Explaining Deviance
DEVIANCE…What is it?
• Deviance is behavior that violates significant social
norms.
• To be considered deviant by society:
1. A person’s deviant behavior has to be known to
other people.
2. Individual must be stigmatized
• Stigma – mark of social disgrace that sets
deviant apart from rest of society
Emile Durkheim…
• Observed that deviance can be useful for society
• Deviance has several functions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Clarifying Norms
Unify the group
Diffuse Tension
Promote social change
Provide jobs
Functions of Deviance
Pg. 177-79
Draw a scene for each function that demonstrates
how committing a deviant act performs a certain
function. Include a caption explaining the function.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Clarifying Norms
Unify the group
Diffuse Tension
Promote social change
Provide jobs
1. Clarifying Norms – deviance serves to define
boundaries of acceptable behavior.
– When rules are broken, people are reminded
of norms that guide social life
2. Unify the group – draws line between conforming
members of society and “outsiders”
– “us against them” attitude reinforces sense of
community & belief in shared values
3. Diffuse Tension – when people are unhappy with their
lives, they may want to strike out at society
– Small deviant acts allow individuals to relieve
tension without harming society.
4. Promote social change – deviance can help prompt
social change by identifying problem areas.
– When a lot of people violate a certain norm,
it usually means that something in society
needs to change
5. Provide jobs – provides legitimate jobs for wide
range of people.
– Judges, lawyers, police, prison guards,
parole officers…all are jobs related to one
aspect of deviance (crime)
Separate Sheet
of Paper!
Work Independently!
Justify your deviance!
• Think of a deviant act that you could have
hypothetically committed.
• Imagine you have just been caught by a
parent/guardian or teacher/administrator and you
are told to “explain yourself.”
• Write out your justification for committing this
deviant act. Incorporate at least 2 of Durkheim’s
functions of deviance in your explanation.
FOLDABLE – to be turned in TODAY
Theoretical Perspectives on Deviance
Pgs. 180-185
Functionalism
Conflict
Interactionism
EXPLAIN how this
perspective views
deviance
•Explanation of deviance
•Explanation/view
of deviance
•3 deviant acts
LIST 3 deviant acts with
the perspective’s
justification of that act
•Main theory or theories
•3 deviants acts
•Vocabulary
•Vocabulary
•Main theory or
theories
DEFINE Key
Terms/Vocabulary
IDENTIFY the main
theory or theories
Perspectives on deviance
• Functionalism: deviance is a natural part of society. It’s
a result of society’s structure, values, and norms.
• Conflict: Competition & social inequality lead to
deviance.
– Ruling class vs. lower classes
– Both groups commit deviant acts
– http://prezi.com/ubhhrado3yeg/identity-ideas-matter-contest-of-prezi-and-ted-designed-andcreated-by-hedwyg-van-groenendaal-of-prezi-university-wwwpreziuniversitycom/
• Interactionism: focuses on how interaction with others
influences an individual’s likelihood of being deviant or
conforming.
Strain Theory
• Developed by Robert Merton
• “Deviance is the natural outgrowth of the values, norms,
and structure of society.” WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?
• Everyone responds to the stresses (strains) of society’s
expectations in different ways.
– Out of 5 responses, four are deviant.
• Anomie: situation where societal norms are unclear or no
longer applicable
• Example: We value economic success, but not everyone has
legitimate means to achieve that goal. Such an individual
experiences anomie. Tries to achieve economic success
through deviance (crime, cheating)
Merton’s Strain Theory
Strain Theory Comic Strip
• Illustrate an example of each mode of adaptation (5 total),
in which you accurately portray someone’s response to
society’s expectations. Include a caption or dialogue that
provides an explanation.
Conformity:
Juan feels pressured to be
successful. It’s what his family
expects. So, he decides to
complete high school and go to
college.
(ACCEPTS cultural goals and
norms)
Innovation:
Bill Gates wanted to be successful
professionally, but he didn’t take
the normal route. Instead, he
dropped out of college and
dedicated himself to inventing and
building his company. (ACCEPT
cultural goals but REJECTS norms)
Conflict Theory
Competition and social inequality lead to deviance
•People with power commit deviant acts to maintain their
position.
•Those without power commit deviant acts to:
1. Obtain economic rewards.
2. Because they feel powerless.
•Lower classes commit acts defined as deviant due to limited
opportunities
•Ruling classes label threatening behavior as deviant
•Deviance perceived to be lower class problem; targeted by
law enforcement and prosecuted more often.
Deviance Gallery Walk
At each station:
1.Use Strain Theory to analyze the situation. Which response
(mode of adaptation) does the individual exhibit? Why/How
do you know?
2.Use Conflict Theory to explain why the individual or
individuals are committing a deviant act.
Write in complete sentences. Turn in on a separate sheet of
paper.
interactionism
Labeling Theory–focuses on how individuals come to be
identified as deviant. Everyone commits deviant acts, but
not everyone is labeled as deviant. There’s 2 types of
deviance:
•Primary Deviance–nonconformity that goes undetected
by those in authority. Society & individuals don’t consider
themselves to be deviant
•Secondary Deviance –individual is labeled as deviant &
accepts the label as true.
– With a degradation ceremony: individual denounced
in a public setting and given new identity as deviant
Labelling theory explained
Action
No
witness
No label
Action
witnessed
Person
labelled
Person rejected
Person rejects society
Labeling an individual as deviant may lead to a self-fulfilling
prophecy:
“In the beginning, a false definition of the situation evoking a new
behavior which makes the original false conception come 'true'.”
(Merton)
-a false definition, when believed to be true, may influence
people so that their reactions fulfill the once false prophecy
Spiral of Deviance
• You’ve been given a series of events that, if organized
properly, demonstrate labeling theory in action.
– There are potentially several correct combinations
• Use construction paper (and other materials) to create a
timeline, diagram, comic book, and put the events in the
proper order.
• Replace the generic behavior with a specific behavior that
is eventually labeled as deviant.
-Ex: “Teens meet up at parks after school” instead of “People
act in a certain way.”
• Illustrate the series of events. Spice it up!
interactionism
Cultural Transmission Theory – deviance is a learned
behavior (as is non-deviant behavior). Learned through
interaction with others.
•Interaction with people engaged in deviant acts means
that deviant norms/values are transmitted and individuals
are socialized into deviant behavior.
•Everyone is a conformist. (Conform to those around you)
•Differential association: frequency and closeness of
associations a person has with deviant/nondeviant
individuals influences one’s conformity/deviance
•Techniques of Neutralization: suspend moral beliefs to
commit deviant acts