DEVIANCE (& CRIME)

Jennifer L. Fackler, M.A.

WHAT IS DEVIANCE?

What’s the difference between crime and deviance?

Deviance – the recognized violation of cultural

norms

One category of deviance is crime, which is the

violation of a society's formally enacted criminal law. Criminal deviance spans a wide range of behaviors.

What deviant attitudes or actions – whether

negative or positive – have in common is some

element of difference that causes us to think of

another person as an “outsider”.

Examples: Robbing a Bank (-); Donating ALL Your Money to

Charity (+)

SOCIAL CONTROL

Social Control – attempts by society to regulate people's thoughts and behavior Can be external or internal. Can be formal or informal.

Cases of serious deviance may involve the criminal justice system, which is a formal response by police, courts, and prison officials to alleged violations of the law.

How a society defines deviance, who is branded as deviant, and what people decide to do about deviance all have to do with the way society is organized.

Deviance is much more than a matter of individual choice.

EXPLAINING CRIME: B & P THEORIES

Biological Causes Lombroso (1876) – criminals are physically different

Ape-Like: Low Foreheads, Prominent Jaws & Cheekbones, Protruding Ears, Excessive Hairiness, Unusually Long Arms

Sheldon (1949) – criminals body types are different Mesomorphs – Athletic Build – More Likely to Commit Crime

Muscle Independent Less Sensitive Crime

Muscle Expectations & Treatment Crime

Endomorphs – Fat, Round People

Ectomorphs – Thin, Wiry People

Genetics & Crime (1960s+) XYY Greater Chance of Becoming Criminals

Clear evidence linking criminality to any specific genetic trait has not yet been found.

Hot area of research now known as “behavioral genetics.”

Critical Review: Most people convicted of crimes turn out to be biologically just like the rest of us.

EXPLAINING CRIME: B & P THEORIES

Psychological Causes (or Personality Factors)

Reckless & Dinitz (1956) – explained delinquency in

terms of moral conscience

Identified as Non-Delinquent = + Self-Concept & Stronger

Conscience; Held to Conventional Norms and Values; Could

Handle Frustration

Identified as Delinquent = Weak Belief in Conventional

Norms and Values; Prone to Anger When Frustrated

Critical Review:

Most people convicted of crimes turn out to be

psychologically just like the rest of us.

Also, like B theories, P theories focus on the individual and

ignore the social context.

THE SOCIAL FOUNDATIONS OF DEVIANCE

1. Deviance varies according to cultural norms. No thought or action is inherently deviant.

It becomes deviant only in relation to particular norms.

Ex: Gambling in TX vs. LA

2. People become deviant as others define them that way. How behavior is defined depends on how others

perceive, define, and respond to the behavior.

Ex: Talking To Yourself, “Borrowing” a Pen from Work

3. Both norms and the way people define rule breaking involve social power. Marx: The law is the means by which powerful people

protect their interests.

Ex: Mayoral Candidate vs. Homeless Person speaking on a street corner about politics.

The key insight of the structural-functional approach is that deviance is a

necessary part of social organization.

THE FUNCTIONS OF DEVIANCE:

STRUCTURAL-FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS

S-F ANALYSIS

Durkheim: 4 Functions of Deviance (1893)

Affirms cultural values and norms. There can be no good without evil nor justice without crime.

Responding clarifies moral boundaries.

Draws a boundary between right and wrong.

Responding brings people together.

Shared outrage reaffirms moral ties. (Ex: 9/11)

Encourages social change.

Deviance pushes boundaries.

Today’s deviance can become tomorrow’s morality.

Ex: Rock & Roll (1950s) & Hip Hop (Today)

S-F ANALYSIS

Merton: Strain Theory (1938)

Society defines success in terms of certain goals, but does not always

provide the means (aka opportunity) to reach these goals.

Specifically: Schooling + Jobs Financial Success

Patterns of rule breaking are dictated by whether or not people accept

society’s goals and whether or not they have the means to reach them.

