The Conflict Perspective of Deviance and Deviants

1100 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: How do crime rates differ between races

The Conflict Perspective of Deviance and Deviants Works Cited Not Included · When it comes to the conflict perspective and deviance, researchers have discovered one of the most influential lines of theory and research (Quinney, 1980; Chambliss and Seidman, 1982; Swaaningen, 1997; Arrigo, 1999). Marxist criminologists see deviance as a product of the exploitative nature of the ruling class. Deviance is a behavior that the rich and powerful see as threatening to their interests. An example of the conflict perspective relating to deviance is white- collar crimes. (Edwin Sutherland {1940,1983}) White-collar crime is any crime committed by respectable and high status people in the course of their occupations. (Lower status people commit crimes of the streets; higher status people engage in ?crimes of the suites?). (Nader and Green, 1972; D.R. Simon, 1998). Examples of these crimes include: price fixing, illegal rebates, embezzlement, manufacture of hazardous products, toxic pollution and more. ( Geis Meier, and Salinger, 1995; J.W. Coleman, 1977; Calavita,Pontell, and Tillman, 1999). Although the costs of these crimes are higher than lower status crimes, and these crimes are more harmful to society, tolerance is shown and leniency is shown because of their high-class position. In the end penalties are both tougher and more likely to be imposed for crimes committed by lower class people than those of higher social classes. The conflict approach to deviance underscores the relativity of deviance. The conflict perspective when applied to the study of deviant behavior emphasizes social inequality and power differentials. The most powerful members of society are said to determine group norms, and consequently who will be regarded as deviant. Conflict theorists relate deviance to capitalism pointing the relationship between race, ethnicity, and crime. 2) Please explain deviance and discuss the relationship between race and deviance as it relates to crime and criminal behavior. Please consider differences in perception among groups or people who define persons as deviant. · Deviance is any behavior that departs from societal of group norms. (Ex: criminal behavior; violations of significant social norms) These significant norms are those that are highly important to either most members in a society or to the members wit... ... middle of paper ... ...s another person would), and game stage (children learn to engage in more sophisticated role taking. Mead believes the self is composed of two separable parts: the ?me? and the ?I?. The ?me? is self- formed through socialization. The ?I? interacts constantly with the ?me? as we conduct ourselves in social situations. Cooley believed self- concept is an image of oneself as an entity separate from other people--- that still stands today. He also believes that children learn to judge themselves in terms of how they imagine others will react to them. We serve as mirrors for the development of self. (Cooley). He called this concept the looking glass self. (A self-concept based on our perception of others? judgments of us.) We use others as mirrors reflecting back our imagined reactions of them to us. According to Cooley, the, looking glass self is the product of a three-stage process that is constantly taking place. First we imagine how we appear to others. Next, we imagine the reaction of others to our imagined appearance. Finally, we evaluate ourselves according to how we imaged others have judged us. The result of this process is negative or positive self-evaluation.

Show More
Related

  • Deviant Behavior: Deviance: Positive, And Consequences

    1499 Words  | 3 Pages

    Deviant behavior is sociologically defined as, when someone departs from the “norms”. Most of the time when someone says deviance they think against the law or acting out in a negative behavior. To sociologists it can be both positive and negative. While most crimes are deviant, they are not always. Norms can be classified into two categories, mores and folkways. Mores are informal rules that are not written; when mores are broken, they can have serious punishments and sanctions. Folkways are informal rules that are just expected to be followed, but have no real repercussions.

