments of society, and will deviate from these norms and beliefs. Durkheim said a certain amount of crime and deviance as normal and an integral part of all healthy societies. This is because it acts as a ‘safety valve’, providing a relatively harmless way for someone to express their discontent. For example, Cohen said that “prostitution performs such a safety valve function without threatening the institution of the family”, this is because he believed this crime of prostitution could relieve the stress in a discrete way without damaging the rest of the clients life. Clinard said crime also served the function of acting as a warning device. This is because the crime indicates that there is an aspect of society that is malfunctioning. So the crime draws attention to the problem within society, which can then be fixed. Durkheim said that crime in society isn’t genetically produced, but is natural in society. However, he did say that too much crime was dangerous in a society, and this is an idea Merton developed. Merton and Anomie Merton observed American culture. He said that this society bought into the ‘American dream’ of having a successful career with lots of money, material possessions and a nice family. Merton said that in a balanced society everyone will be happy, however, he said American society isn’t balanced, so when people struggle to live up to societies norms and values they try and find other ways of achieving this success, and act...
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...saturated society. The media are all around us and crime is the central theme of their output, both fiction and non-fiction. Crime and deviance make up a large percentage of news coverage. For example, Richard Ericson et al’s study of Toronto found that 45-71% of quality press and radio news was about various forms of deviance and its control, while Williams and Dickinson found British newspapers allocate up to 30% of their news space to crime. However, many question whether media causes criminality. There are frequent ways in which the media might possibly cause crime and deviance and this includes the glamorisation of offending. As we have seen, the media overstates the amount of violent and unusual crime, and they exaggerate the threats of certain groups of people becoming its victims, such as young women and the elderly. Hence, there is a concern that the media may be misleading the public’s impression of crime and causing an impractical fear of it. Research evidence to some degree supports the view that there is a link between media use and fear of crime. For example, in the USA, Gerbner et al found that heavy users of television (over four hours a day) had greater levels of fear of crime. However, the existence of such correlations doesn’t verify that media viewing causes fear. For example, it may be that those who are already afraid of going out at night watch more TV just because they stay in more. Moreover, right realists argue that the underlying problem is socialisation...
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...ISP ESSAY How one lives their life relies a great deal on perspective. Perspective is either the key to happiness, or the route to misery. The novels Family Matters by Rohinton Mistry and Freedom by Jonathan Franzen both display how ones perspective determines their path and ultimate outcome in life. Although the novels deal with two completely different styles of families they do share many common themes concerning the aspect of perspective. Both the Vakeel and the Berglund families struggle with the trials and tribulations of everyday life, however they approach it differently due to their past experiences, as well as their personal values and morals. This allows for an overall completely different experience for the characters. Firstly, the characters perceive the issue of family relationships differently, as one family is close knit, whereas the other is torn and distant. Secondly, each novel displays the character’s struggles with finding personal freedoms and breaking away from the traditional views of society. Lastly, the characters in the novel deal with finding their true self and the person they are meant to be. Therefore both authors incorporate the themes of family relationships, personal freedoms and self discovery into their thrilling novels to empathize the power that perspective has on one’s life. In Family Matters, the relationships within the Vakeel family are strong due to an abundance of communication, respect, and equality. As a result the members...
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...them to the house for long periods of time, reducing their opportunities to offend. Women who try to reject their domestic role may find that their partners seek to impose it by force, through domestic violence. * As Dobash and Dobash show, many violent attacks result from men’s dissatisfaction with their wives’ performance of domestic duties. Men also exercise control through their financial power, for example by denying women sufficient funds for leisure activities, thereby restricting their time outside the home. * Daughters too are subject to patriarchal control. Girls are less likely to be allowed to come and go as they please or to stay out late. As a result, they develop a bedroom culture, socialising at home with friends rather than out in public spaces. Girls are also required to do more housework than boys. As a result, they have less opportunity to engage in deviant behaviour on the streets. * Control in public * Women are controlled in public places by the threat of male violence against them, especially sexual violence. For example, the Islington Crime Survey found that 54% of women avoided going out after dark for fear of being victims of crime, as against only 14% of men. * Heidensohn notes that sensationalist media reporting of rapes adds to women’s fear....
