 What is Deviance?
Social Control- systematic practices developed by social groups to encourage conformity
and to discourage deviance. Two forms: Socialization, whereby individuals internalize
societal norms and values; and use of negative sanctions to punish rule breakers and nonconforming acts.
Deviance- any behaviour, belief, or condition that violates cultural norms in the society
or group in which it occurs
Transitions of folkways- relatively minor (not returning a library book)
Infringements of mores- more serious infractions (falsifying a university application)
Crime- is an act that violates criminal law and is punishable with fines, jail terms, and
other sanctions (minor and major offences)
Juvenile delinquency- a violation of law by young people under the age of 18
 Functionalist Perspectives on Crime and Deviance
-Deviance should be limited in a smoothly functioning society because most people share
common cultural goals and agree upon the appropriate means for reaching them
-Strain Theory
-Deviance may be more common in places that do not provide sufficient means to
achieve goals and aspirations because people may be willing to use whatever means they
can to achieve their goals
-People feel strain when they are exposed to cultural goals that they are unable to
obtain because they do not have access to culturally approved means of achieving those
goals (Approved means may be education and jobs). May seek access through deviant
ways
-Opportunity theory
-For deviance to occur people must have access to “Illegitimate opportunity
structures”—circumstances that provide an opportunity for people to acquire through
illegitimate activates what they cannot get through legitimate channels
-Some areas have greater access to illegitimate means of achieving goals
-Three forms of delinquent subcultures—criminal (focuses on economic gain and
includes acts such as theft, extortion, and drug dealing), conflict (illegitimate economic
opportunities are not available, have to fight and be tough), and retreatist (those who lack
opportunity or ability to join one of these gangs resort to drinking and drug use)—emerge
based on the type of illegitimate opportunities available in a specific area.
-Control Theory
-Social bonds are important to understanding deviant behaviour
-Instead of asking “Why do people do it?” Control theorists ask, “Why don’t we
all do it?” Many people do not turn to deviant behaviour because they are insulated by
“outer contaminants,” such as a supportive family and friends, reasonable social
expectations, and supervision by others, and “inner contaminants,” such as self control, a
sense of responsibility, and resistance to unlawful diversions.
-Social bond theory holds that the probability of deviant behaviour increases
when a person’s ties to society are weakened or broken
-Social bonding consists of 1) attachment to other people, 2) commitment to rules
and regulations conventional lines of behaviour (schooling, job success); 3) involvement
in conventional activities; and 4) belief in the legitimacy of conventional values and
norms.
 Symbolic Interationist Perspectives on Crime and Deviance
-Focus on how people develop a self-concept and learn conforming behaviour through
the process of socialization. Deviance is learned in the same way as conformity—through
interaction with others.
-Differential Association Theory
-Differential association theory states that individuals have a greater tendency to
deviate from societal norms when they frequently associate with persons who fvor
deviance over conformity
-most likely to result in deviant activity when a person has frequent, intense, and
long-lasting interaction with people who violate the rules
-Labelling Theory
-Two elements are involved in defining deviance: 1) Some people act in a
manner contrary to the expectations of other. 2) Others disapprove of and try to control
this contrary behviour
-Part of the social control process involves labeling people as deviants.
-Labelling theory suggests that deviants are those people who have been
successfully labeled as such by others
-Primary deviance- the initial act of rule breaking
-Secondary deviance- occurs when a person who has been labeled deviant accepts
the new identity and continues the deviant behaviour
-Ex. the study of the effects of two different ways of treating blind people
-Primary Deviance> Labelling causes stigmatization>Deviant self
image>Secondary deviance
-Moral entrepreneurs- people or groups who take an active role in trying to have
particular behaviours defined as deviant
-Moral crusades- public and media awareness campaigns that help generate
public and political support for their causes
Ex. Mothers against drunk driving, campaigns against abortions
 Conflict Perspectives on Crime and Deviance
-Lifestyles considered deviant by political and economic elites often are defined as illegal
-The marginalized commit crime in order to survive, not to become rich
-frequently, in the struggle for survival, marginalized persons victimize other
marginalized persons
-law protects the interest of the affluent and the powerful and not, as it is claimed,
the “common good”
The Feminist Perspective
-To examine the relationship between gender, deviance, and crime
-Liberal Feminism- Women’s deviance and crime as a rational response to
oppression and discrimination
-Radical Feminism- Patriarchy keeps women tied to family and home.
