SOCI1001A L06 Deviance and Social Control 2024 - 25 - A

DEVIANCE AND SOCI1001A Introduction to
Sociology
SOCIAL CONTROL L06
Who do you
think is possibly
a deviant in
the photo?
Why?
2
Image source: Macionis (2018, p. 241)
3
 Becker, an influential sociologist studying social deviance, has argued

that
 ‘...
social groups create deviance by making rules whose infraction creates
deviance, and by applying those roles to particular people and labeling
them as outsiders… deviance is not a quality of the act the person
commits, but rather a consequence of the application by other of rules
and sanctions to an "offender." The deviant is one to whom that label has
been successfully applied; deviant behavior is behavior that people so
label… ‘ (Becker, 1973, p .9)
Outline of the lecture
4
 Introduction
 Deviance and social control
 Theoretical perspective on deviance

 Functional perspective
 Symbolic interactionist perspective
 Conflict perspective
 Summary
 Q&A
Introduction XYY
 Apart from focusing on sources and foundation of social order,

sociologists have also examined the reasons underlying why some
individuals will disrupt social order that is so vital for society’s
survival (Macionis, 2018; Schaefer, 2022)
 Earlier explanations of disruptive behaviors have often revolved

around individual factors, including the biological and psychological
features, to explain their behavior
 For example, body type and genetic composition as well as personality
etc.
 Sociologists try to examine these disruptive behavior by ascertaining

the social and societal factors that contribute to the emergent and
developmental trajectory of such kinds of behaviors
What is deviance?
6
 Deviance
 “behavior that violates the standards of conduct
or expectations of a group or society” (Schaefer,
2022, p.145)
 What is defined as deviant is contextually and

temporally contingent (Schaefer, 2022)
 Crime is “a violation of criminal law for which

some governmental authority applies formal
penalties” (Schaefer, 2022, p. 158)
 Itis very likely that all of us are deviant from

time to time because we would have violated
some trivial social norms in certain situations
throughout our lives (Schaefer, 2022)
What is social control?
7
 Social control
 “techniques and strategies for preventing deviant human behavior in any
society” (Schaefer, 2022, p. 146)
 “attempts by society to regulate people’s thoughts and behavior”

(Macionis, 2018, p. 240)
 “all
of the formal and informal mechanisms and internal and external
controls that operate to produce conformity” (Giddens & Sutton, 2021, p.
196)
 Involves sanction
 “penalties and rewards for conduct concerning a social norm” (Schaefer, 2022, p.
56)
Functionalist perspective
8
 Deviance is necessary and functional for society (Macionis, 2018)

 Affirming cultural values and norms
 Responding to deviance clarifies boundaries
 Responding to deviance brings people together
 Encouraging social change

 Anomieis “a state of normlessness that typically occurs during a period of
profound social change and disorder” (Schaefer, 2022, p. 153)
 Theprofound change may render social control ineffective and may result in a
higher rate of deviant and criminal behavior
9
 Merton’s theory of deviance (a. k. a. Merton’s strain theory/anomie

theory of deviance) (Macionis, 2018; Schaefer, 2022)
 Cultural goals
 Conventional or institutionalized means
 When the two are incompatible with each other, individual may
experience strain, which then lead to various ways of response and
adaptation by individuals
 Whether individuals will accept the cultural goals as well as the institutionalized
means?
10
11
 Innovation — accepting the cultural goals

of society but use inappropriate or non-
conventional means to achieve them
 e.g. robbers, professional gamblers etc.
 Ritualism — giving up on achieving cultural

goals but still subscribing to and following
conventional rules
 e.g. Bureaucratic official who blindly applies
rules and regulations without remembering
the larger goals of the organization
12
 Retreatism — rejecting both the cultural

goals and the conventional and
institutionalized means of achieving them
 Tend to withdraw from the society
 e.g. Drug user / alcohol addict
 Rebellion — rejecting both the cultural goals

and the acceptable means of achieving them
 Tend to seek ways to create new goals and
means and transform the society
 e.g. Al-Qaeda (阿爾蓋達組織)
Symbolic interactionist perspective
13
 Symbolic interactionists focus on how our interactions with others

influence whether we commit deviant acts or not (Schaefer, 2022)
 socialization is involved both in the learning of proper or improper
behavior
 The differential association theory describes how people learn to

