Final Opportunity Review: Study Guide – Megan Whalen (2007)
DEVIANCE
 Normative Behavior – behavior that is in-line with societal norms; norms vary across and within
societies
 Conforming Behavior – change in behavior due to real or imagined influence of other people
 Sherif’s ‘autokenetic’ effect – visual illusion in which a bright light stared at in a uniformily dark
environment, the light will appear to waver back and forth; experiment told a great deal about
conformity under ambiguous conditions
 Asch’s Experiment (naïve subjects v. confederates) – theory was that while people might
conform to group judgements under ambiguous conditions, they would not do so when the
answer was cut and dry; found inside that the group influenced individuals to conform to
incorrect answers; social influence is crucial to understanding why people conform
 Milgram’s replication of Asch’s Experiment – replicated Asch’s experiment in Norway and
France; found that the tendency to be influenced by others is not a universal human trait, but is
actually learned and varies by society
 Barriers to Independent Behavior –
o when people are faced with an ambiguous situation they are inclined to depend on
others for clues of what to do
o the effects of group consensus carry over to behavior outside the context of the group
o this process often occurs without us being conscious of it
 Demonic Possession as a theory of deviance – pre-mid nineteenth century explanation of
deviance; viewed sin as caused by temptation and demonic possession.
 Psychological Theories of Deviance – treats deviance as a result of personality factors,
particularly those arising from unsuccessful socialization
 Biological Theories of Deviance – first scientific attempts to explain deviance; theorist included
Lombroso and William Sheldon (thought there was a link between body type and criminality)
 Cesare Lombroso’s Theory of Deviance – believed that deviance had biological cause. Said that
‘criminals are evolutionary throwbacks’ or atavists. Bio indicators included low foreheads,
prominent cheekbones, protruding ears and lots of body hair.
 Mala Prohibita v. Mala en se (and why sociologists reject this distinction) –
o Mala Prohibita – acts that are bad because they are prohibited by norms or laws
o Mala en se – acts that are evil in and of themselves
o Sociologists reject this distinction because we can never truly understand the nature of
deviance if we believe that an act is evil in and of itself
o The essence of most sociological definitions of deviance is the idea that a deviant
act/behavior is simply one that violates a social norm
 Durkheim’s suicidogenic factors – (manifestations of structural strain which can lead to suicide;
structural explanation of deviance)
o Anomie – a state wherein society fails to exercise adequate regulation of the goals and
desires of individual members; when collective conscience isn’t powerful enough to
affect behavior of individuals, people don’t feel the constraint of social norms; linked to
rapid social change
 Collective Conscience – made up of the value, beliefs, norms and goals shared
by people in particular society
o Egoism – occurs when people are not well integrated into society; people lack ties to
social group; lack of ties to others means individuals have less to live for
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o Altruism – suicide committed for the good of the group; rates of altruistic suicide
increase when people are too attached to their social group
o Fatalism –
Robert Mertons Typology of responses to anomie –
o Believed that anomie was built into the structure of modern society
o Said that anomie occurs when the norms of society do not match its social structure;
every society has goals and means; modern society has a disjuncture between goals and
legitimate means, leading to anomie
o Conformity – individuals continue to accept goals and means of society even if
constraint keeps them from achieving success
o Innovation – accept and pursue goals of society, but do not have access to legitimate
means thus they devise new (deviant) ones; marked by an acceptance of goals, but a
rejection of legitimate means
o Ritualism – reject goals, but continue to pursue the means; following rules is more
important than reaching goals; invisible form of deviance
o Retreatism – reject both goals and legitimate means; societal ‘drop outs’
o Rebellion – reject both goals and means and substitute new ones; the substitution of
new goals and means makes this form of adaptation seem most threatening to society
Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin
o Differential access to illegitimate means – just as legitimate means to success are
unequally distributed in society, so are illegitimate means; legitimate opportunity
structures and illegitimate opportunity structures are both unequally distributed in
society
o Double Failures – those who fail to reach goals using both legitimate and illegitimate
means
Edwin Sutherlands Theory of Differential Association – located source of deviant behavior in
socialization or social learning; deviance influenced not by structural strain but by the people
with whom you associate
o Favorable v unfavorable attitudes to deviance – if you associate with those who look
favorably on deviance (Church of Satan) you will be more likely to commit deviant acts
than if you associate with groups that look unfavorably upon deviant behavior (4H);
hypothesized that a person becomes deviant because of an excess of definitions of the
situation favorable to violating norms over definitions unfavorable to violating norms
o Duration – refers to the amount of time we have known people who are giving us these
definitions
o Priority – refers to how early in life we are exposed to the definitions; exposure early in
life has greater impact than later exposure
o Intensity – measure of the strength of the relationship
Travis Hirschi’s Control Theory – assumes that people inherently want to deviate, either because
the rewards are high or because it seems fun; the more bonded one is to society the less likely
