Chapter 7

Deviance and Social ControlKey Terms

• DevianceBehavior that violates the norms of a particular society.

• Social controlThe ways in which a society encourages conformity to its norms and prevents deviance.

• StigmaAn attribute or quality of an individual that is deeply discrediting.

• CrimeAn act, or omission of an act, that is prohibited by law.

• AnomieA state of normlessness.

• Differential associationA theory that explains deviance as a learned behavior determined by the extent of a person’s association with individuals who engage in such behavior.

• LabelingA theory that explains deviance as a societal reaction that brands or labels people who engage in certain behaviors as deviant.

• Primary devianceAn act that results in the labeling of the offender as deviant.

• Secondary devianceBehavior that is engaged in as a reaction to the experience of being labeled as deviant.

• RecidivismThe probability that a person who has served a jail term will commit additional crimes and be jailed again.

• Plea bargainingA process in which a person charged with a crime agrees to plead guilty to a lesser charge.