Figure on Next Slide

Conformity + Goals, + Legitimate Means

Innovation + Goals, – Legitimate Means, so Invent New Means (crime)

Ritualism + Goals, – Legitimate Means, so Obsesses Over Rules

Retreatism – Goals, – Legitimate Means, so “Drop Out”

Rebellion – Goals, – Legitimate Means, so Advocate New System

S-F ANALYSIS

Deviant Subculture Theories

1. Cloward & Ohlin: Relative Opportunity

Structure (1966) – expanded Merton’s theory;

criminality is dependent not only on the lack of

legitimate opportunity but also on the presence

of illegitimate opportunity

Criminal Subcultures: + Goals, - Legitimate Means, +

Illegitimate Means Basic Property Criminals

Conflict Subcultures: + Goals, - Legitimate Means, -

Illegitimate Means Violent Criminals

Frustration with lack of opportunities erupts in violence.

S-F ANALYSIS

Deviant Subculture Theories

2. Cohen: Deviant Subcultures (1955)

Neglected by society they seek self-respect by

creating a deviant subculture that defines as worthy

the traits they do have.

But what do those subcultures look like?

S-F ANALYSIS

Deviant Subculture Theories

3. Miller: Characteristics of Deviant Subcultures(1958)

Trouble – frequent conflict with authority figures

Toughness – value placed on physical size, strength, and agility

Smartness – “street smarts”, ability to outsmart or con

Need for Excitement – search for thrills, risk, or danger

Belief In Fate – external locus of control

Desire for Freedom – expressed as anger toward authority figures

CRITICAL REVIEW

Strengths: Crime Has + & -- Consequences; Macro Focus

Limitations:

Do you agree that crime is really necessary?

Does responding to crime always bring people together?

Do all people define success the same way or agree on the best route?

Do these theories explain all types of crime?

The S-I approach explains how people define deviance in everyday situations.

Definitions of deviance and conformity are surprisingly flexible.

LABELING DEVIANCE:

SYMBOLIC-INTERACTION ANALYSIS

S-I ANALYSIS

Becker: Labeling Theory (1966) – the idea that crime

and all other forms of rule breaking result not so

much from what people do as from how others

respond to those actions

Reality is a matter of how people label behavior.

Ex: A teen drinking wine with their family at Thanksgiving vs. a teen

doing shots of vodka in the school parking lot. BOTH are illegal acts of

underage drinking, but they will be labeled very differently.

Labeling is dependent on when an action took place,

where an action took place, and who was involved.

Related to dramaturgy – dependent on the timing, setting, and actors.

Crime is a matter of socially constructed reality, a highly

variable process of perception, definition, and response.

Thus the line separating crime from conformity is thin and

ever-changing.

S-I ANALYSIS

Goffman: Stigma (1963) – a powerful

negative social label that radically changes

a person’s self-concept and social identity

Is the result of labeling!

Friends and legitimate opportunities diminish.

Can launch a deviant career.

Criminal prosecution is a powerful ritual of

stigmatization.

The Stigma of Smarts

Example: Stigma of Mental Illness Clips

S-I ANALYSIS

Scheff: Retrospective & Projective Labeling (1984)

Retrospective Labeling – a reinterpretation of the past in light of some present deviance

Ex: Child Molester Uncovered “He always did want to be around young children…”

Projective Labeling – using a deviant identity to predict a person’s future actions

Ex: Child Molester Uncovered “He is going to keep doing this until he is put in jail!”

The more people in someone's social world engage in labeling, the greater the chance that the labels will come true (self-fulfilling prophecy). The Thomas Theorem in action!

S-I ANALYSIS

Szasz: Difference as Deviance (1960+)

People tend to treat behavior that irritates or

threatens them not just as different but as

deviant or mentally ill.

We are particularly quick to apply the label of

mental illness to conditions that simply amount

to differences we do not like.

The only way to eliminate this is to stop using

the label of mental illness entirely.

He was also very critical of psychiatry, his own

field!

S-I ANALYSIS

Medicalization of Deviance - the transformation of moral and legal deviance into a medical condition. Result of the growing influence of psychiatry and

medicine in the US. Amounts to swapping one set of labels for another.

