Social Problems Exam 3

5th amendment

Free of Self Incrimination: a person cannot be forced to testify or provide evidence that could be used to prove they committed a crime.

custodial interrogation

Questioning by law enforcement that occurs while a person is in police custody or deprived of freedom, during which the person must be read their Miranda rights before answering questions.

4th amendment

Searches and Seizures: Protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government, requiring law enforcement to have probable cause and, in most cases, a warrant before searching property or taking personal belongings.

override

when a judge issues a warrant, particular circumstances can justify a search without a warrant (the bag is clear)

cell phone searches

police can take cell phones when you give them consent, it’s an emergency situation and important evidence can be destroyed, people are in immediate danger, or your phone is in plain view with evidence on it.

B. Goetz

the man shot four Black teenagers on a subway, claiming self-defense; it sparked national debate over vigilante justice, race, and the use of deadly force in self-defense.

Stand your ground laws

Laws that allow a person to use deadly force in self-defense without a duty to retreat, as long as they reasonably believe they are in imminent danger of serious harm.

exclusionary rule

if an unreasonable search occurs, any evidence from that search cannot be used as direct evidence against you

Fruit of the poisonous tree

any secondary evidence found, if the primary evidence was illegal, cannot be used

Consent search

if you consent to a search, it’s valid, even if they don’t have a legal right to do so

right of consent

if a roomate or other resident is being searched, the other residents have a right to not be searched (not enter their room)

plain view

the search is valid if the contraband is in plain view

incident to arrest

if you are taken into custody, police immediately have the right to search you and your belongings

emergency exception

the police are allowed to make a valid WARRANTLESS search when the time it would take to get a warrant would jeopardize public safety or lead to a loss of evidence

Gates Doctrine

warrants can be issued by judges even if the information recieved by the police came from anonymous or unknown persons

non-physical evidence

(a conversation) if a police officer overhears a conversation, they can use it against you

Tennessee vs garner

ruled that police are unable to use deadly force when a fleeing felon is unarmed and not dangerous unless they pose an immediate threat to the officer or public at large

Control/social bond theory

people commit fewer crimes when they have strong social bonds—such as attachment to family, commitment to school/work, involvement in activities, and belief in societal rules.

social bonds

Connections that tie individuals to society—attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief—which help prevent deviant or criminal behavior according to social bond theory.

values

beliefs and ideals shared by a society

attachment

the internalization of norms. you care about the wishes and expectations of others

Committment

the recognition that there are consequences to your behavior, you have to thinnk about your future decisions and the impact they will have, and that your current situation is the result of prior actions

involvement

engrossment into conventional activities, if you keep busy, you won’t have time to mess around

belief

belief in a common value, by possessing a strong belief, you possess a strong value system

life course perspective

individual behavior and criminality develop and change over a person’s lifetime, considering factors like family, education, employment, and life events.

Atotology

saying the same things in different ways

learning theory

A criminology theory that explains crime as a behavior learned through interaction with others, by observing, imitating, and being reinforced for deviant behavior.

Differential Association (sutherland)

Criminal behavior is learned through interaction with others, where people adopt values, attitudes, and techniques that encourage law-breaking.

Differential social organization

Sutherland’s idea that crime rates vary between communities because of differences in social structures, norms, and the prevalence of pro- or anti-criminal influences within a group.

Cohen’s Theory of Delinquent structures

A criminology theory that explains youth crime as a response to status frustration, where lower-class boys, unable to achieve middle-class success, form delinquent subcultures with values opposing mainstream society.

Labeling Theory

A criminology theory that says people become deviant when society labels them as such, and that these labels can influence their self-identity and future behavior.

Primary deviance

occasional acts of delinquent behavior not supported by the individual’s self-concept

secondary deviance

repeated acts of deviant behavior reinforced by the actor’s self concept

Self-fulfilling prophecy

engaging or falling into a certain label/stereotype. EX: you are dealing with the stres of the alcoholic label and to relieve that stress, you drink

anomie

state of normative confusion

Merton’s social structure theory

societal pressure to achieve cultural goals, combined with unequal access to legitimate means, leads people to commit deviant or criminal acts.

modes of adaptation

conformity, ritualism, retreatism, rebeliion, and innovation

conformity

(most of us) - accepts the goal of getting ahead and accepting the game of how to get money (school)

Ritualism

abandon the success goal but do play the game/go through the motions. don’t accept the goal EX: frats, clubs. lowest level of crime rate

Retreatism

abandon the success goal and abandon the game. In society, but not a part of it EX: homeless, outcats, druggies

rebellion

replaces the goal with their own goal and abandoned the game with their own game. EX: communes, cults, living communities, Amish

Innovation

accept the goal of wealth while abandoning the game (money hungry, dangerous, criminals). Don’t adhere to norms and values, often get money through crime. If the innovator is successful, then other people will strat to follow

Becoming a marijuana user

learning the technique, learning to perceive the effects, and learning to enjoy the effects (learned social process). Hits on social learning theory

Illigetimate means and delinquent subcultures

Just like access to legitimate opportunities is unequal, access to illegitimate means is too. You have to put yourself in an environment with more delinquency. Not everyone can “just become a criminal”

nuts, sluts, and perverts

traditional sociology of deviance is limited and biased because it studied powerless individuals rather thanthe powerful structures that create deviance

Marxian theory of deviance

deviance isn’t about “bad people,” it’s about people who disrupt or resist the smooth functioning of capitalism

witchcraft to drugcraft

disorders are used to show that psychiatry creates medical-sounding labels for behaviors and then claims they have biological causes without proof

colony

A territory controlled by a powerful country that exploits the land and the people for its own benefit.

differential fertility

Differences in the average number of children born to a woman by social category.

megacity

An urban population of more than 10 million people.

modern demographic transition

A three-stage pattern of population change occurring as societies industrialize and urbanize, resulting ultimately in a low and stable population growth rate.

modern slavery

The severe exploitation of other people for personal or commercial gain.

transnational corporation

A profit-oriented company engaged in business activities in more than one nation.

biosphere

The surface layer of the planet and the surrounding atmosphere.

culture

The knowledge (ideas, values, norms, beliefs) that the members of a social organization share.

ecosystems

The mechanisms (plants, animals, and microorganisms) that supply people with the essentials of life.

environmental justice

A movement to improve community environments by eliminating toxic hazards.

greenhouse effect

When gases accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere and act like the glass roof of a greenhouse, allowing sunlight in but trapping the heat that is generated.

planned obsolescence

The manufacture of consumer goods designed to wear out. Or existing products are given superficial changes and marketed as new, making the previous products outdated.

Cold War

The tension and arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union from World War II until 1990.

defense budget

The government’s spending plan for maintaining and upgrading the military defenses of the United States.

domestic terrorism

Violent, criminal acts committed by individuals and/or groups in the United States to (1) intimidate or coerce a civilian population, (2) influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion, or (3) affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping.

geneva conventions

International agreements on the humane treatment of combatants and civilians during war, including the basic rights of wartime prisoners.

grey zone tactics

Coercive actions that are shy of armed conflict but beyond normal diplomatic actions.

habeas corpus

A basic human right in the Western world that prevents the police (or government) from arresting and holding someone without cause

national security

The ways nations organize to protect borders, guard their national interests, and shield their citizens and businesses abroad with armies, military bases, intelligence networks, embassies, and consulates.

terrorism

Any act intended to cause death or serious injury to civilians or noncombatants to intimidate a population and weaken their will or draw attention to the perpetrator’s cause.

weapons of mass destruction (WMD’s)

Nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons capable of large-scale death and destruction.