CHAPTER 9: DEVIANCE MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS 1. What does the chapter-opening story about the conviction and imprisonment of Martha Stewart suggest about punishment in the United States? a. The more you steal, the bigger the penalty. b. Wealthy and powerful corporate executives are part of the population we think of as "criminal." c. The U.S. criminal justice system has an anti-corporation bias. d. Corporate executives are never subject to arrest and prosecution. (Factual; answer: b; page 220) 2. Which of the following concepts refers to “the recognized violation of cultural norms”? a. deviance b. crime c. legal infraction d. juvenile delinquency (Conceptual; answer: a; page 220) 3. “Crime” differs from “deviance” in that crime: a. is always more serious. b. is usually less serious. c. refers to a violation of norms enacted into law. d. involves a larger share of the population. (Conceptual; answer: c; page 220) 4. Every society tries to regulate the behavior of individuals; this general process is called ______. a. neighborhood watch b. self control c. social control d. the legal system (Conceptual; answer: c; page 220) 205 5. What concept refers to the formal system that responds to alleged violations of the law using police, courts, and prison officials? a. the normative system b. social control c. civil law d. the criminal justice system (Conceptual; answer: d; page 220) 6. Based on your reading, it would be correct to say that biological approaches offer: a. a very limited understanding of crime. b. a good explanation of most crimes. c. a good explanation of violent crime. d. a good explanation of property crime. (Applied; answer: a; pages 220-221) 7. Read the four statements below. Which comes closest to the correct view of the role of biology in causing people to commit crimes? a. Males with certain body types commit the most serious crimes. b. Lombroso proved a century ago that biological factors are the major cause of crime. c. Biological factors may have a real but small effect in causing some people to commit crimes. d. Genetics research has succeeded in explaining most criminality. (Applied; answer: c; page 221) 8. Walter Reckless and Simon Dinitz claimed that “good boys” have the ability to rein in deviant impulses. They called their analysis: a. differential opportunity theory. b. containment theory. c. libido theory. d. differential association theory. (Conceptual; answer: b; page 221) 9. The value of psychological theories of deviance is limited because: a. very few people experience an “unsuccessful socialization.” b. there has been very little research of this kind. c. there is no way to distinguish “normal” from “abnormal” people. d. most people who commit crimes have normal personalities. (Factual; answer: d; page 221) 206 10. Read the following four statements about the social foundations of deviance. Select the one statement that is FALSE. a. Deviance exists only in relation to cultural norms. b. There are many acts that are always and everywhere deviant. c. People become deviant as others define them that way. d. What the norms are and how people apply them involve social power. (Applied; answer: b; page 222) 11. Assume you were listening to a lecture on Durkheim’s approach to deviance. Which of the following statements might well be the focus of the lecture? a. Deviance is a normal element of social organization. b. Deviance is a dysfunctional element of social organization. c. Deviance is less common in modern societies. d. Deviance is defined by the rich and used against the poor. (Factual; answer: a; pages 222-223) 12. Which of the following are functions of deviance noted by Emile Durkheim? a. Deviance affirms cultural values and norms. b. Responding to deviance promotes social unity. c. Responding to deviance clarifies moral boundaries. d. All of the above are correct. (Factual; answer: d; pages 224-223) 13. In his study of New England’s Puritans, Kai Erikson concluded that: a. people everywhere define mostly the same things as deviant. b. very religious people create very little deviance. c. even this disciplined and highly religious group created deviance to clarify the moral boundaries of their community. d. the proportion of people in the population that the Puritans defined as deviant kept rising over time. (Factual; answer: c; page 223) 14. In Robert Merton’s strain theory of deviance, which of the following concepts refers to the process of seeking conventional goals but rejecting the conventional means to achieve them? a. innovation b. ritualism c. retreatism d. rebellion (Conceptual; answer: a; pages 223-224) 207 15. Using the terms of Robert Merton's strain theory, which of the following terms would correctly describe a gangster like Al Capone who made a lot of money breaking the law? a. innovator b. ritualist c. retreatist d. rebel (Applied; answer: a; page 224) 16. Using the terms of Robert Merton's strain theory, which of the following concepts correctly describes the behavior of a school “dropout” who rejects both cultural goals and the conventional means to reach them? a. innovator b. ritualist c. retreatist d. rebel (Applied; answer: c; page 224) 17. Using the terms in Robert Merton's strain theory, which of the following concepts correctly describes the behavior of a radical activist who rejects just about everything in the existing society in favor of some alternative system? a. innovator b. ritualist c. retreatist d. rebel (Applied; answer: d; page 224) 18. Using Robert Merton’s strain theory, how would you classify a low-paid, yet compulsively conforming bank teller who never seems to want to get ahead but never seems to do anything wrong? a. innovator b. ritualist c. retreatist d. rebel (Applied; answer: b; pages 224) 208 19. Cloward and Ohlin extended Merton’s theory of deviance, stating that crime: a. reflects both limited legitimate opportunity as well as accessible illegitimate opportunity. b. is more common among the rich who have more opportunity. c. is defined in such a way as to overly criminalize the poor. d. is typically a result of drug dependence or other substance addiction. (Factual; answer: a; page 224) 20. Both Albert Cohen and Walter Miller argue that deviance is most likely to arise among: a. high-income males. b. middle-class men and women. c. low-income youths. d. all class levels. (Factual; answer: c; pages 224-225) 21. Participating in the subculture that Elijah Anderson describes as "the code of the streets" raises the risk that young people will end up: a. conforming to conventional morality. b. doing better than their parents. c. having a career in law enforcement. d. in jail or worse. (Applied; answer: d; page 225) 22. The basic idea behind labeling theory is that: a. deviance is actually useful in a number of ways. b. deviance arises not so much from what people do as how others respond to what they do. c. power has much to do with how a society defines deviance. d. All of the above are correct. (Conceptual; answer: b; pages 225-226) 23. Edwin Lemert described “primary deviance” as: a. the most serious episodes of deviance. b. actions that parents define as deviant. c. a passing episode of deviance that has little effect on the person’s self-concept. d. the experience of deviance early in life. (Conceptual; answer: c; page 226) 209 24. His friends begin to criticize Marco as a “juice-head,” pushing him out of their social circle. Marco begins to drink even more, becomes bitter, and joins a new group of friends who also are heavy drinkers. According to Lemert, Marco's situation illustrates: a. the onset of primary deviance. b. the onset of secondary deviance. c. the formation of a deviant subculture. d. the onset of retreatism. (Applied; answer: b; pages 226-227) 25. What concept did Erving Goffman use to refer to a powerful and negative label that greatly changes a person's self-concept and social identity? a. a deviant ritual b. a degradation ceremony c. a secondary identity d. stigma (Conceptual; answer: d; page 227) 26. The concept "retrospective labeling" refers to the process of: a. interpreting someone’s past consistent with present deviance. b. defining someone as deviant for things done long before. c. criminal adults encouraging their children to become deviant. d. All of the above are correct. (Conceptual; answer: a; page 227) 27. Thomas Szasz made the controversial assertion that: a. deviance is only what people label as deviant. b. most people in the United States will become insane for some period during their lives. c. mental illness is a myth so that “insanity” is only “differences” that bother other people. d. our society does not do nearly enough to treat the mentally ill. (Factual; answer: c; page 227) 28. Which of the following statements illustrates the “medicalization of deviance”? a. theft being redefined as a “compulsive stealing” b. drinking too much being redefined as “alcoholism” c. promiscuity being redefined as a “sexual addiction” d. All of the above are correct. (Applied; answer: d; pages 227-228) 210 29. Whether people respond to deviance as a moral issue or a medical matter affects which of the following? a. who responds—police or medical personnel b. whether the person is subject to punishment or treatment c. how personally competent the person is assumed to be d. All of the above are correct. (Factual; answer: d; page 228) 30. Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory links deviance to: a. how others respond to the behavior in question. b. the amount of contact a person has with others who encourage or discourage conventional behavior. c. how well a person can contain deviant impulses. d. how others respond to the race, ethnicity, gender, and class of the individual. (Factual; answer: b; page 228) 31. Travis Hirschi’s control theory suggests which of the following categories of people would be most likely to engage in deviance? a. students enrolled in college b. teenagers on sports teams with after-school jobs c. youngsters who “hang out” waiting for something to happen d. young people with respect for their parents (Applied; answer: c; pages 228-229) 32. According to the social-conflict approach, what a society labels as deviant is based primarily on: a. how often the act occurs. b. the moral foundation of the culture. c. how harmful the act is to the public as a whole. d. differences in power between various categories of people. (Factual; answer: d; pages 229-230) 33. Alexander Liazos speaks for the social-conflict approach when he states that: a. powerless people are at the highest risk of being defined as deviant. b. deviance has both functions and dysfunctions. c. deviance exists only in the eye of the beholder. d. society should ignore victimless crime. (Factual; answer: a; pages 229-230) 211 34. Using a Marxist approach, Steven Spitzer claims that prime targets for deviant labeling include: a. people who try to take the property of others. b. people who don’t want to work for a living. c. radicals who call for basic change in society itself. d. All of the above are correct. (Factual; answer: d; page 230) 35. Which of the following concepts refers to crime committed by persons of high social position in the course of their occupations? a. victimless crime b. white-collar crime c. organized crime d. street crime (Conceptual; answer: b; page 230) 36. Edwin Sutherland stated that white-collar crime: a. almost always leads to a criminal conviction. b. provokes a strong response from the community. c. is usually resolved in a civil rather than a criminal court. d. rarely involves serious harm to the public as a whole. (Factual; answer: c; pages 230-231) 37. Which of the following refers to the illegal actions of a corporation or people acting on its behalf? a. corporate crime b. organized crime c. victimless crime d. secondary deviance (Conceptual; answer: a; page 231) 38. Organized crime refers to: a. illegal actions by people with white-collar jobs. b. illegal actions on the part of a corporation or large business. c. crime involving the cooperation of two or more businesses. d. any business that supplies illegal goods or services. (Conceptual; answer: d; page 231) 212 39. A hate crime is defined as: a. any crime against a person who is a minority. b. any crime involving anger or other powerful emotion. c. a criminal act motivated by racial or other bias. d. any violation of antidiscrimination laws. (Conceptual; answer: c; page 233) 40. Gender figures into the study of deviance because: a. women account for most arrests for serious crimes in the United States. b. every society in the world applies more stronger normative controls to females than to males. c. most researchers in this area are women. d. All of the above are correct. (Factual; answer: b; page 233-235) 41. "In the Times" identifies the recent policy by which local corrections systems: a. do not arrest well-off people for crimes that land the poor in jail. b. allow people to pay for special cells and treatment when serving a jail sentence. c. let people work off a jail sentence by doing community service. d. have replaced prison with counseling sessions. (Conceptual; answer: b; page 232) 42. In legal terms, a crime is composed of which two components? a. the act and criminal intent b. a criminal and a victim c. the act and the social harm d. the law and the violation (Factual; answer: a; page 235) 43. “Crimes against persons” includes ALL BUT WHICH of the following? a. murder b. aggravated assault c. burglary d. forcible rape (Factual; answer: c; page 235) 213 44. Mike reports the theft of his dirt bike from the front yard of his house. The police would record this as which of the following types of crime? a. burglary b. larceny-theft c. robbery d. auto-theft (Applied; answer: b; page 235) 45. Prostitution is widely regarded as which of the following types of crime? a. crime against the person b. crime against property c. victimless crime d. corporate crime (Factual; answer: c; page 236) 46. Criminal statistics gathered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation reflect: a. all crimes that take place. b. offenses cleared by arrest. c. offenses resulting in a criminal conviction. d. offenses known to the police. (Factual; answer: d; pages 236) 47. Victimization surveys show that the actual amount of crime in the United States is about _____ what official reports indicate. a. half as great as b. the same as c. three times greater than d. ten times greater than (Factual; answer: c; page 236) 48. The likelihood a person will be arrested for a street crime rises sharply: a. during the late teenage years. b. in the late