Bad vs. Good → Sick vs. Well Ex: Shoplifter Kleptomaniac

Three Consequences: 1. It affects who responds to deviance.

Community vs. Clinicians 2. It affects how people respond to deviance.

Punishment vs. Treatment 3. It affects how responsibility is assigned.

Personal Responsibility vs. Incompetency Removes moral judgment.

You Tube Lecture Clip

S-I ANALYSIS

Sutherland: Differential Association Theory

(1940)

Whether a person moves toward conformity or

deviance depends on the extent of contact with

others who encourage, and those who

discourage, conventional behavior.

The easiest way to think about this theory is to

rely on your understanding of the concept “peer

pressure.”

Ex: Peer Pressure Drug/Alcohol Use

S-I ANALYSIS

Hirschi: Control Theory (1969) – social control depends on people’s anticipating the consequences of their behavior; people who believe they have little to lose are more likely to become deviant; 4 Types 1. Attachment – strong social attachments encourage

conformity, weak relationships leave people freer to engage in deviance

2. Opportunity – the greater a person's access to legitimate opportunity, the greater the advantages of conformity; someone with little confidence in future success is more likely to drift toward deviance

3. Involvement – extensive involvement in legitimate activities inhibits deviance; people who simply “hang out” waiting for something to happen have time and energy to engage in deviant activity

4. Belief – strong belief in conventional morality and respect for authority figures restrain tendencies toward deviance; people who have a weak conscience are more open to temptation

CRITICAL REVIEW

The various S-I theories all see deviance as a process.

Labeling theory links deviance not to action but to the reaction of others.

Some are defined as deviant & others who think or behave the same way are not.

Being labeled deviant becomes a lasting self-concept. Secondary Deviance & Stigma

Limitations:

Labeling theory ignores the fact that some kinds of behavior are condemned just about everywhere.

Ex: Incest Taboo

Not everyone resists being labeled as deviant.

S-C approach links deviance to social inequality -- who or what is labeled

deviant depends on which categories of people hold power in a society.

DEVIANCE & INEQUALITY:

SOCIAL-CONFLICT ANALYSIS

S-C ANALYSIS

Liazos (1972) pointed out that the people we tend to define as deviants are typically those who share the trait of powerlessness.

Why? S-C theory explains this pattern in 3 ways: 1. All norms and especially the laws of any society generally

reflect the interests of the rich and powerful. Marx argued that the law and all other social institutions support the

interests of the rich.

2. Even if their behavior is called into question, the powerful have the resources to resist deviant labels. Exs: Ken Lay; Martha Stewart

3. The widespread belief that norms and laws are natural and good masks their political character. Because of this, although we may condemn the unequal application of

the law, we give little though to whether the laws themselves are really fair or not.

S-C ANALYSIS

Marx: Deviance & Capitalism (1800s)

Capitalists gain wealth legally by “doing

business.”

Those that threaten capitalists’ wealth risk

arrest.

Solution?

A more egalitarian system!

S-C ANALYSIS

Spitzer (1980) argues that deviant labels are applied to people who interfere with the operation of capitalism. 1. People who threaten the property of others.

2. People who cannot or will not work.

3. People who resist authority.

4. Those who directly challenge the capitalist status quo. Society also positively labels whatever supports the

operation of capitalism. Examples?

We condemn using drugs of escape (ex: marijuana, psychedelics, heroin and crack) as deviant but encourage drugs (ex: alcohol, caffeine and nicotine) that promote adjustment to the status quo and make money for big business.

CRITICAL REVIEW

According to S-C theory, a capitalist society's

inequality in wealth and power shapes its laws

and how they are applied.

Critics say it is an oversimplification to imply that

laws and other cultural norms are created

directly by the rich and powerful. Democracy!

Also deviance exists in all societies, so criminality

does not just spring up to the extent that a

society treats its members unequally. Ex: Socialist countries have crime.

SOCIAL FACTORS SUMMARY

S-F: We tend to view deviance as the free choice or personal failings of individuals, but all behavior is shaped by society.

