1.
Introduction
Ø The
word “deviance” is related to the root for “deviate” which means to wander off
track. In sociology, our concern is just
as much with what keeps people on the line as it is about people getting off
it.
Ø Deviance
is any behavior that violates cultural norms. Deviance is often divided into
two types of deviant activities.
The first,
crime is the violation of formally enacted laws and is referred Introduction
to as formal deviance. Examples of formal deviance
would include: robbery, theft, murder, and assault, just to name a few.
The second
type of deviant behavior refers to violations of informal social norms, norms
that have not been codified into law, and is referred to as informal deviance.
Examples of informal deviance might include: picking one's nose, belching
loudly (in some cultures), or standing too close to another unnecessarily.
2.Definitions
of Deviance
Ø To
adapt unusual social behavior other then ongoing social patterns is referred to
as Social Deviation (David Popnoe)
3.Definitions
of Social deviance
Social deviance is the area of sociology
that studies the violation of social norms or expectations.
4.Kinds of Social Deviation
1.
Disapproved
Some people in the society violate the existing patterns and rules of the society for their personal benefits e.g. Criminals, robbers, smugglers etc. this is a sort of disapproved deviation.
Some people in the society violate the existing patterns and rules of the society for their personal benefits e.g. Criminals, robbers, smugglers etc. this is a sort of disapproved deviation.
2.
Approved
There are some people in the society who do not like
the prevalent norms and laws. They consider their right to violate such norms
and laws. They express their violation through their words and acts. They do
not hide from the others. They even instigate others to imitate them. Such
people are normally called revolutionary people which is some how approved in
different societies.
3.
Relative and Absolute Deviation
Most people in modern societies are neither
completely conformist nor completely deviant. A completely deviant person would
have a hard time staying alive. Even extreme spectacular deviants, such as
revolutionists, or hermits, are generally fairly conventional in some of their
activities. And nearly all normal people occasionally deviate. It is clear that
nearly everyone in our society is deviant to some degree, but some are more
frequently and broadly deviant than others, and some conceal their deviant
actions more fully than others.
5.Theories
to Explain Social Deviance
·
Labeling Theory
Labeling
is a process of social reaction by the "social audience," the people
in society exposed to, judging and accordingly defining (labeling) someone's
behavior as deviant or otherwise.
Labeling theory in the work of learnt (1951), Becker
(1963), and Matza (1964), as well as other writers. It is mostly in the fields
of criminology and the sociology of deviance that the theory has been
developed. A basic proposition is that deviant behavior has the characteristics
of a transaction between the deviant person and another or others. Particular
behavior is deviant because it is defined as such by groups in society,
particularly by those groups who have some power to establish that their
definitions carry weight.
Labeling theory is a
pretty simple theory that is based on social deviations which result in the
labeling of the outsider. Becker defines deviance as being created by society.
Social groups create deviance through the establishment of social rules, the
breaking of these rules results in the perpetrator being labeled as a deviant.
Because of the
objectivity involved it is needless to say that these labels are not always
accurately applied to people. Once a label is given to an individual they
become part of all the generalizations that go with that label. These labels
also present a self fulfilling prophecy. Being identified as a deviant, a
person is usually ostracized from conventional social groups, and therefore is
forced to become part of less desirable ones. Being a member of less desirable
social groups will only reinforce that they are a deviant, and increase their
chances of engaging in deviant behaviors.
Labeling
theorists do not like labels, but they say that labeling is a social fact,
especially when we talk about social institutions like law enforcement, social
service agencies, and mental health facilities. So therefore they study the
power of labels in our society
Labeling
Activity Affects Those Labeled in Various Ways
An individual does not become labeled as a deviant
simply by breaking a rule, or even several rules. Many people break rules, but
only some are subsequently labeled. The social process that follows the
breaking of a rule may involve individuals in negotiating, rejecting,
accepting, reinterpreting or modifying. A key assume for Lemert (1972) is
whether primary deviation becomes secondary deviation.
Ø Primary deviance
Behavior that
does not conform to the social norms, but the behavior might be temporary,
fleeting, exploratory, trivial, or especially, concealed from most others. The
person who commits the deviant act does not see him/herself as deviant; put
differently, it is not internalized as a part of the person's self concept .Primary
deviance is a deviant act that provokes little reaction and has limited effect
on a person’s self-esteem. The deviant does not change his or her behavior as a
result of this act.
Ø Secondary deviance
Behavior that does not
conform to the social norms, but the behavior tends to be more sustained over
time. The person continues to do the deviant behavior even after being caught
and labeled by a social institution. The person accepts the deviant label,
incorporating it into the person's self concept. Secondary deviance includes
repeated deviant behavior that is brought on by other people’s negative
reactions to the original act of primary deviance.
·
Control
Theory
Control Theory in sociology can either be classified
as centralized or decentralized or neither. Decentralized control is considered
market control. Centralized control is considered bureaucratic control. Some
types of control such as clan control are considered to be a mixture of both decentralized
and centralized control.
Decentralized control or market control is typically
maintained through factors such as price, competition, or market share.
Centralized control such as bureaucratic control is typically maintained
through administrative or hierarchical techniques such as creating standards or
policies. An example of mixed control is clan control which has characteristics
of both centralized and decentralized control. Mixed control or clan control is
typically maintained by keeping a set of values and beliefs or norms and
traditions.