twenties. c. during the middle thirties. d. over age forty. (Factual; answer: a; page 236) 214 49. Men, who represent about half the U.S. population, account for about _____ of all arrests for property crime. a. 37 percent b. 51 percent c. 67 percent d. 91 percent (Factual; answer: c; page 236) 50. In the United States, men account for about _____ of all arrests for violent crime. a. about 22 percent b. about 42 percent c. about 62 percent d. about 82 percent (Factual; answer: d; page 236) 51. Of all the serious crimes discussed in the text chapter, one occurs far more than all the others. Which one is it? a. motor-vehicle theft b. larceny-theft c. robbery d. forcible rape (Factual; answer: b; page 237) 52. Research suggests that, with regard to social class, arrest for serious crime: a. is about the same for people of all class levels. b. is higher for people in higher class levels. c. is higher for people in lower class levels. d. almost always involves middle-class people. (Factual; answer: c; page 236) 53. In terms of racial categories, most people arrested for a violent crime in the United States are _____. a. white b. African American c. people of mixed race d. of Hispanic ancestry (Factual; answer: a; page 237) 215 54. According to Elliot Currie, factors that explain the high crime rate in the United States by world standards include: a. our cultural homogeneity. b. a lack of interest in punishing offenders. c. the high level of immigration. d. our emphasis on individual economic success, which weakens the social fabric. (Factual; answer: d; page 240) 55. The concept of due process refers to: a. the criminal justice system operating within the bounds of law. b. the idea that people get what they deserve. c. the process of plea bargaining. d. the obligation of all citizens to report crime. (Conceptual; answer: a; page 240) 56. Because there are several hundred people in the United States for every police officer, police: a. ignore most crimes they learn about. b. work, on average, many more hours than other workers. c. cannot take time to ensure due process for most suspects. d. use discretion in deciding which situations warrant their attention. (Factual; answer: d; page 240) 57. Most criminal cases handled by the criminal justice system in the United States are resolved: a. through plea bargaining. b. with a judge dismissing all charges. c. with convictions after a courtroom trial. d. with a suspect being convicted and sentenced to prison. (Factual; answer: a; pages 240-241) 58. The oldest justification for punishing an offender is: a. deterrence. b. retribution. c. social protection. d. rehabilitation. (Factual; answer: b; page 242) 216 59. If a parent threatens a child with punishment in order to discourage wrongdoing, the parent is using punishment to accomplish which of the following? a. deterrence b. retribution c. social protection d. rehabilitation (Applied; answer: a; page 242) 60. A judge sentences a young man who has committed several crimes to counseling and places him in a supportive foster home. Which of the following concepts describes these efforts to prevent further wrongdoing? a. retribution b. deterrence c. social protection d. rehabilitation (Applied; answer: d; pages 242-243) 61. The concept criminal recidivism refers to: a. young people growing up in a criminal environment. b. efforts by police to enlist help from people in a local community. c. later offenses by people previously convicted of crimes. d. the idea that crime does “pay.” (Conceptual; answer: c; pages 243-244) 62. Which of the following are advantages of community-based corrections? a. reducing prison overcrowding b. reducing costs of dealing with offenders c. avoiding the hardships of prison life, including the stigma attached to being incarcerated d. All of the above are correct. (Factual; answer: d; page 244) 63. A judge orders that an offender be sentenced to prison for a short time, with most of the sentence served on probation. This sentence reflects a policy called: a. parole. b. shock probation. c. rehabilitation. d. extended lockup. (Applied; answer: b; page 244) 217 TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS 64. Crime is only one type of deviance. (Conceptual; answer: T; page 220) 65. Caesare Lombroso, an Italian physician and criminologist, claimed that most criminals were people who had been mistreated by society. (Factual; answer: F; page 220) 66. Biological factors, including genetics, explain most criminal behavior. (Factual; answer: F; page 221) 67. Walter Reckless and Simon Dinitz developed containment theory, which claims that a strong superego helps boys stay out of trouble. (Conceptual; answer: T; pages 221-222) 68. What is considered deviant is mostly the same behavior all around the world. (Factual; answer: F; page 222) 69. Emile Durkheim’s analysis suggests it would be impossible for a society