A. All societies have norms that govern acceptable behavior and mechanisms of social control
control -- systematic practices developed by social groups to encourage conformity and to
discourage deviance.
<s> B. Deviance is relative and it varies in its degree of seriousness:
some forms of deviant behavior are officially defined as a crime --
a behavior that violates criminal law and is punishable with fines, jail terms,
and other sanctions.
<np>STOP: Explain the nature of deviance and describe its most common forms.
<np>II. FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE
A. Emile Durkheim regarded deviance as a natural and inevitable part of all societies.
<s> B. Deviance is universal because it serves three important functions:
<s> 1. Deviance clarifies rules.
<s> 2. Deviance unites a group.
<s> 3. Deviance promotes social change.
<s> C. Functionalists acknowledge that deviance also may be dysfunctional for society; if too many people
violate the norms, everyday existence may become unpredictable, chaotic, and even violent.
<s> D. According to strain theory, 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. Robert Merton identified five ways in which people adapt to cultural goals and approved ways
of achieving them:
<s> 1. Conformity.
<s> 2. Innovation.
<s> 3. Ritualism.
<s> 4. Retreatism.
<s> 5. Rebellion.
<s> E. According to Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin, for deviance to occur people must have access to
illegitimate opportunity structures -- circumstances that provide an opportunity for people to acquire
through illegitimate activities what they cannot achieve through legitimate channels.
<s> F. Social bond theory holds that the probability of deviant behavior increases when a person's ties to
society are weakened or broken.
<np>III. INTERACTIONIST PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE
A. Differential association theory states that individuals have a greater tendency to deviate
from societal norms when they frequently associate with persons who are more favorable
toward deviance than conformity.
<s> B. Labeling theory states that deviants are those people who have been successfully labeled as such by others.
<s> 1. Primary deviance is the initial act of rule-breaking.
<s> 2. Secondary deviance occurs when a person who has been labeled a deviant accepts that new
identity and continues the deviant behavior.
<np>IV. CONFLICT PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE
A. According to conflict theorists, people in positions of power maintain their advantage by using
the law to protect their own interests.
<s> B. According to the critical approach, the way laws are made and enforced benefits the capitalist class by
ensuring that individuals at the bottom of the social class structure do not infringe on the property or
threaten the safety of those at the top.
<s> C. While there is no single feminist perspective on deviance and crime, three schools of thought have emerged:
<s> 1. Liberal feminism is based on the assumption that women's deviance and crime is a rational response
to gender discrimination experienced in work, marriage, and interpersonal relationships.
<s> 2. Radical feminism is based on the assumption that women's deviance and crime is related to patriarchy
(male domination over females) that keeps women more tied to family, sexuality, and home, even if
women also have full-time paid employment.
<s> 3. Socialist feminism is based on the assumption that women's deviance and crime is the result of
women's exploitation by capitalism and patriarchy (e.g., their overrepresentation in relatively
low-wage jobs and their lack of economic resources).
<s> 4. Feminist scholars of color have pointed out that these schools of feminist thought do not include
race and ethnicity in their analyses. As a result, some recent studies have focused on the
simultaneous effects of race, class, and gender on the deviant behavior by some women of color.
<np>STOP: Discuss conflict perspectives on deviance and note the strengths and weaknesses of critical and feminist approaches to deviance and crime.
<np>V. POSTMODERNIST PERSPECTIVES ON DEVIANCE
A. Michel Foucault's book, Discipline and Punish, provides a postmodernist approach.
<s> B. Postmodernism explains the intertwining nature of power, knowledge, and social control.
<np>VI. CRIME CLASSIFICATIONS AND STATISTICS
A. Crimes are divided into felonies and misdemeanors based on the seriousness of the crime.
<s> B. Sociologists categorize crimes based on how they are committed and how society views the offenses.
<s> 1. Conventional or street crime is all violent crime, certain property crimes, and certain morals crimes.
<s> 2. Occupational or white-collar crime is illegal activities committed by people in the course of their
employment or financial affairs.
<s> 3. Corporate crime is an illegal act committed by corporate employees on behalf of the corporation
and with its support.
<s> 4. Organized crime is a business operation that supplies illegal goods and services for profit.
<s> 5. Political crime refers to illegal or unethical acts involving the usurpation of power by government
officials, or illegal/unethical acts perpetrated against the government by outsiders seeking to make a
political statement, undermine the government, or overthrow it.
<s> C. Official crime statistics, such as those found in the Uniform Crime Report, provide important information
on crime; however, the data reflect only those crimes that have been reported to the police.
<s> 1. The National Crime Victimization Survey and anonymous self-reports of criminal behavior have
made researchers aware that the incidence of some crimes, such as theft, is substantially higher
than reported in the UCR.