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...Approach Deviance and Social Control Unit M4: Functionalism Introduction In these Teachers’ Notes we’re going to review a number of theories of crime and deviance from a Structural Functionalist perspective. In case this sociological perspective is not clear to you, the first part of these Notes is given over to a brief overview of this perspective. If you are familiar with this perspective, then this overview will serve as revision material... The second part of these Notes will provide an overview of some of the basic themes and theories put forward by writers working within this general perspective to explain crime. Functionalism: An Overview The Functionalist perspective is a form of Structuralist sociology and, as such, we can initially characterise it as a form of macro sociological theorising. In this respect, the main theoretical question addressed by sociologists working within the Functionalist perspective is that of: * How do social systems ("societies") hold together? In their attempts to provide an answer to this question, Functionalists have initially concentrated upon two ideas that are closely related to the above: 1. How is order maintained in any society? 2. What are the main sources of stability in any society? As you might imagine - given that the theoretical emphasis seems to be placed on rather grand questions about the nature of social systems - Functionalist sociologists...
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...Social Influences on Behavior Behaviorism explores the ways that are observable behavior can be learned and shaped in the environment (McAdams, D. P., 2006). “Social influence, refers to the influence of the presence of other people on thought, feeling, and behavior” (Kowalski & Westen, 2011). The effects of social influence from environments can have both positive and negative consequences. Each individual approaches situations with their own set of personal characteristics (McAdams, D. P., 2006); however different aspects of influence determine how an individual may modify their behaviors to react in a given situation. Let us explore two examples of socially influenced behaviors to understand the affects they may have on an individual. The blind obedience to authority study conducted by Stanley Milgram is an example of how social influence can actually change the way an individual will behave regardless of personal belief in the presence of an authority figure in a hierarchical situation (Kowalski & Westen, 2011). The Milgram experiment measured obedience to an authority figure through electric shocks, which are given by study participants to another person upon directives given from whom the participants thought of as an authority figure. Milgram’s study showed how far people would go to obey orders from an authority figure. Obedience is the act of carrying out commands in compliance to authority (Kowalski & Westen, 2011). Information...
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...& deviance With the functionalist emphasis on the importance of shared norms and values as the basis of social order, it would appear that deviance is a threat to order and should therefore be seen as a threat to society. Yet a functionalist analysis of deviance begins with society as a whole. It looks for the source of deviance in the nature of society rather than in the individual. They argue that social control mechanisms such as the police and the courts are necessary to keep deviance in check and to protect social order, as well as deviance being a necessary part of all societies and that it performs positive functions for social systems that even contribute to the maintenance and well being of society. They believe crime and deviance should be limited in order it to benefit all. Functionalists believe crime and deviance have positive functions such as crime and deviance acting like a warning device, some acts warn of problems that exist in the system. As a result, action can be taken to address the problem for example a child may skip school due to problems at home. As a result of the truancy the larger problems of abuse or cultural and material deprivation may be addressed and greater problems avoided. Crime and deviance could help society progress: today’s deviants are tomorrow’s innovators as people who challenge existing norms and values help to create better ways of living. For example Emily Pankhurst and the suffragettes helped create a more liberated society...
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...the knowledge, language, social skills, and value to conform to the norms and roles required for integration into a group or community. It is a combination of both self-imposed (because the individual wants to conform) and externally-imposed rules, and the expectations of the others. In an organizational setting, socialization refers to the process through which a new employee 'learns the ropes,' by becoming sensitive to the formal and informal power structure and the explicit and implicit rules of behavior. See also organizational culture and orientation. Elements of Socialization[edit] Socialization is a fundamental sociological concept, comprising a number of elements. While not every sociologist will agree which elements are the most important, or even how to define some of the elements of socialization, the elements outlined below should help clarify what is meant by socialization. Goals of Socialization[edit] A kindergarten in Afghanistan. Arnett,[1] in presenting a new theoretical understanding of socialization (see below), outlined what he believes to be the three goals of socialization: impulse control and the development of a conscience role preparation and performance, including occupational roles, gender roles, and roles in institutions such as marriage and parenthood the cultivation of sources of meaning, or what is important, valued, and to be lived for In short, socialization is the process that prepares humans to function in social life. It should be re-iterated...
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