to deviate; Hirschi lists four bonds; the greater a person’s measure of these four bonds, the
greater the likelihood of conformity
o Commitment- reflects an individuals stake in conformity; what do they have to lose if
they get caught
o Attachment- refers to the emotional ties individuals have to others who symbolize
conforming society
o Involvement – refers to the amount of time individuals spend in conventional activities;
there isn’t time to deviate
o Beliefs – refers to belief in the moral validity of the rules
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Self-report v. official statistics on criminality – self reports via anonymous surveys indicate
higher levels of criminality than official reports (underage drinking, drug use, shoplifting)
Howard Becker’s Labeling/Societal Reaction Theory –
o Focus is not on the one who commits the deviant act but on the response of the
audience
 Response varies because in most cases it is not what you do, but who you are
(within the social structure)
o Labeling has powerful effects on individuals
Edwin Lemert, Primary v Secondary Deviance
o Primary Deviance – initial deviant act which leads to label
o Secondary Deviance – results “as a means of social defense…or adaptation to
the…problems created by the societal reaction to primary deviance
Edwin Shur, Role Engulfment – noted that “such negative social labels as drug addict,
homosexual, prostitute or juvenile delinquent ‘will dominate all other characteristics of the
individual” and that good aspects of the individual “are subordinated to or negated by this trait,
which is immediately felt to be more central to the ‘actual’ identity of the individual.
Erving Goffmano Stigma- “any attribute that discredits a person or disqualifies him or her from ‘full social
acceptance’”; can be ascribed or achieved
 Three types Abominations of the body – clearly visible physical marks
 Blemishes of individual character – mental disorders, dishonesty,
alcoholism, bankruptcy
 Tribal stigmas – being discredit because of membership in particular
social group
o Discreditable identity – person has hidden stigma and is vulnerable to being found out;
in danger of feeling the full force of the stigma
o Discredited Identity – when person’s stigma is visible and known; people with
discredited identities have a hard time being non-deviant because others see them as
such
Functions of Deviance –
o Positive –
 Deviance helps to clarify a society’s norms and moral boundaries; maintains
status quo
 Help unite society through common hatred of deviants
 Encourages social change; revolutions that shape nations are started by deviants
o Negative –
STRATIFICATION AND INEQUALITY
 Stratification – societal evaluation-ranking-reward system and its resulting sorting of individuals
into different social strata; hierarchical – upper stratas contain more power than lower strata
o While systems of stratification vary across societies, they have three things in common:
 System persists for a long time
 Systems are resistant to change
 System is bolstered by widely accepted legitimating rationales
 Legitimating rationale – widely accepted beliefs that something is fair and just; beliefs that
inequalities that exist in a particular society are essentially ‘right and reasonable’
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o Caste Systems – rank determined at birth (ascribed); caste membership determines
prestige, occupation and residence; restrictions around social interaction with persons of
different class; legitimating rationale lies in Hinduism – ones place is a result of their
actions in past life (karma)
o Estate System – place is also determined at birth; first estate was nobility and
aristocracy, second was clergy, third estate were peasants; legitimating rationale was that
God assigned people to the estate they deserved
o Class System – began with industrialization and urbanization; belief is that the best
people work their own way into higher strata; in theory, build on achieved
characteristics; legitimated by the idea that to opportunity to get ahead is available to all
Marx’s Conception of Class – viewed most important thing about any society is its economic
system, particular the means of production
o Bourgeoisie – the capitalist/owner stratum; own means of production and thus hold
power
o Proletariat – the worker stratum; sell labor to those who own means of production, hold
little to no power
Weber’s Conception of Class – thought that what was important was not where one was in
relation to means of production, but where one stood in the market situation; classes were
delineated by individuals ‘typical chance for supply of goods, external living conditions, and
personal life experience” and these chances are determined by power “to dispose of goods and
skills for the sake of income”; saw stratification as multidimensional and economics was only one
part of an individuals social position
o Life Style v Life Chances
Kuznet’s Curve – economist suggestion that the graphic relationship between the means of
production and the level of social stratification is a parabolic one; hunting/gathering societies
were very equal, inequality grew with horticultural/pastoral and agrarian societies, and drop
some with industrialization although it is still closer to very unequal than to very equal
Power v. Authority – power is the ability to impose one’s will even when faced with opposition
from others; authority is seen as legitimate power and thus as justified; the extent to which
people have power has a huge impact on their social position (Weber)
Status and Prestige – Weber said we must take into account the degree to which people have
social status; status has to do with prestige – the level of social honor an individual holds; most
research into this focuses on occupations
Socioeconomic Status (SES) – typically what is meant when sociologists use word class;
measures of SES take into account individual’s income, education level, occupational prestige
