Essay on Deviance and Society - 969 Words

Determining Deviance The dictionary defines deviance as the breakdown or diversion from the accepted norm or expected standards of behaviour of a society. The concept of deviance however has no standard definition, it is deemed to be culturally relative. That is to say that your culture (norms, values and morals) determine what you as an individual or your society deems deviant behaviour. Functionalist Findings on Deviance The functionalist sociologist would see deviance as a necessary evil for society to function. This may seem contradictory to their belief that any form of conflict (deviance being a form of conflict) in society would be considered abnormal and should be removed or†¦show more content†¦This theory can be seen as a form of relativism theory because the criteria for judgement varies form individual to individual and also from time and from circumstances. It is my opinion that this labelling is mostly prevalent in countries with mixed and populations like North America where the groups would be big enough to make this classification even though it can and does happen in counties with smaller populations. Racial profiling is a type of labelling that is used by law enforcement officers in North America, this type of labelling is used in the apprehension of non-Caucasian criminals, racial profilers make a pre-judgement that certain races are responsible for deviant or criminal a ctivity and any action they perform that is a diversion of the normal behaviour is considered deviant behaviour regardless of the situation or circumstances, so if a crime is committed in a district automatically the search for the suspect is narrowed down to someone of a no-Caucasian race typically blacks. Police departments in America have denied using racial profiling as a method of apprehending criminals and have dismissed it as a myth. Marxist Mentality on Deviance From reading the theories of the Marxist I have concluded that deviance for their point of view would be the result of the working class of society reacting to theShow MoreRelatedDeviance in Society1440 Words   |  6 PagesDeviance In All Its Glory Marcos Antonios Sociology 101-01 Susan J. Quade Ulster County Community College Abstract Humans have always ineptly had some form of deviance in their nature as it is something that has contributed multiple times to the structure of any society and their views. The terms â€Å"good† or â€Å"bad† deviances are more so labels branded from the current society’s views on what is and isn’t accepted. At its core deviance can be hard to measure and examine as it forms from manyRead MoreDeviance And Its Effect On Society1328 Words   |  6 PagesIn the United States of America, societal deviance changes nearly on a daily basis. Depending on the current culture, deviance is modified to make societal heroes like celebrities, political figures, and sport players look less deviant and more like role models for the public. The change in what is considered â€Å"normal† is customarily a result of society in general. By using a reference group of people, individuals tend to identify with those who are in the lime light. Then when that role model do esRead More Deviance In Society Essay666 Words   |  3 Pagesit mean to say, â€Å"deviance is socially defined?† nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Deviance is defined as, â€Å"The recognized violation of cultural norms.† Deviance is an act of rebellion against set of rules, and expected behavior established by a certain society. Deviance is defined in many different ways. It is depended on the norms of the society, and region. Individuals become deviant when people label their actions as deviance. It depends on how that certain society defines deviance on individuals.Read MoreDeviance And Its Effect On Society855 Words   |  4 Pagesthese defiant individuals are known as the non-conformists who not only break the rules and law but they then are condemned by the standard of society. Deviance is believed to be defined as a normal behaviour, however also a rule breaking behaviour; this can then be focused to negative social sanctions. Deviant and normal are opposites and the use of deviance can only be used when the normal is in existence. This is where people start asking the question; â€Å"is this behaviour then normal?†If it wasRead MoreDeviance And Its Effect On Society Essay1436 Words   |  6 PagesDeviance is any behavior that does not conform to the dominant norms or values in a society or social group. Deviance can be either non-criminal or criminal. In today’s society, citizens view deviance behavior as activities that are associated with alcoholism, larceny, lying, gambling, cross-dressing, walking around nude in public places, and so forth. These are just a few examples of what societal members view as deviance. People who decide to engage in such behavior are declared to be deviantsRead MoreDeviance And Its Effect On Society1377 Words   |  6 PagesDeviance is the fact or state of diverging from usual or accepted standards, especially in social or sexual behavior. In our lives we hav e all done deviant act, but some people have done more deviant acts than others. They are formal or informal acts. Some examples of deviant acts many of us have done are cheating on an exam, drinking alcohol although you may not be 21. But the more serious acts are robbery, rape, theft and assault. There are four major perspectives of deviance in society. SocializationRead MoreDeviance And Its Effect On Society1757 Words   |  8 Pages Deviance is the behavior that goes against social norms, values and expectations of society. Norms are guidelines to almost all human activity which makes the subject Deviance very broad. In Society Deviance could be measured negative or positively; how people deal with deviance is all depended upon the society and how it is organized. What is considerate Deviant in one society may be accepted in others (Macionis). In certain countries such as Saudi Araba the woman are forced to wear an abaya,Read MoreCrime and Deviance in Society2283 Words   |  10 PagesCrime and deviance constitute a classic pathology within societies which has led to a variety of responses at political and societal level. This essay will explore crime the cause of crime and deviance with two theories, the labelling theory and biological theory. As Melossi notes, ‘the struggle around the definition of crime and deviance is located within the field of action that is constituted by plural and even conflicting efforts at producing control’ (1994) p.205 Every culture has unique normsRead MoreDeviance And Its Impact On Society2989 Words   |  12 Pagespatterns of behaviour. They are family, education, religion, and include economic and political institutions. Deviance is esteemed in the art world, and all great artists have broken with the traditions that preceded them and rebelled against their contemporaries. Yet in society deviance is more often than not condemned. Our apparently contradictory attitudes toward artistic and social deviance are explicable in light of the conservative nature of institutions and the nature of comprehensibility andRead MoreThe Conflict Theory Of Deviance In Society1525 Words   |  7 Pages Deviance, behavior that do not match norms, occurs in society. Thus, there exists several theories that help illustrate why deviance occurs in society. An example of one of the theories is the Conflict Theory. The Conflict Theory stresses the occurrence of conflict, competition, change, and constraint in a society. The Conflict Theory relates to capitalism by linking to race, ethnicity, and crime. The conflict theory also links deviance. The conflict perspective underlines social inequality