<s> 2. Crime statistics do not reflect many crimes committed by persons of upper socioeconomic status
in the course of business because they are handled by administrative or quasi-judicial bodies.
<w> You can find the Uniform Crime Report at http://www.fbi.gov/ Also see the Bureau of Justice Statistics, a division in the federal government that complies information on subjects pertinent to the study of crime and deviance at http://www.olp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
<url>http://www.fbi.gov/
<np> D. Street Crimes and Criminals
1. Gender and Crime
<s> a. The three most common arrest categories for both men and women are driving under the
influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI), larceny, and minor or criminal mischief types of offenses.
<s> b. Liquor law violations (such as underage drinking), simple assault, and disorderly conduct are
middle range offenses for both men and women, and the rate of arrests for murder, arson, and
embezzlement are relatively low for both men and women.
<s> c. There is a proportionately greater involvement of men in major property crimes and violent crime.
<s> 2. Age and Crime
a. Arrest rates for index crimes are highest for people between the ages of 13 and 25, with the
peak being between ages 16 and 17.
<s> b. Rates of arrest remain higher for males than females at every age and for nearly all offenses.
<s> 3. Social Class and Crime
a. Individuals from all social classes commit crimes; they simply commit different kinds of crime.
<s> b. Persons from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to be arrested for violent
and property crimes; only a very small proportion of individuals who commit white-collar
or elite crimes will ever be arrested or convicted.
<np> 4. Race and Crime
a. In 1996, whites (including Latinos/as) accounted for about 62 percent of all arrests for index
crimes; arrest rates for whites were higher in non-violent property crimes such
as fraud and larceny-theft, but were lower than the rates for African Americans in violent crimes
such as robbery and murder.
<s> b. In 1996, whites constituted about 65 percent of all arrests for property crimes and almost 54
percent of arrests for violent crimes; African Americans accounted for over 43 percent of arrests
for violent crimes and 32 percent of arrests for property crimes.
<s> c. Arrest records tend to produce over generalizations about who commits crime because arrest statistics
are not an accurate reflection of the crimes actually committed in our society.
<vp>VIDEO: Hate Crimes are a growing issue in the United States today.
<v>V12
<s> 5. Crime Victims
a. Men are more likely to victimized by crime although women tend to be more fearful of crime,
particularly crimes directed toward them, such as forcible rape.
<s> b. The elderly also tend to be more fearful of crime, but are the least likely to be victimized.
Young men of color between the ages of 12 and 24 have the highest criminal victimization rates.
<s> c. The burden of robbery victimization falls more heavily on males than females, African Americans
more than whites, and young people more than middle-aged and older persons.
<np>VII. CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
A. The criminal justice system includes the police, the courts, and prisons. This system is a collection
of bureaucracies that possesses considerable discretion -- the use of personal judgment regarding
whether to take action on a situation and, if so, what kind of action to take.
<s> B. The police are responsible for crime control and maintenance of order.
<s> C. The courts determine the guilt or innocence of those accused of committing a crime.
<s> D. Punishment is any action designed to deprive a person of things of value (including liberty) because of
something the person is thought to have done.
<s> 1. Disparate treatment of the poor, people of color, and women is evident in the prison system.
<s> 2. The medicalization of deviance is the transformation of deviance into a medical problem that
requires treatment by a physician.
<s> E. For many years, capital punishment, or the death penalty, has been used in the United States; about
4,000 executions have occurred in the U.S. since 1930, and scholars have documented race and class biases
in the imposition of the death penalty in this country.
<np>STOP: Describe the criminal justice system and explain how police, courts, and prisons have considerable discretion in dealing with offenders.
<np>VIII. DEVIANCE AND CRIME IN THE FUTURE
A. Although many people in the United States agree that crime is one of the most important problems
facing this country, they are divided over what to do about it.
<s> B. The best approach for reducing delinquency and crime ultimately is prevention: to work with young
people before they become juvenile offenders so as to help them establish family relationships,
build self-esteem, choose a career, and get an education which will help them pursue that career.
<s> C. As long as racism, sexism, classism, and ageism exist in our society, people will see deviant and criminal
behavior through a selective lens.
<end>
<nq>20
<ques>The systematic practices developed by social groups to encourage conformity and to discourage deviance are known as:
<c1>laws.
<c2>folkways.
<c3>mores.
<c4>social control.
<ans>d<expl>Social control refers to systematic practices developed by social groups to encourage conformity and to discourage deviance. (p. 160)
<ques>The text defines deviance as any:
<c1>aberrant behavior.
<c2>behavior, belief, or condition that violates cultural norms.
