Splash Screen

1. Splash Screen

2. Deviance is the violation of social norms. It is difficult to define because not everyone agrees on what should be considered deviant behavior. Section 1-Preview

3. The Nature of Deviance • The term deviance refers to behavior that departs from societal or group norms. • It is a subjective term, or a matter of social definition. Section 1

4. The Nature of Deviance (cont.) • Negative deviance involves behavior that fails to meet accepted norms. • Positive deviance involves overconformity to norms, which leads to imbalance and extremes of perfectionism. Two Types of Youth Deviance Section 1

5. The Nature of Deviance (cont.) • A deviant is a person who has violated one or more of society’s most highly valued norms. Section 1

6. Social Control • Without social control—ways to promote conformity to norms—social life would be unpredictable, even chaotic. Section 1

7. Social Control (cont.) • Types of social control: • Internal social control lies within the individual; we know the difference between right and wrong due to the socialization process. • External social control is based on sanctions (formal and informal)—rewards or punishments designed to encourage desired behavior. Section 1

8. Social Control (cont.) • Social sanctions are rewards or punishments designed to encourage desired behavior. • There are both positive and negative sanctions. Violent Crime Section 1

9. According to functionalists, deviance has both negative and positive consequences for society. Functionalism also forms the basis for two important theories of deviance: strain theory and control theory. Section 2-Preview

10. Costs and Benefits of Deviance • Negative effects of deviance: • It erodes trust. • It can cause nonconforming behavior in others. • It is expensive. Section 2

11. Costs and Benefits of Deviance (cont.) • Benefits of deviance: • It clarifies norms by exercising social control to defend its values. • It can be a temporary safety valve or relieve societal pressures. • It increases unity within a society or group. • It promotes needed social change. Section 2

12. Strain Theory • Anomie is a social condition in which norms are weak, conflicting, or absent. Section 2

13. Strain Theory (cont.) • Strain theory is most likely to occur when there is a gap between culturally desirable goals, such as money and prestige, and a legitimate way of obtaining them. • Conformity is when people accept the goal and the means to achieve it. Merton’s Strain Theory Section 2

14. Strain Theory (cont.) • These four responses to strain are considered deviant even though they might display conformity: • Innovation—illegal means used to achieve success • Ritualism—success rejected, but legitimate means still used Section 2

15. Strain Theory (cont.) • Retreatism—both goals and means rejected • Rebellion—rejected goals and means, but a new set of goals and means formed Section 2

16. Control Theory • According to Travis Hirschi’s control theory, conformity to social norms depends on the presence of strong bonds between individuals and society. Section 2

17. Control Theory (cont.) • The social bond has four basic components: • Attachment • Commitment • Involvement • Belief Section 2

18. The symbolic interactionist perspective yields two theories of deviance. We read in Chapter 3 that culture is learned. Sociologists believe that deviance is a learned behavior that is culturally transmitted. Labeling theory holds that an act is deviant on if other people name it so. Section 3-Preview

19. Differential Association Theory • Differential association theory emphasizes the role of primary groups in transmitting deviance. Section 3

20. Differential Association Theory (cont.) • Three characteristics affect differential association: • A person who spends considerable time with deviants is more likely to learn deviant behavior. • A person is more likely to copy deviant behavior from a significant other than from people less important to him or her. Section 3

21. Differential Association Theory (cont.) • Younger children learn deviant behavior more quickly than older children. Section 3

22. Labeling Theory • Labeling theory explains why deviance is relative. Sometimes, if two people break the same norm, only one may be labeled a deviant. • Deviant behaviors are always a matter of social definition; they are relative. Section 3

23. Labeling Theory (cont.) • Primary deviance is when a person engages only in isolated acts of deviance. • Secondary deviance refers to deviance as a lifestyle and as a personal identity. Section 3

24. Labeling Theory (cont.) • Labeling has negative effects: • Stigma—an undesirable characteristic or label used by others to deny the deviant full social acceptance. Section 3

25. The conflict perspective looks at deviance in terms of social inequality and power. The most powerful members of a society determine who will be regarded as a deviant. Conflict theorists point to some disproportional statistical relationships between minorities and crime. Section 4-Preview

