Deviance: Construction, Definition, Benefits and Influence

Deviance is a very important concept in both criminology and sociology. It deals with society as well as the law. In this paper I will answer the question of what exactly is deviance and how is it constructed? Who gets to define what deviance is? Who benefits from defining it in a certain way and how does this process influence the legal system?

According to our lecture notes, “A crime is any act which has been legally prohibited by the state such that, if done, it renders the actor liable to punishment or treatment or both”. These same notes define deviance as a “violation of any social conduct norm.” This violation could be anything from the hippie movement or speeding in traffic to a criminal act such as spousal abuse. In the Criminology textbook, Siegel and McCormick state that deviance is “behavior that departs from social norms and that is not always subject to formal sanctions”(p 6). This means that although the behavior or actions deviate from society’s expectations and standards they don’t necessarily warrant a criminal status. In addition, Siegel and McCormick also explain that, “not all crimes are deviant or unusual acts, and not all deviant acts are illegal or criminal”(p.6). To put it into perspective, use speeding in traffic as an example. It is considered a summary offence and a deviant act, but speeding carries a very minor punishment, if at all, compared to an indictable offence like murder; both are considered deviant but murder is punishable by imprisonment. Something that is considered deviant in one place may not be deviant in another. Goode and Ben-Yehuda state that what’s regarded as deviant varies with society, groups, period of time and social context (p.110). For example, smoking marijuana is deviant ...

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... prominent individuals and groups as well as society influence the legal system.

Works Cited

Goode, Erich. and Ben-Yehuda, Nachman. Moral panics : the social construction of deviance / Erich Goode and Nachman Ben-Yehuda Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester : 2009

Curra, John. The relativity of deviance / John Curra 2000

Taylor, Ian R. and Young, Jock. and Walton, Paul The new criminology : for a social theory of deviance / Ian Taylor, Paul Walton, Jock Young ; [with a foreword by Alvin W. Gouldner] Routledge and Kegan Paul, London : 1973

Macionis, John J.

Sociology/ John J. Macionis, Linda M. Gerber.-6th Canadian ed.:2007

Siegel, Larry J.

Criminology in Canada: theories, patterns and typologies/Larry J. Siegel, Chris McCormick. –4th ed.:2007

Cheng, Hongming. Soc 212- Introduction to Criminiology. University of Saskatchewan. September, 2009.