Most people will accept the norms or rules of the society. But not all the rewards or punishments of the society can bring total social control. Every society has those individuals or groups that will break the rules. 1. continuously talking to oneself in public 2. drag racing on a public street or highway 3. Regularly using illegal drugs 4. A man wearing women’s clothing 5. attacking another person with a weapon The five activities listed above are examples of deviant behavior in our society

The Nature of Deviance: Each society has countless norms that govern behavior. Because of the numbers of norms, there are a number of times people violate those norms. A person is not considered or labeled deviant from only one or two incidents. A person is considered deviant when that person commits that incident quite often. Ex: multiple speeding tickets causing that person to be labeled a reckless driver. A person also can be also considered deviant by committing an act that has serious negative consequences for society. Ex: Murder, robbery, sexual assault

For someone to be labeled deviant two components have to be met. Their deviant behavior has to be known by other people Next the individual must be stigmatized by society Ex: brands, tattoos, clothing (orange jumpsuits worn by prisoners), numbers assigned to criminals Sociologist: are concerned with the negative social reactions that result from being caught while committing a deviant act. * Sociologist, Erving Goffman: states that an individual labeled as a deviant has a “spoiled social identity.” That person is no longer seen as being normal or whole.

The social functions of Deviance: 1. Unifying the Group: * deviance can help unify a group (Emile Durkheim) * serves to draw the line between conforming members of society and “outsiders” – the non- conforming members of society * Durkheim felt deviance is very important to the maintenance of group unity, He stated that it would have been invented if it did not exist naturally

2. Clarifying Norms: * deviance defines the boundaries of acceptable behavior * the society hopes people will not commit deviant acts based on the consequences of these events 3. Diffusion Tension: * People who are unhappy with their lives or social conditions will turn to minor deviant acts to release their tension. They will participate in unauthorized demonstrations

4. Identifying Problems: * deviance can help bring about social change by identifying problem areas * when a norm is violated by a large number of people in that society, the people in charge can take steps to correct the situation. 5. Providing Jobs: * deviance also provides legitimate jobs for a wide range of people: judges, lawyers, police officers, prison personnel, parole officers, manufacturers of electronic security systems, crime reporters, and criminologists

1. Cultural-Transmission Theory – theory that views deviance as a learned behavior transmitted through interaction with others * views deviance as a learned behavior * an individual that is influenced by groups who live by deviant behavior will be socialized into deviant behavior rather than into socially acceptable behavior * American Sociologist, Edward Sutherland proposed differential association. He would study the crime rates of neighborhoods. * cultural-transmission theory is an interactionist theory of deviance

2. Structural-Strain Theory: theory of deviant behavior that views deviance as the natural outgrowth of the values, norms, and structure of society. Structural- strain theory is a functionalist perspective on deviance Robert K. Merton: American society places a high value on certain goals: ex. Economic success Five modes of adaption: 1. Conformity – most individuals in society accept both the cultural goals and the culturally approved means for achieving these goals 2. Innovation – accept the cultural goals but do not accept the approved means for reaching these goals (criminals and business people)

3. Ritualism – other members of society also find it impossible to achieve the cultural goals by acceptable means. They give up the goals but continue to observe the expected rules of behavior 4. Retreatism – some individuals reject the cultural goals and the socially acceptable means of attaining them (ex: drug addicts, beggars, and hermits) 5. Rebellion – not all individuals who reject the cultural goals and the socially acceptable means to attain them retreat, some people rebel

3. Control Theory – theory of deviant behavior in which deviance is seen as a natural occurrence and conformity as the result of social control. - control theorists like the structural-strain theory, turns to social structure - deviant people have a weak ties to the community Travis Hirschi: a leading control theorist, people develop social bonds through attachment to others, belief in the moral codes of society, commitment to traditional societal values and goals. People with strong ties to the community have more to lose than people who do not.

4. Conflict Theory – believe that competition and social inequality lead to deviance. - sees social life as a struggle between those with power (upper class) and those without power (the working and lower classes) - people with power commit deviant acts to keep that power - people without power commit deviant acts for two reasons: 1. to obtain economic rewards and 2. they have low self-esteem and feelings of powerlessness

5. Labeling Theory – theory that focuses on how individuals come to be labeled as deviant. Edwin Lemert and Howard Becker: all people commit deviant acts in their lifetime - Two types of deviance: 1. Primary deviance – is nonconformity that goes undetected by those in authority 2. Secondary deviance – nonconformity that results in the individuals who commit acts of secondary deviance being labeled as deviant and accepting that label as true

Crime: * crime affects everyone in the U.S. some people are the victims and some people are the criminals. Some people are both * we are exposed to crime everyday through newspapers, radio, television * males are much more likely to be arrested than females * 2/3 of all people arrested are white * African Americans account for ¼ of the arrests * half of all arrests involve people under the age of 25

Crime Statistics: * Uniform Crime Report: published annually by the FBI. The data is provided by local police departments Social Scientist: Donald Black has uncovered the following characteristics about filing of formal crime reports 1. not all of the complaints that citizens make to the police find their way into the official statistics 2. individuals are less likely to report a crime if family or friends are involved 3. the police are more likely to file formal reports on serious crimes when the injured parties are from the higher social classes

4. whether an officer files a formal complaint is influenced by the attitude of the individual making the complaint

Types of Crime: 1. Victimless Crimes: a term used by sociologist to describe the willing exchange among adults or widely desired, but illegal, good and services Ex: prostitution, drug abuse, gambling 2. Violent Crime: murder, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. These crimes make-up a very small percentage of all crimes. - aggravated assault occurs every 29 sec. - a robbery every 46 sec. - a forcible rape every 5 minutes - murder every 21 minutes

- African Americans experience more violence than any other race. - African males have a victimization rate that is about 5 times that of African females, over 7 times that of white males, and about 22 times that of white females. - majority of murders committed with guns and knives 3. Crimes Against Property: include burglary, larceny (theft other than auto), motor vehicle theft, and arson - property crime is committed every 2 seconds in the U.S.

4. White-Collar Crime: a crime that is committed by an individual or individuals of high social status in the course of their professional lives. - Ex: Misrepresentation, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, price fixing, toxic pollution, stock manipulation, and political corruption 5. Organized Crime: it is an organization that might have a legal business that hides the illegal part. Ex: loansharking, drug trafficking, illegal gambling, unfair labor practices,