Positive Deviance - Sociological Imagination - Lecture Slides, Slides of Sociology

Download Positive Deviance - Sociological Imagination - Lecture Slides and more Slides Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! CHAPTER 7: DEVIANCE, CRIME, AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM docsity.com WHAT IS DEVIANCE? • Deviance is behavior that violates expected rules or norms. – Positive deviance overconforms. – Negative deviance falls below social expectations. 1 docsity.com WHAT IS CRIME? • Crime is a violation of societal norms and rules written into public laws that is subject to punishment. 2 docsity.com Sources of Crime Statistics • Official Data—Uniform Crime Reports • Victim Surveys—National Crime Victimization Survey 2 docsity.com Prevalence of Crime • All crime statistics are estimates. • There are more arrests for property crimes and drug abuse violations than for violent crimes. • Victimless crimes are least likely to be reported. 2 docsity.com CONTROLLING DEVIANCE AND CRIME • Social control—techniques and strategies that regulate behavior • Social control can be informal or formal. • It includes positive (rewards) and negative (punishments) sanctions. 3 docsity.com Application • Is it formal or informal, negative or positive? – Capital punishment – A smile – Employee of the month designation – Mother spanking a child docsity.com FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE AND CRIME 4 • Crime and deviance can be both functional and dysfunctional. docsity.com • Anomie theory suggests that people become deviant when they are unsure of how to behave because of absent, conflicting, or confusing social norms. • Periods of rapid social change produce anomie. 4 Anomie Theory docsity.com Discussion • In what is the American society anomic about …? – Drugs and alcohol – Violence – Debt 4 docsity.com • Strain theory suggests that people engage in deviance when there is a conflict between goals and means. 4 Strain Theory docsity.com Application • What form of adaptation is it? – A man uses employer's equipment and supplies when starting his own business. – A woman becomes an alcoholic trying to forget an abusive childhood. – A student continues to go class after giving up on career plans. docsity.com CONFLICT PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE AND CRIME Why are some acts defined as criminal while others are not? – Powerful groups control the law and its application. – Behaviors that injure the economic interests or challenge the political power of the dominant class are punished. 5 docsity.com • White collar crime—illegal activities committed by high-status people in the course of their occupation • Occupational crimes—illegal activities committed by individuals in the course of their work • Corporate crimes—illegal acts committed by executives to benefit themselves and their companies 5 Types of Crime docsity.com Discussion Why do people commit white collar crimes? 5 docsity.com FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE AND CRIME • Women and girls are commonly the victims of sexual assault, rape, intimate partner violence, and other crimes that degrade women. 6 docsity.com • Explanations for women's victimization: – Men have historically dominated the government, judiciary, and the law. – Women have been socialized to be weaker. 6 Feminist Theories docsity.com Discussion Parents are likely to believe that their children are influenced by their peers. Are these parents correct? 7 docsity.com • Labeling theory holds that deviance depends on how others react. – Primary deviance is the initial violation of a norm or law. – Secondary deviance occurs when individuals have been labeled deviant. 7 Labeling docsity.com Discussion • How might locker searches or drug tests increase the use of drugs? • Do you think that is likely to happen? 7 docsity.com • Rehabilitation is a view that appropriate treatment can change offenders into productive, law-abiding citizens. • Rehabilitation programs are particularly successful when they provide employment after release. 8 Rehabilitation docsity.com Discussion What should be the focus of social control— prevention, rehabilitation, or punishment? Why? 8 docsity.com