Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance?
Deviance
 Deviance - behaviour that differs from the social norms of
the group and is judged wrong by other members of that
group.
 Are gangs deviant?
Deviance
 The perception of deviance ranges and includes all
behaviour from opposing social norms to committing
serious crimes (e.g. Rude table manners to mass murder)
 Therefore, deviance is harmful behaviour that goes
beyond the bounds of acceptance in society
 Deviance also reflects the culture and times (e.g. Viewing
a woman’s leg below her dress was unacceptable during
the Victorian era etc)
 Read spanking and smoking examples
Deviant vs. Non-Conformist?
 People that frequently break
important norms are called
deviants.
 Deviance is NOT the same as nonconformity.
 Non-conformity is behaviour that
varies from the social norms or
expectations of larger society but is
not judged as wrong (e.g. Males
wearing skirts or the Amish refusing
to incorporate advanced
technologies).
Deviant Behaviour Perspectives
 Biological Perspective
 Today, some argue that
deviance may be based
on brain functions or
genetics.
Deviant Behaviour Perspectives
 Psychological Perspectives
 Many criminals cannot control their aggression.
 Perhaps as children, criminals were rewarded for
deviant behaviour or it was excused.
Deviant Behaviour Perspectives
 Sociological Perspective
 Structural Functionalists: deviance occurs when behaviours
reject cultural goals and accepted means of achieving
them  departure from cultural ideals. Deviance can be a
positive social function by clarifying moral boundaries and
promoting social cohesion.
 Conflict: society’s inequalities are reproduced in its
definitions of deviance, so the less powerful are more likely
criminalized.
 Symbolic Interactionism: focus on how interpersonal
relations and everyday interactions shape definitions of
deviance and influence those engaged in deviant behaviour.
Deviant Behaviour Theories
 Differential Association Theory (Sutherland)
 People learn all behaviour the same way (including
deviant behaviour) – from family, friends, co-workers,
etc.
 bad companions = bad behaviour
Deviant Behaviour Theories
 Control Theory (Hirshi)
 Social bonds that connect people help to keep us
from committing deviance.
 Deviant behaviour comes in the absence of social
control or if the rewards are more certain than the
punishment.
 A person’s self-control and conscience are predictors
of behaviour.
Deviant Behaviour Theories
 Labelling Theory (Becker)
 Automatically being labelled or being defined in a
particular way.
 Calling someone a ‘criminal’ or ‘immoral’ may
encourage others to treat that person as such,
regardless of whether or not the label is true.
 Becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, making something
happen because it was expected.
Deviant Behaviour Theories
 Labelling cont’d
 Becker suggests that in one sense there is no such thing as a deviant act. An act only becomes
deviant when others perceive it to be deviant.
 He uses nudity as an example. Nudity is not seen as deviant in bedroom where man and wife sleep.
However, if another person enters it is. However, in certain situations such on a naturist holiday or
nude beach, nudity would not be considered deviant. A male spectator who streaked might be seen
as a ‘joker’, but if he exposed himself to the crowd he would be seen as a ‘pervert’. Thus there is
nothing intrinsically normal or deviant about the act of nudity. It only becomes deviant when
others label it as such. Whether or not the label is applied will depend upon how the act is
interpreted by the audience. This in turn will depend on who commits the act, and when and where
it was committed. Becker illustrates his views with the example of a brawl involving young people. In
a low-income neighbourhood, it may be defined by the police evidence of delinquency; in a wealthy
area as evidence of high spirits. The acts are the same, but the meanings given to them by the
audience differ. In the same way, those who commit the acts may view it in one way, but those who
observe it may see it differently. In a low-income area it may be seen as defending their territory,
but may be seen as deviant by power groups. Those who have the power to make the label stick
have thus labelled them.
 Thus deviance is not a quality that lies in behaviour itself, but in the interaction between the person
who commits an act and those who respond to it.
“Positive” Deviance
 Positive deviance refers to actions considered
deviant within a given context, but which are later
reinterpreted as appropriate or even heroic.