<c3>serious violation of consistent moral codes.
<c4>perverted act.
<ans>b<expl>The text defines deviance as any behavior, belief, or condition that violates cultural norms. (p. 160)
<ques>According to functionalists such as Emile Durkheim, deviance serves all of the following functions, except:
<c1>deviance helps us to identify social dynamite and social junk in a society.
<c2>deviance clarifies rules.
<c3>deviance promotes social change.
<c4>deviance unites a group.
<ans>a<expl>According to functionalists such as Emile Durkheim, deviance serves all of the following functions, except: deviance helps us to identify social dynamite and social junk in a society. (pp. 162-163)
<ques>According to _____ theory, people are frustrated 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.
<c1>containment
<c2>status inaccessibility
<c3>strain
<c4>conflict
<ans>c<expl>According to strain theory, people are frustrated 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. (p. 163)
<ques>All of the following are included in Robert Merton's modes of adaptation to cultural goals and approved ways of achieving them, except:
<c1>retribution.
<c2>ritualism.
<c3>retreatism.
<c4>rebellion.
<ans>a<expl>All of the following are included in Robert Merton's modes of adaptation to cultural goals and approved ways of achieving them, except retribution. (p. 163)
<ques>Based on Robert Merton's typology, a government service employee who adheres to the established rules so completely that she or he often loses sight of the agency's purpose is engaged in:
<c1>retribution.
<c2>ritualism.
<c3>retreatism.
<c4>rebellion.
<ans>b<expl>Based on Robert Merton's typology, a government service employee who adheres to the established rules so completely that she or he often loses sight of the agency's purpose is engaged in ritualism. (p. 163)
<ques>According to _____ theory, a teenager living in a poverty-ridden area of a central city is unlikely to become wealthy through a Harvard education, but some of his desires may be met through behaviors such as theft, drug dealing, and robbery.
<c1>deviance management
<c2>control
<c3>illegitimate opportunity structures
<c4>critical
<ans>c<expl>According to illegitimate opportunity structures theory, a teenager living in a poverty-ridden area of a central city is unlikely to become wealthy through a Harvard education, but some of his desires may be met through behaviors such as theft, drug dealing, and robbery. (pp. 163-165)
<ques>_____ theories suggest that the probability of delinquency increases when a person's social bonds are weak and when peers promote antisocial values and violent behavior.
<c1>Deviance management
<c2>Control
<c3>Illegitimate opportunity structures
<c4>Critical
<ans>b<expl>Control theories suggest that the probability of delinquency increases when a person's social bonds are weak and when peers promote antisocial values and violent behavior. (p. 167)
<ques>According to Edwin Lemert's typology, _____ deviance is exemplified by a person under the legal drinking age who orders an alcoholic beverage at a local bar but is not "caught" and labeled a deviant.
<c1>primary
<c2>secondary
<c3>residual
<c4>adolescent
<ans>a<expl>According to Edwin Lemert's typology, primary deviance is exemplified by a person under the legal drinking age who orders an alcoholic beverage at a local bar but is not "caught" and labeled a deviant. (p. 170)
<ques>The _____ approach argues that criminal law protects the interests of the affluent and powerful.
<c1>functionalist
<c2>liberal feminist
<c3>interactionist
<c4>critical
<ans>d<expl>The critical approach argues that criminal law protects the interests of the affluent and powerful. (pp. 170-171)
<ques>_____ feminism explains women's deviance and crime as a rational response to gender discrimination experienced in work, marriage, and interpersonal relationships.
<c1>Radical
<c2>Communist
<c3>Liberal
<c4>Socialist
<ans>c<expl>Liberal feminism explains women's deviance and crime as a rational response to gender discrimination experienced in work, marriage, and interpersonal relationships. (p. 172)
<ques>Socialist feminists argue that women's deviance and crime occurs because:
<c1>women are exploited by other women.
<c2>women are exploited by capitalism and patriarchy.
<c3>women experience gender discrimination in work, marriage, and interpersonal relationships.
<c4>women are consumers and tend to purchase more than they can afford.
<ans>b<expl>Socialist feminists argue that women's deviance and crime occurs because women are exploited by capitalism and patriarchy. (p. 172)
<ques>A _____ is a serious crime for which punishment typically ranges from more than a year's imprisonment to death.
<c1>misdemeanor
<c2>property crime
<c3>felony
<c4>morals crime
<ans>c<expl>A felony is a serious crime for which punishment typically ranges from more than a year's imprisonment to death. (p. 173)
<ques>Violent crime, certain property crimes, and certain morals crimes are referred to as _____ crime.