S-I: Deviance varies according to cultural norms. No thought or action is inherently deviant; it becomes

deviant only in relation to particular norms.

Because norms vary from place to place, deviance also varies.

S-I: People become deviant as others define them that way. Whether behavior defines us as deviant depends on how

others perceive, define and respond to it. S-C: Both norms and the way people define rule-

breaking involve social power. Norms and how we apply them reflect social inequality.

CRIME

CRIME

Crime – the violation of criminal laws enacted by a locality, a

state, or the federal government

Composed of 2 Elements: Act & Criminal Intent (aka mens rea

or “guilty mind”)

Types of Crime

Crimes Against the Person (aka violent crimes) – crimes that direct

violence or the threat of violence against others

Includes murder, manslaughter, aggravated assault, forcible rape and robbery.

Crimes Against Property (aka property crimes) – crimes that involve theft

of property belonging to others

Includes burglary, larceny-theft, auto theft and arson.

Victimless Crimes (aka crimes without complaint) – violations of law in

which there are no obvious victims.

Includes illegal drug use, prostitution and gambling.

The term victimless, however, is misleading.

SPECIAL TYPES OF CRIME

White-Collar Crime - crime committed by people of high social position in the course of their occupations (Sutherland 1940) Do not involve violence and rarely attract police.

Known as crime in the suites (vs. crime in the streets).

The most common are bank embezzlement, business fraud, bribery and antitrust violations.

Typically wind up in a civil, rather than criminal, hearing. Someone who loses a civil case is not labeled a criminal.

Most charges target the organization rather than individuals.

Most W-C criminals escape punishment.

Corporate Crime – the illegal actions of a corporation or people acting on its behalf Most cases go unpunished.

The cost of this type of crime goes beyond just dollars. (Ex: Enron) Organized Crime – a business supplying illegal goods or services

Most cases involve the sale of illegal goods and services.

Hate Crime – a criminal act against a person or a person's property by an offender motivated by racial or other bias Ex: Matthew Shephard

Critics argue that hate crime statutes open the door to punishing beliefs rather than behavior.

STATISTICS

Official crime statistics only include crimes known to the police.

What’s the problem with this?

Researchers check official crime statistics using victimization surveys.

The actual crime rate is about 3x higher than official crime reports indicate. Why?

Underreporting

Crime rates rose from 1960-1990 and then declined through 2003. Why?

America has a higher crime rate than any other modern, industrialized country.

EXPLANATIONS FOR HIGH US CRIME RATE

1. Weak Social Fabric + Frustration Among the Poor = Widespread Criminal Behavior

Crime stems from our culture’s emphasis on individual economic success, frequently at the expense of strong families and neighborhoods (Currie 1985).

We are also very culturally diverse and have more economic inequality, which may cause crime.

2. Extensive private gun ownership.

Almost half of US households own at least one gun.

There are more guns than adults in the US.

Double-Edged Sword: Guns reflect people’s fear of crime, but make crime more deadly.

Most guns are obtained illegally.

PROFILE OF A STREET CRIMINAL

Categories of people most likely to be arrested for violent and property crimes: What are your predictions? (Age, Sex, Class, Race)

Adolescent – crime rates rise sharply during adolescence, peak in the late teens, and then fall as people get older

Male – men are arrested more than twice as often as women for property crimes and even more often for violent crimes. Why?May be that law enforcement are reluctant to define

women as criminals.

Likely due to the different socialization of M&W.

The difference in arrest rates is narrowing, which may indicate increasing sexual equality in our society.

PROFILE OF A STREET CRIMINAL

Categories of people most likely to be arrested for violent and property crimes:

Lower SES – official crime rates do not include info on social class, but research has shown this

Most low SES people have no criminal record.

Class standing varies by type of crime.

Minority (typically A-A) – may be due to the conflation of race and class, differing family patterns (single mothers & poverty), prejudice leading to more arrests, and the crimes tracked

People with all these characteristics are also more likely to be the victim of a crime.

The CJS is a society’s formal system of social control.

US CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

DUE PROCESS

Due Process – the criminal justice system must operate within the bounds of law; victims and the accused have rights

Includes: Right to Counsel

Right to Refuse to Testify Against Yourself

Right to Confront Accusers

Freedom from Being Tried Twice

Freedom from being deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

Right to a speedy and public trial.

Freedom from excessive bail.

Freedom from “cruel and unusual” punishments.

POLICE

Primary point of contact between the CJS and the population.

Maintain public order by enforcing the law.

Exercise considerable discretion over what warrants their attention.

Smith & Visher (1987): 6 Factors Severity

Victim’s Wishes

Cooperativeness

Prior Arrest Record

Presence of Observers

Offender Characteristics -- Race

COURTS

Determine a suspect’s guilt or innocence.

In Principle: Adversarial Process

In Practice: ~90% of cases are resolved prior to court appearances through plea bargains.

Spares the time and expense of trials.

Allows courts to channel their resources into the most important cases,

− Pressures defendants to plead guilty.

− Efficient, but undercuts the adversarial process and the rights of defendants.

Efficiency ≠ Justice

PUNISHMENT

Reasons for Punishment: Retribution – an act of moral vengeance by which society

makes the offender suffer as much as the suffering caused by the crime Oldest justification for punishment.

Rests on a view of society as a moral balance.

Ex: “Eye for an eye.”

Deterrence – the attempt to discourage criminality through the use of punishment Specific Deterrence – used to convince the individual offender

General Deterrence – using the punishment of one as an example for others

Effectiveness Depends On: Certainty

Severity

Timeliness

Ex: Fines

PUNISHMENT

Reasons for Punishment: Rehabilitation – a program for reforming the offender to

prevent later offenses If one can learn to be deviant, one can learn to obey – the key

is controlling the environment.

Motivates the offender to conform.

Encourages constructive improvement.

Tailors treatment to each offender.

Ex: Education & Counseling in Prisons and Jails

Societal Protection – rendering an offender incapable of further offenses temporarily through imprisonment or permanently by execution Rational Approach

Ex: Imprisonment

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

What types of punishment do we use in the

US? What reason do they fall under?

The US now incarcerates a larger share of its

population than any other country.

2005: 2.2M people in prison in the US.

Death penalty is extremely controversial.

Satisfies 3 of the 4 reasons for punishment.

COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS

C-B Corrections – correctional programs operating within

society at large rather than behind prison walls

3 Advantages:

Reduce Costs

Reduce Overcrowding

Allow for Supervision – Hardships of Prison Life & Stigma

Goal is to reform rather than punish.

Usually offered to those who have committed less serious

offenses and appear to be at low risk of recidivism.

3 Types: Probation, Shock Probation, & Parole

COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS

Probation – a policy permitting a convicted offender to remain

in the community under conditions imposed by a court,

including regular supervision

Shock Probation – a policy by which a judge orders a convicted

offender to prison for a short tine but then suspends the

sentence in favor of probation

Parole – a policy of releasing inmates from prison to serve the

remainder of their sentences in the local community under the

supervision of a parole officer

All 3 can be revoked in favor of imprisonment.

PUNISHMENT

Critical Review

Does punishment deter crime? Nope!

We have a high rate of criminal recidivism, later offenses committed by people previously convicted of crimes.

Only about 1/3 of all crimes are known to police and, of these, only about 1/5 will lead to an arrest.

Most offenses go unpunished!

Prisons do not generally rehabilitate and are $.

What would Sutherland say about prison? Hirschi?

Prison Socialization, Stigma, Weakens Social Ties

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Why do we often define people only in terms of

their deviance (ex: “an addict” or “a thief”)?

Can the CJS eliminate crime?

What would Durkheim say? Why?

How about Marx? Why?

CONCLUSION

Not all deviance is criminal, but all crime is deviant.

The various paradigms explain crime and deviance differently. S-F: Crime and deviance serve a purpose.

S-I: Crime and deviance are dependent on definitions and labeling.

S-C: Crime and deviance are related in inequality and power.

The CJS, society’s formal response to crime and system of social control, is made up of many inter-related parts that work together. Punishment serves a variety of functions, but is highly

controversial.

Any questions?