to completely eliminate deviance. (Conceptual; answer: T; pages 222-223) 70. Robert Merton claimed that the “strains of masculinity” are one important cause of crime. (Conceptual; answer: F; pages 222-223) 71. A poor person who has little chance to go to college and who sells illegal drugs to make money is one example of a deviant “innovator.” (Applied; answer: T; page 224) 72. Albert Cohen suggested that lower-class youths form delinquent subcultures to gain the self-respect society as a whole denies them. (Factual; answer: T; page 224) 73. Labeling theory stresses that some actions are always wrong and others are always right. (Conceptual; answer: F; pages 225-226) 218 74. “Primary deviance” refers to the most serious offenses. (Conceptual; answer: F; page 226) 75. The stigma of deviance can encourage an individual to engage in further deviance. (Factual; answer: T; pages 226-227) 76. Psychiatrist Thomas Szasz charges that the label of “insanity” is widely applied to behavior that is actually only “different.” (Factual; answer: T; page 227) 77. The medicalization of deviance idea points to the fact that most crimes are committed by people under the influence of an illegal drug. (Conceptual; answer: F; pages 227-228) 78. Travis Hirschi’s control theory makes the point that people who commit crime typically have little concern about the consequences of their behavior. (Conceptual; answer: T; pages 228-229) 79. According to the social-conflict approach, deviance has a number of functions for the operation of society as a whole. (Conceptual; answer: F; pages 229-230) 80. Corporate crime refers to stealing or other crimes committed against a corporation or other large business. (Conceptual; answer: F; page 231) 81. Organized crime refers to supplying legal goods and services at below market prices. (Applied; answer: T; page 231) 82. Today in the United States, women are arrested for serious street crime as often as men are. (Factual; answer: F; page 236) 219 83. In general, people of higher social class position are less likely to be arrested for street crimes than people of lower class position. (Factual; answer: T; page 236) 84. "Due process" means handling alleged offenders within the bounds of law. (Conceptual; answer: T; page 240) 85. Every person charged with a crime in the United States is sentenced after receiving a trial by jury. (Factual; answer: F; pages 240-241) 86. The old saying, “An eye for an eye,” expresses the essence of rehabilitation. (Conceptual; answer: F; pages 242-243) 87. In the United States, even as the crime rate has gone down in recent years, the number of people in prison has gone up. (Factual; answer: T; page 245) 88. The United States is the only western, high-income nation that routinely imposes the death penalty on convicted offenders. (Factual; answer: T; page 241, 244) 89. Probation and parole are two types of community-based corrections. (Conceptual; answer: T; pages 244, 246) 220 SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS 90. State four ways in which, according to Emile Durkheim, deviance is functional for society as a whole. (Factual; page 223) 91. Explain the difference between primary and secondary deviance. (Conceptual; pages 226-227) 92. What is the medicalization of deviance? (Conceptual; pages 227-228) 93. Define each of the following: white-collar crime, corporate crime, organized crime, and hate crime. (Conceptual; pages 230-233) 94. List the crimes against the person and crimes against property tracked by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Which type is more common? (Factual; pages 235-236) 95. Define due process, plea bargaining, and community-based corrections. (Conceptual; pages 240-246) 96. Identify four justifications for punishment. (Factual; pages 242-243) 97. What is criminal recidivism? (Conceptual; page 243) 221 ESSAY QUESTIONS/TOPICS FOR SHORT PAPERS 98. Explain the value and also the limitations of biological and psychological explanations of crime. Expand the essay by explaining the strengths of a sociological approach to understanding crime. (Conceptual) 99. Emile Durkheim made the surprising statement that crime is actually useful and perhaps even necessary for all social organization. Write an essay in which you explain Durkheim’s approach and point to a number of specific ways in which crime (or, more broadly, deviance) is functional for society as a whole. (Applied) 100. Describe the labeling theory of deviance. What basic insight about deviance is offered by this approach? How does labeling figure into the difference between primary deviance and secondary deviance? What is the importance of stigma in labeling analysis? (Conceptual) 101. Many researchers agree that, in the United States, most arrests for street crime involve people of lower class position. Why, according to Robert Merton, Albert Cohen, Walter Miller, and Elijah