Deviance and Social Control

Deviance

• Violation of widely held norm

  • Behavior, beliefs, conditions

  • Deviation is relative

    • Reactions

  • Changes over time

    • Who defines what is deviant?

    • [Conflict Perspective]

Imprisonment

• Mandatory minimum sentences

  • Three Strikes Law

  • Inequality

  • Stigma

Strain Theory

• Anomie

  • Weak or absent norms/values

  • Robert Merton (1938)

  • Conventional means and goals

Social Bond Theory

• Travis Hirschi

  • Deviance is part of human nature

  • Focus on bonds

Labeling theory

Labeling

• Process where definition is attached to an individual

  • Apply stigma

  • Self fulfilling prophecy

Differential Association

• Learning theory

  • Learn to commit crime