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WHAT IS DEVIANCE?
Chapter 7 – Deviance and Social Control
What Is Deviance?


Deviance: The violation of social norms
“It is not the act itself, but the reaction to the act, that
make something deviant.”
What Is Deviance?

Deviance Is Relative
 What
is deviant to some is not deviant to others
 Based
on location, age, social status, and individual societies
What Is Deviance?

A Neutral Term
 Sociologists
view deviance as any act that people view
negatively
 Do
not use term “deviant” in judgmental way
 Are
all of us deviants?
What Is Deviance?


A person does not need to act in a deviant manner
to be considered deviant
Stigma: Characteristics that discredit people
 Appearance
(ex: facial birthmark)
 Ability (ex: mental handicaps, blindness, deafness)
 Involuntary Memberships (ex: having AIDS, having a
relative who is a criminal)
Norms Make Social Life Possible

Norms make social life possible by making behavior
predictable
 Prevent
chaos
 Set guidelines for how we should interact with others

Social Order: A group’s usual and customary social
arrangements, on which its members depend and on
which they base their lives
Norms Make Social Life Possible

Social Control: A group’s
formal and informal
means of enforcing its
norms
Positive Sanctions: A
reward or positive reaction
for following norms
 Negative Sanctions: An
expression of approval or
disapproval for breaking a
norm

Explanations of Deviance

Biosocial Explanations:
 Focus
on genetic
predispositions,
inherent tendencies to
commit deviant acts
 Ex:
XYY Theory
 Ex: “Born Criminal”
Theory
Explanations of Deviance

Universally, men commit more violent crimes than
women do
 Women
have more empathy and self-control
 Men engage in more risk-taking behaviors
Explanations of Deviance

Psychological Explanations:
 Focus
on abnormalities within the individual
 Personality
Disorders: A personality disturbance causes an
individual to violate a social norm
 Have
not found a specific childhood experience to be
linked to deviance
Explanations of Deviance

Sociological Explanations:
 Focus
on factors outside the individual
 Socialization
 Membership
 Social
Class
in Subcultures