Anderson, would this be the case? How would a broader definition of crime (to include more white-collar and corporate offenses) change the profile of the typical criminal? (Applied) 102. The U.S. government provides a great deal of data about crime in the United States. Drawing on FBI data, what can we say about the “typical street criminal” in terms of age, gender, social class, and race and ethnicity? In each case, what can you say to explain the pattern? Finally, point to several reasons that we must treat criminal statistics with caution. (Factual) 103. Every society punishes offenders. Write an essay in which you explain four justifications for punishment. Point out how each has come to the fore at different times in history, and explain this pattern as best you can. What evidence is there that punishment actually accomplishes what we say it does? (Conceptual) 222 104. What is meant by "community-based corrections?" What are the advantages of this approach compared to sending convicted offenders to prison? What are some of the limitations of this approach? On balance, do you favor or oppose expanding communitybased corrections? Why? (Conceptual) 223 Name ________________________________ Quick Quiz: Chapter 9 Deviance Multiple Choice: 1. Both Albert Cohen and Walter Miller argue that deviance is most likely to arise among: a. high-income males. c. low-income youths. b. middle-class men and women. d. all class levels. 2. In legal terms, a crime is composed of which two components? a. the act and criminal intent c. the act and the social harm b. a criminal and a victim d. the law and the violation 3. Criminal statistics gathered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation reflect: a. all crimes that take place. c. offenses resulting in a criminal conviction. b. offenses cleared by arrest. d. offenses known to the police. 4. The likelihood a person will be arrested for a street crime rises sharply: a. during the late teenage years. c. during the middle thirties. b. in the late twenties. d. over age forty. 5. In terms of racial categories, most people arrested for a violent crime in the United States are _____. a. white c. people of mixed race b. African American d. of Hispanic ancestry 6. The oldest justification for punishing an offender is: a. deterrence. b. retribution. c. social protection. d. rehabilitation. 7. According to Elliot Currie, factors that explain the high crime rate in the United States by world standards include: a. our cultural homogeneity. c. the high level of immigration. b. a lack of interest in punishing offenders. d. our emphasis on individual economic success, which weakens the social fabric. True/False __________ 8. Biological factors, including genetics, explain most criminal behavior. __________ 9. The United States is the only western, high-income nation that routinely imposes the death penalty on convicted offenders. Short Answer 10. State four ways in which, according to Emile Durkheim, deviance is functional for society as a whole. 224 225 Name ________________________________ Quick Quiz: Chapter 9 Deviance Multiple Choice: 1. Both Albert Cohen and Walter Miller argue that deviance is most likely to arise among: a. high-income males. c. low-income youths. b. middle-class men and women. d. all class levels. 2. In legal terms, a crime is composed of which two components? a. the act and criminal intent c. the act and the social harm b. a criminal and a victim d. the law and the violation 3. Criminal statistics gathered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation reflect: a. all crimes that take place. c. offenses resulting in a criminal conviction. b. offenses cleared by arrest. d. offenses known to the police. 4. The likelihood a person will be arrested for a street crime rises sharply: a. during the late teenage years. c. during the middle thirties. b. in the late twenties. d. over age forty. 5. In terms of racial categories, most people arrested for a violent crime in the United States are _____. a. white c. people of mixed race b. African American d. of Hispanic ancestry 6. The oldest justification for punishing an offender is: a. deterrence. b. retribution. c. social protection. d. rehabilitation. 7. According to Elliot Currie, factors that explain the high crime rate in the United States by world standards include: a. our cultural homogeneity. c. the high level of immigration. b. a lack of interest in punishing offenders. d. our emphasis on individual economic success, which weakens the social fabric. True/False ___False___ 8. Biological factors, including genetics, explain most criminal behavior. ___True____ 9. The United States is the only western, high-income nation that routinely imposes the death penalty on convicted offenders. Short Answer 10. State four ways in which, according to Emile Durkheim, deviance is functional for society as a whole. 226