    Read More

  • The Conflict Theory Of Deviance In American History X

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    American History X is a great film that delivers a very strong message about deviant behavior. The story of Derek Vineyard and Danny inspires a lot in terms of changing the deviant behavior through various social concepts. The film shows good application of these theories and it involves the audience into a gripping tale of the change one hoes through to fight deviance and get through the tough journey of correcting oneself and choosing the right path.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Breaking Social Norms

    727 Words  | 2 Pages

    Social norms are the implicit or explicit rules a group has for the acceptable behaviors, values, and beliefs of its members. Implicit social norms are introduced to us at a very early age, and exert a powerful influence on our behavior into adulthood. Our culture is ruled by social norms. In many situations, people 's perception of these norms have a big influence on their behavior. Implicit social norms are not openly stated, but found out when disobeyed. Implicit rules are rules we conform to as a society, and generally these rules make living together more comfortable. Social norms are important because they define the nature of a group, clarify relationships among members, and express values. They are also important because they create cohesion within the society, and members of that society are very aware when such norms are violated. Social norms are often strictly enforced and offenders are often disliked for their conduct. Also, some norms are more strictly held to in certain situations than in

    Read More

  • Example Of Norm Violations

    1029 Words  | 3 Pages

    We as humans want to fit in with the people around us. It is hard for us to break norms, which is “the expectation of “right” behavior” (Henslin, 2011, p. 49). Violating a norm is going against then normal of the community we live in. The different violations that can be violated like for example folkways, “a norm that is not strictly enforced” (Henslin, 2011, p. 51). Where mores are, “norms that are strictly enforced because they are thought essential to core values or the wellbeing of the group” (Henslin, 2011, p. 51). It is because of our values, we determine the violation a positive or negative sanction. Values are “standards by which people define what is desirable or undesirable, good or bad, beautiful or ugly” (Henslin, 2011, p. 49). “Sanctions refer to the reactions people receive for following or breaking norms” (Henslin, 2011, p. 49).

    Read More

  • What´s Deviance?

    573 Words  | 2 Pages

    From a sociological understanding, deviance is any behavior or physical appearance that is condemned from social standards because it defies social norms or social expectations. Sociological understanding of deviance is not always associated with a negative outcome, but can have positive effects for the individual or soceity. With the Civil Rights Movement, Rosa Parks was seen deviant for sitting at the front of a bus and refusing to move when a white male came on board. This act of civil rights not only made a stance for improving African American rights, but also helped change social norms.. From an everyday understanding, deviance is any behavior or physical appearance that is seen with a bad or negative outlook. An example of an everyday understanding of deviant behavior can be seen as an individual having tattoos all over his or her body. Some individuals would consider tattoos covering someone’s entire body are bad or a negative appearance, even if the tattoos had significant meaning to that specific individual.

    Read More

  • The Relationship Between Childhood Deviance and Adult Deviance

    947 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... abuse in adulthood. In conclusion to the study the following evidence suggests that children with conduct disorder may be at risk for major mental disorders. Other outcomes also show that children with conduct problems also have a higher incidence of criminality as an adult. Antisocial personality disorder in adulthood is almost always preceded by conduct disorder in childhood.

    Read More

  • Four Theories Of Deviance

    1289 Words  | 3 Pages

    Deviance has been primarily studied as a disorder of the individual from a medical and psychological standpoint. In assessing deviance as a fundamental component of the human condition, it becomes clear how external social forces and circumstances can increase the likelihood of behavior that does not conform to established social norms. There are four theories that seek to explain the causation of deviance through social forces: strain theory, control theory, social learning theory, and labeling theory. According to strain theory, deviance thrives in the gap between emphasized goals and prescribed methods. People have been socialized to accept key values; However, they do not have access to the approved means of realizing those values,

    Read More

  • The Power of Norms

    577 Words  | 2 Pages

    Norms are a part of everyday life. Without norms the world would be in total chaos. Norms by definition are rules of behavior shared by members of a society and rooted in the value system. ( ) Norms are held at a high standard in a society and are valued by its members. Norms vary from society to society. What is considered normal in one society may not be acceptable in another society. Norms are a societies way of living if a member of society breaks that norm they may be looked at as strange or even penalized depending on what kind of norm is broken. Norms are broken into three categories which are folkways, mores, and laws. Folkways are customs or desirable behaviors that are not strictly enforced. Violating a folkway is not criminal, but violating a folkway may have you looked at as weird. Mores are the strongest form of norms they have great moral significance in a society. Violating a more is considered immoral or borderline criminal. The strongest form of mores are taboos which are unthinkable action within a society. Laws are the third category of norms that a...