26. Deviance in Industrial Society • From the conflict perspective, deviance in an industrial society is behavior that those in control see as threatening to their interests. Deviance Section 4

27. Deviance in Industrial Society (cont.) • The following are considered deviants in an industrial society: • Critics of an industrial society. • Those who will not work. • Those who threaten private property. • Those who show a lack of respect for authority. Section 4

28. Deviance in Industrial Society (cont.) • The following is encouraged: • Certain activities, such as violence in sports, depending on how well they fit within the industrial society. Section 4

29. Race, Ethnicity, and Crime • Supporters of the conflict perspective believe that minorities receive unequal treatment in the American criminal justice system. Section 4

30. Race, Ethnicity, and Crime (cont.) • Reasons for unequal treatment: • Minorities generally do not have the economic resources to buy good legal advice. • Crimes against whites tend to be punished more severely than crimes against minorities. Section 4

31. Race, Ethnicity, and Crime (cont.) • Victim discounting is the process of reducing the seriousness of the crimes that injure people of lower status. Section 4

32. White-Collar Crime • White-collar crime is any crime committed by respectable and high-status people in the course of their occupations. • These people tend to be treated more leniently than other criminals. Section 4

33. Crime statistics in the U.S. come from two major sources: the FBI and the Census Bureau. Differences in statistics between the two agencies are due to differences in methods of collecting data. Four approaches to crime control are deterrence, retribution, incarceration, and rehabilitation. Section 5-Preview

34. Measurement of Crime • Crime—acts in violation of statute law—is widespread in the United States. • The major source of American crime statistics is the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Reports. FBI’s Crime Clock: 2003 Crimes in the United States, 2003 Section 5

35. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • Nine types of crime are tracked: • Murder • Forcible rape • Robbery • Aggravated assault • Burglary Types of Crimes Americans Commit Section 5

36. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • Larceny-theft • Motor vehicle theft • Arson • Hate crimes Types of Crimes Americans Commit Section 5

37. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • The UCR statistics are reliable in the fact that experienced police officers decide which incidents should be reported. Section 5

38. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • The limitations are as follows: • The lower classes are overrepresented. • Smaller crimes are not as likely to be reported. • Prostitutes and intoxicated persons can easily hide. Section 5

39. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • About two-thirds of crimes are not reported at all. • Crime reporting varies, and white-collar offenders are seldom included. Section 5

40. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • The National Crime Victimization Survey was launched in the 1970s in response to the aforementioned limitations. Section 5

41. Measurement of Crime (cont.) • Two advantages to the NCVS: • It helps make up for underreporting of crime. • Its surveys are more scientifically sound. Section 5

42. Juvenile Crime • Juvenile crime refers to legal violations among those under 18 years of age. • Juvenile offenders are the third largest category of criminals in the U.S. • Violent juvenile crime reached its lowest level in a decade in 2003. Juvenile Arrests in the United States, 2003 Section 5

43. Juvenile Crime (cont.) • Reasons: • A decline in the demand for crack cocaine. • Remaining crack gangs that provided guns to juveniles have reached truces. • Repeat violent offenders have been given stiffer sentences. • Police are cracking down on illegal guns on the street. Section 5

44. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Deterrence—threat of punishment used to discourage criminal actions. • Deterrence works if the lawbreakers know: • they are likely to get caught • the punishment will be severe Section 5

45. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Capital punishment is not an effective deterrent, but most people still tend to support it. Death Penalty Policy Section 5

46. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Retribution—a type of punishment intended to make criminals pay compensation for their acts. • Incarceration—keeping criminals in prisons. Top Ten Countries in Number of Prisoners Section 5

47. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Rehabilitation—an approach to crime control that attempts to resocialize criminals. • However, there is a high rate of recidivism, or a repetition of or return to criminal behavior. Section 5

48. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Reasons for recidivism: • The basic nature of the offender • Influences of more hardened criminals • The stigma of being an ex-convict Section 5

49. Approaches to Crime Control (cont.) • Some alternatives to rehabilitation in prisons: • A combination of prison and probation, or shock probation • Community-based programs • Diversion strategy Section 5