Ex. Prostitution, women are more likely to be charged then the ‘john’
-Socialist Feminism- Authors content that women are exploited by capitalism and
patriarchy. Because women, more than men, have low paying jobs, they may become
involved in prostitution and shoplifting
Postmodern Perspectives
-Knowledge as Power
-Prisons control the inmates not by physical punishment but by constant surveillance
-The Panoptican: a structure that gives prison officials the possibility of complete
observation of criminals at all times
 Crime Classification and Statistics
-How the Law classifies crime:
1) Indictable Offences- Includes serious crimes
2) Summary Conviction Offences- Relatively minor offences
-How Sociologists classify crime:
-Sociologists categorize crimes based on how they are committed and how society
views the offences
1) Street Crime: Includes all violent crime, certain property crimes, and certain morals
crimes (Robbery, assault, and break and enter).
2) Occupational/White Collar & Corporate Crime: White Collar crime consists of
illegal activities committed by people in the course of their employment or in dealing
with their financial affairs (employee theft, bribes, embezzling). Corporate Crimes are
illegal acts committed by corporate employees on behalf of the corporation and with its
support (false advertising, copyrights, price fixing).
3) Organized Crime: A business operation that supplies illegal goods and services for
profit (drug trafficking, prostitution, liquor & cigarette smuggling, loan sharking).
4) Political Crime: Refers to illegal or unethical acts perpetrated against the government
by outsiders seeking to make a political statement, undermine the government, or
overthrow it (graft [taking advantage of his-her position to gain money or property],
“insider” deals)
 Crime Statistics
-It is hard to get accurate statistics about crime, considering most people who commit
crimes try to conceal them
-Two main sources of information on Crime Statistics are police statistics and
victimization surveys
-The most important source of official statistics is the Canadian Uniform Crime Reports
(CUCR) system. It summarizes crimes reported to all Canadian police departments.
-Crime figured should be interpreted very cautiously
-Police statistics always underreport the actual amount of crime
-Spike in crime in the 80’s and 90’s may be due to more frequent reporting of such crime
as violence against women (not as commonly reported in the 60’s and 70’s)
-Introduction of zero-tolerance policies increase the reporting and recording, not
necessarily an increase in family violence
 Street Crimes and Criminals
Who is more likely to commit street crime?
Age:
-Arrests increase from early adolescence, peak in young adulthood, and steadily decline
with age
-This pattern reveals that crime is a young person’s game
Why? Adulthood is a time of expected conformity
Gender:
-Most crime is committed by males
-Make up over 80% of those charged
-More involved in violent crime or major offences
-In areas where men are dominant, women are less likely to commit crime; however,
where there is more equality between men and women, crime rate are higher
Social Class:
-Lower Class are overrepresented in arrest and prison admission
-Are they more likely to be targeted?
-Suicide, alcoholism, mental illness, and drug addiction are more common in lower
classes
-White Collar crime is more common among the middle and upper classes
Race and Ethnicity:
-Why are Aboriginals overrepresented in prison after committing crime?
-More likely to be discriminated against that other visible minorities
-Have less power and fewer resources
-Less likely to have strong social bonds
-US Statistics: African Americans and Hispanic people are more likely to commit street
crime that others
 Criminal Justice System
-Includes the police, the courts, and the prisons (not unified)
The Police:
-They are the concrete extension of the State to provide for social order
-Maintain peace in the community
-How are all the functions tied together?
-Authority
-Non-negotiable force
-Discretion
The Courts:
-The decide the guilt or innocence of those accused of committing a crime
-Punishment- any action designed to deprive a person of things of value (including
liberty) because of some offense the person is thought to have committed
-Functions of Prison: Retribution (Imposes a penalty on the offender), Social Protection
(He or she cannot commit crime anymore), Rehabilitation (Return offenders to the
community as law abiding citizens), Deterrence (Reduce criminal activity by instilling a
fear of punishment)
Restorative Justice: to seek to return the focus of the justice system to repairing the
harm that has been done to the victim and the community
-To reconcile offenders with those they have harmed
-“Circle Sentencing” Used in aboriginal communities, bringing the offender, the
victim and the community together
-“Family Group Conferencing” for young people linked to the victim and the
family members
-Community Corrections- responsibility for correction back to the community and
minimizes the separation of the offender from society
 Deviance and Crime in the Future
The present system cannot solve that problem of crime
Need more structural solutions like:
-Better educational solutions
-Affordable housing
-More equality
-Less discrimination
-Socially productive activities