A functionalist like Merton, U.S.
sociologist Travis Hirschi assumed that the family, school and other
institutions can greatly contribute to social order by controlling deviant
tendencies in all of us. If such control is lacking or weak, in Hirschi’s view
, people will commit deviant act.
According to Hirschi, the best control mechanism against deviance is our
bond to others or by extension society. There are four types of social bond in
control theory.
1.
Attachment
The first bond is attachment to conventional people and institution.
Teenagers for example, may show
this attachment by loving and respecting their parents, making friends with
conventional peers, liking school or working hard to develop intellectual
skills.
2.
Commitment
The second is commitment to conformity.
This commitment can be seen in the time and energy devoted to conventional
activities( getting an Education,
developing an occupational skill, improving professional status, building a
business, or acquiring a reputation for virtue )
3.
Involvement
The
third is involvement in conventional activities. Following the maxim that
“idleness is the devil’s workshop” , people keep themselves so busy doing
conventional things that they do not have time to take part in deviant
activities or even think about deviance.
4.
Belief
The fourth belief in the moral validity of social rules. This is the
conviction that the rules conventional society should be obeyed. People may
show this moral belief by respecting the laws.
Many societies have support Hirschi,s theory that the lack of social bond
cause of deviance, but most of these studies have ignored , as be the effect of
delinquency. Just as the loose of bond can cause the youth to commit
delinquency, delinquency can cause the youth to lose their boned to society.
· Conflict Theory
Conflict theory suggests that
human behavior in social contexts results from conflicts between competing
groups. The basic theory of deviance in social
conflict centers around class warfare, in which the lower classes rebel against
the upper classes who set the rules upon which society operates; laws are then
generated to settle these conflicts. Any violation of these laws is seen as a
deviant act. Conflict theory suggests that deviant behaviors result from
social, political, or material inequalities of a social group. In response to
these inequalities, certain groups will act deviantly in order to change their
circumstances, change the social structure that engendered their circumstances,
or just to “act out” against their oppressors.
Conflict theory argues that society is not best understood as a complex system striving for equilibrium but rather as a competition.
Conflict theory argues that society is not best understood as a complex system striving for equilibrium but rather as a competition.
The following are three primary assumptions of modern conflict theory:
1. Competition:
Competition over scarce resources (money, ) is at the heart of all
social relationships. Competition rather than consensus is characteristic of
human relationships.
2. Structural
inequality:
Inequalities in power and reward
are built into all social structures. Individuals and groups that
benefit from any particular structure strive to see it maintained.
3. Revolution:
Change occurs as a result of
conflict between social class's competing interests rather than through
adaptation. It is often abrupt and revolutionary rather than evolutionary.
6.Causes of Social Deviation
Ø
Lack in
Socialization
Socialization plays vital role in forming a good
and responsible citizen. If the process of socialization is not given proper
attention then the degree of social deviation increases in society.
Ø
Ridged
If the culture of society is
un-flexible and un-compatible to the changing circumstances, the new generation
expresses its anxiety over this rigidity.
Ø
Unpopular
Social Laws
In some cases the governments
intact such laws which may be in the interest of the government but not in the
general publics interest. People deliberately deviate from them and protest
against such things.
Ø
Extra
Ordinary Exploitation
If any group or nation is
suffering from extra ordinary exploitation then such group or nation may
deviate and protest over the exploitation to attract the attention of the
government or international community.
Ø
Cultural
Invasion
If a society’s culture is begin
invaded in some form to an extreme degree the people deviate from their on
cultural patterns and adopt the invaders cultural patterns. E.g. the eastern
world is heavily influenced by the western world through media; as a result
traces of westernization can be seen in countries such as Pakistan .
7.How Does Social
Deviation Affect Culture?
Ø Crime
The culture classifies some deviant behavior as
criminal. This sort of behavior has written laws and sanctions against it.
Persons who act in such ways are liable to be arrested and punished in the
judicial system. Most crime has victims who are hurt or otherwise negatively
affected by the behavior. Criminal behavior influences others in a culture by
inducing fear and anger at the criminals and sadness for the victims. Crime
rates can drastically alter cities and neighborhoods in appearance and
demographics.
Ø Weakening
of Norms
One of the biggest
threats deviation holds to a culture's status quo is the weakening of norms. If
too many people are allowed to operate with deviant behavior, the behavioral
norm becomes violated. This might occur in a cycle. Professor Lisa Barnett of
Coe College states that a weakening of cultural norms might actually cause
deviant behavior.
Ø Creation
of New Norms
The ability of deviant
behavior to weaken norms might also provide a positive construction of new
norms. For example, 40 years ago in the United States, most people considered
body piercing to be deviant behavior. It was not illegal, but the culture
deemed the act repulsive. As more people began expressing this deviant
behavior, norms against body piercing weakened. Today, body piercing is more
culturally acceptable than ever in the United States.
Ø Revolution
When deviants seek not only to go against
cultural norms, but also to change them significantly, Cultural Revolution can
occur. Deviants may present a completely alternative lifestyle to what is
predominantly held as acceptable. If enough people adopt the deviant lifestyle,
the behavior is no longer deviant and itself becomes the norm. The cycle then
continues when persons deviate from the newly established norms.
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