<c1>misdemeanor
<c2>organized
<c3>political
<c4>conventional
<ans>d<expl>Violent crime, certain property crimes, and certain morals crimes are referred to as conventional crime. (p. 174)
<ques>All of the following are index crimes, except:
<c1>traffic violations.
<c2>larceny in excess of $50.
<c3>armed robbery.
<c4>murder.
<ans>a<expl>All of the following are index crimes, except traffic violations.
<ques>At the heart of much _____ crime is a violation of positions of trust in business or government.
<c1>white-collar
<c2>street
<c3>organized
<c4>conventional
<ans>a<expl>At the heart of much white-collar crime is a violation of positions of trust in business and government. (pp. 174-175)
<ques>Drug trafficking, prostitution, loan-sharking, and money-laundering are examples of _____ crime.
<c1>white-collar
<c2>street
<c3>organized
<c4>conventional
<ans>c<expl>Drug trafficking, prostitution, loan-sharking, and money-laundering are examples of organized crime. (p. 176)
<ques>All of the following are examples of political crime, except:
<c1>unethical or illegal use of government authority for the purpose of material gain.
<c2>money-laundering.
<c3>engaging in graft through bribery, kickbacks, or "insider" deals.
<c4>dubious use of public funds and public property.
<ans>b<expl>All of the following are examples of political crime, except money-laundering. (p. 177)
<ques>According to the text, rates of arrest:
<c1>are about the same for males and females at every age group and for most offenses.
<c2>are slightly higher for females than males in the younger age levels and for violent crimes.
<c3>are about the same for males and females for prostitution due to more stringent enforcement of criminal laws pertaining to male customers.
<c4>remain higher for males than females at every age and for nearly all offenses.
<ans>d<expl>According to the text, arrest rates remain higher for males than females at every age and for nearly all offenses. (pp. 179-180)
<ques>All of the following are functions of punishment, except:
<c1>deterrence.
<c2>retribution.
<c3>social protection.
<c4>elimination of social dynamite and social junk.
<ans>d<expl>All of the following are functions of punishment, except: elimination of social dynamite and social junk. (p. 183)
<tf>15
<ques>People may be regarded as deviant if they express a radical or unusual belief system.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 160)
<ques>According to sociologists, deviance is relative.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 161)
<ques>When sociologists study deviance, one of the things they look for is whether types of deviant behavior are good or bad.
<ans>F<expl>When sociologists study deviance, they do not judge certain kinds of behavior or people as "good" or "bad." (p. 161)
<ques>Primary/secondary deviance and labeling theory are functionalist perspectives on deviance and crime.
<ans>F<expl>Functionalist perspectives include strain theory, opportunity theory, and social control/social bonding. Primary/secondary deviance and labeling theory are interactionist perspectives. (pp. 168-170)
<ques>According to differential association theory, people learn the necessary techniques and motivation for deviant behavior from people with whom they associate.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 168)
<ques>The concept of secondary deviance is important because it suggests that when people accept a negative label or stigma that has been applied to them, the label may contribute to the type of behavior it initially was meant to control.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 170)
<ques>Gangs are virtually nonexistent in Japan, where high levels of conformity are expected.
<ans>F<expl>As discussed in Box 6.2, Japanese gangs deliberately draw public attention to their deviant status. (p. 169)
<ques>Karl Marx wrote extensively about deviance and crime.
<ans>F<expl>Although Marx wrote very little about deviance and crime, many of his ideas are found in a critical approach that has emerged from earlier Marxist and radical perspectives on criminology. (p. 170)
<ques>Recently, functionalist theorists have examined the relationship between class, race, and crime.
<ans>F<expl>Recently, critical conflict theorists have examined the relationship between class, race, and crime. (p. 170)
<ques>Few studies of violent crime have examined the role of women as victims or perpetrators.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 172)
<ques>Postmodernist perspectives on deviance examine the intertwining nature of power, knowledge, and social control.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 172)
<ques>Organized crime groups engage only in illegal enterprises.
<ans>F<expl>Organized crime groups have infiltrated the world of legitimate business, such as banking, real estate, garbage collection, and garment manufacturing. (p. 176)
<ques>Official crime statistics provide very accurate data on the number of crimes committed each year in the United States.
<ans>F<expl>Official crime statistics reflect only those crimes that have been reported to the police; victimization surveys indicate that the incidence of some crimes is substantially higher than reported in official crime reports. (p. 178)
<ques>Among males who are twelve years old, an estimated 89 percent will be victims of a violent crime at least once during their lifetime.
<ans>T<expl>None(p. 180)
<ques>Ex-slave states are less likely to execute criminals than are other states.
<ans>F<expl>Ex-slave states are more likely to execute criminals than are other states. (p. 185)