and wealth; help to provide empirical measure of individuals position in social strata
Chattel Slavery – most extreme form of slavery; slaves are treated as real property; US form
Manumission – formal process by which a slave was made free
Social Mobility –
o Horizontal – refers to movement within in a stratum (such as occupational change)
o Vertical – refers to movement up or down in the social stratum
 an open system of stratification allows a great deal of both horizontal and
vertical mobility; a closed system will have neither
o Intergenerational – refers to changes in positions in the stratification system by different
generations of family members
o Intragenerational – (career mobility) refers to the mobility that occurs within a persons
lifetime
 Should see both in open system of stratification
Open system –
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o Boundaries between strata are permeable
o Positions within the system are achieved
o Opportunity to change ranks exists
o Law permits exogamy, but informal norms promote endogamy
Closed System –
o Boundaries between strata are impermeable
o Positions within the system are ascribed
o No opportunity to change ranks exists
o Law requires endogamy
Exogamy – marriage outside of one’s social strata
Endogamy – marriage within one’s social strata
“A Dollar is not Always a Dollar” – some peoples dollars cost more and buy less; some of us pay
more for our education that others, thus the ultimate value of our degree is less; men make
more than women for the same work; white people get better financing on homes and cars than
people of color
Prejudice – an unjustified prejudgement; involves not only prejudgement but also misjudgement
Stereotypes – oversimplified, generalized images about members of a particular group; denies
existence of differences among members of a specific social category
Discrimination – while prejudice and stereotypes refer to beliefs and attitudes, discrimination
refers to behavior/actions.
Merton’s Typology of Prejudice and Discrimination –
o Bigot – person who is prejudice and does discriminate
o Timid Bigot – person is prejudice but will not discriminate unless it is convenient to do
so
o Fair-Weather Egalitarian – person is not prejudice but does discriminate when it is
convenient
o All-Weather Egalitarian – unprejudiced person who never discriminates
Allport’s Types of Discrimination –
o Verbal Rejection (antilocution) – using derogatory nouns to refer to people in particular
groups; telling jokes that put down entire groups of people
o Avoidance – avoiding interaction with people from particular groups
o Active discrimination – acting to exclude members of particular groups from education,
employment, housing, political or recreational activities
o Physical Attacks – using violence or the threat of violence against members of particular
groups or their property, such as burning churches or desecrating graves
o Extermination – participating in lynchings, massacres, genocide or pogroms
Individual Discrimination – occurs when an individual discriminates against another individual
or group of individuals
Institutional Discrimination – a denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and
groups that results from the normal operation of society; can occur even when people have ‘no
intention of subordinating others…or are totally unaware of doing so”
Louis Wirth – minority group – “We may define a minority as a group of people who, because
of their physical or cultural characteristics, are singled out from the others in the society…for
differential and unequal treatment and who therefore regard themselves as objects of collective
discrimination…Minority status carries with it the exclusion from full participation in the life of
the society”
Isms (distinguished from other types of discrimination) – the suffix ism is generally applied to
acts of discrimination that occur at the institutional level or when they occur at the individual
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level, are consistent with institutional patterns of discrimination; from the sociological
perspective, the ism is used to signal the differences in potency of different types of
discrimination; discriminatory acts are ‘isms’ when their source is a member of a minority group
in society
Pyramiding effect of discrimination – (Feagin) refers to the cumulative impact of encounters
with racist behavior
Race as a social construct – race is a socially constructed attribute that is tied to beliefs about
differences in the physical makeup of different individuals
Ethnicity – has to do with shared cultural heritage; “Immigrant communities were not
communities when they came; their ethnic identities were, to a surprising extent, constructed in
America” (Lurie)
Gender as a social construct – if differences between men and women were biologically
determined, then they would be the same across cultures, but are not; while most societies
divide their population into two groups – male and female – different societies view this
division differently; gender is the result of socialization
Margaret Meads studies of three New Guinea societies –
o Studied differences between men and women among the Arapesh, the Mundugumor,
and the Tchambuli
o Studied the degree to which differences in male and female temperaments…were a result
of socialization rather than physical or biological factors
o Found that many of the differences between men and women that people conventionally
assume are related to biological factors turn out to be products of socialization
Barbara Flagg (Transparency Phenomenon)- members of dominant groups do not notice the
race, class, gender or sexuality of other members of that dominant group; as such, members of
dominant groups are viewed as individuals; members of minority groups are noticed for their
non-dominant race, class, gender and sexuality and are not viewed as individuals
Meritocracy – idea that people’s success in life depends primarily on their merit – their talents,
abilities, and efforts; used as an ideology to excuse social inequalities