    Read More

  • What is Deviance?

    858 Words  | 2 Pages

    Deviance is defined as actions or behaviors that violate socials norms. In turn the concept of deviance is dependent on the social observation and perception. “By it’s very nature, the constructionism through which people define and interpret actions or appearances is always “social.” ”(Henry, 2009 , p. 6) One’s perception of a situation may be completely different from another depending on cultural and social factors. The way someone talks, walks, dresses, and holds themselves are all factors that attribute to how someone perceives another. In some cases what is socially or normally acceptable to one person is deviant in another’s eyes. For this reason there is a lot of gray area involving the topic of deviance because actions and behaviors are so diversely interpreted.

    Read More

  • Deviance and Social Control

    1733 Words  | 4 Pages

    The concepts 'Social Control' and 'Deviance' have more than one definition to me, my understandings of these terms are that they try to group, control and define different kinds of anti-social behaviour. In this essay I will be reflecting on how certain topics have deviant labels attached to them as a result of social control. I will be explaining my initial understanding and views of these topics, going on to explain how they may have been changed, challenged or reinforced after attending lectures and using the sources available to me to expand my knowledge. Also, I will be using evidence from texts I have read to support these views and considering how these contribute to the inner-relationship between 'deviance' and social control. The key topics I will be demonstrating this with are Teenage Mothers, Eugenics, Deviant Bodies and The Cultural Degeneration of Travellers. These topics highlight key areas in which deviant labels are attached to groups of people by social control and how society has tried to control people's views in order to separate class and be in command of what should be seen as acceptable behaviour.

    Read More

  • The Theories of Deviance

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    Deviance is defined as being conduct that is not segment of the averages in specific civilization. This can be distinctive throughout the places because certain societies have very dissimilar standards. Conduct condition is a psychological syndrome acknowledged in juvenile that gives itself through a recurring and obstinate display of conduct in which the simple privileges of others and main age-appropriate standards are disrupted. Conduct disorder gives as destructive and discourteous conduct. These psychosomatic indications of conduct disarray, support to explicate the instructive connects among psychology and crime. Furthermore, they establish the progressively unsolidified frontier among psychosomatic and biological theories of deviance.

    Read More

  • Deviance and Social Control

    899 Words  | 2 Pages

    As we all have observed, throughout history each culture or society has unique norms that are acceptable to that group of people. Therefore, to establish and come to the acceptance of these basic norms, each society must develop its’ own strategies and techniques to encourage the fundamentals of behavior, which is clear in our modern society. Most do assume that everyone in a society will follow and respect such norms. However, some tend to deviate from the adequate norms and demonstrate deviant behavior. Nevertheless, we are inclined to ask ourselves, why do people decide to violate such important standards of living?

    Read More

  • Leon Festinger's Social Comparison Theory

    1855 Words  | 4 Pages

    ourselves to others. We often compare ourselves to similar people, in order to establish a criteria on which we are able to make certain judgments about ourselves. We may sometimes compare ourselves in an upward direction or we may compare ourselves in a downward direction. Both serve a purpose in that. they can result in positive or negative feelings about one’s self. In turn this can cause our behavior to change. We may decide to act upon those feelings to improve our own mental standing. We often subconsciously compare ourselves to others in terms of physical,

    Read More

  • Social Construction Of Deviance

    1254 Words  | 3 Pages

    Deviance is a socially constructed idea that takes many shapes and forms throughout human history. It can be defined in many different ways, can be applied to many different settings and numerous types of bodies. Throughout the course, the social construct of deviance presents itself in multiple readings. For instance, in the article written by Jennifer Morgan, deviance is socially constructed by European males and applied onto African female bodies.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Group Dynamics

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    Norms tend to guide the group. Even unknowingly, members act within the norms established. Staying within these boundaries, which become ingrained in their behavior patterns, the group becomes equipped accomplish its goals. While group norms may help a group progress towards its goal, some norms may also hinder the group from working together

    Read More

More about The Conflict Perspective of Deviance and Deviants

Open Document