commit delinquent acts through the exposure to attitudes
favourable to the violation of rules during their interaction with
delinquent peers
 E.g.
Peer group may encourage or discourage conventional behavior,
depending on the group’s value and norm
14
 Labeling theory
 Tryto explain “why some people are viewed as deviants while others
engaged in the same behavior are not” (Schaefer, 2022, p. 156)
 Labels are meaningful symbols that affect the self-concept and social
identity of an individual (Ballentine & Korgen, 2022)
 Stigma: “a label used to devalue members of certain social groups” (Schaefer,
2022, p. 146)
 Primary deviance – “a violation of a norm that may be an isolated act or

an initial act of rule breaking” (Ballentine & Korgen, 2022, p. 137)
 These initial acts of deviance or crime often go undetected and are

marginal to self-concept and self-identity (Ballentine & Korgen, 2022;
Macionis, 2018)
15
 Secondary deviance – “If an individual continues to violate a norm and

begins to take on a deviant identity as a result of being labeled as deviant”
(Ballentine & Korgen, 2022, p. 136)
 Labels
affect individuals through becoming one’s master status and
eventually incorporated into one’s identity
 Devianceamplification as a result of societal reaction to the deviance – a

paradox of social control
 The more the society reacts, the more serious the deviance becomes
16
 Labeling and agents of social control (Schaefer, 2022)

 Labeling theory points out that the societal reaction is significant in
contributing to the development of deviance
 Itfurther notes that it is important to recognize that some individuals and

/or groups in the society are given the power to define label and apply
them to others
 These are referred to as agents of social control, which may include but
are not limited to the police, psychiatrists, judges, and teachers etc.
 They play a significant role in creating the deviant identity and designating
certain people as deviant
Conflict perspective
17
 Scholars adopting the conflict perspective often focus on power

relations in the society and argue that deviance is defined by those
in power to suit their needs (Macionis, 2018; Schaefer, 2022)
 Norms generally reflect the interests of the rich and powerful
 Even if the behaviors of the rich and powerful are called into question,
they have more resources to resist and challenge the deviant label
 Belief that norms and laws are natural and good obscures its political and
conflictual nature, yet is useful to justify and stabilize the system for
smooth operation
18
 Capitalism is often regarded as one of the main underlying

foundations that lead to the creation of deviance (Macionis, 2018;
Schaefer, 2022)
 Behaviors that disrupt the operation of capitalism, particularly those
committed by the less powerful and less resourceful, are much more likely
to be defined as deviant
 Threatening property of others, idleness and unemployment, resistance to

authority and the status quo of the existing establishment, for instance,
are all deemed deviant because these threaten the interests of the rich
and powerful
 Power differential among social groups also implies that those coming
from a subordinate minority group often face unequal treatment when
engaging in deviant behavior defined by the dominant social group
19
 Differential justice
 Differences in the way social control is exercised over different groups
(Schaefer, 2022, p. 157)
Albeit engaging in the same

kind of behaviour – using
illegal drugs, the criminal
justice system has appeared
to treat different ethnic
groups very differently
(Macionis, 2018, p. 239)

Symbolic Functional Conflict perspective
Interaction perspective perspective
Level of analysis Micro Macro Macro
What is Deviance is part of Deviance is a basic Deviance results from

deviance? socially constructed part of social social inequality.
What part does reality that emerges in organization.
it play in society? interaction. Norms, including laws,
By defining deviance, reflect the interests of
Deviance comes into society sets its moral resourceful and powerful
being as individuals boundaries. members of
label something society.
deviant.
What is Deviance is variable: Deviance is universal: Deviance is political:

important Any act or person may It People with little power
about deviance? or may not be labeled exists in all societies. and resource are at high
deviant. risk of being labeled
deviant.
20
Adapted from Macionis (2018)
Reference
21
 Ballentine, J. H., & Korgen, K. O. (2022). Our social world: Introduction to sociology (8th ed.). US: Sage Publications.
 Becker, H. S. (1973). Outsiders: Studies in the sociology of deviance. New York: The Free Press.
 Giddens, A., & Sutton, P. W. (Eds.). (2021). Essential Concepts in Sociology (3rd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Polity.
 Macionis, J. J. (2018). Sociology. (global 16th ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education.
 Schaefer, R. T. (2022). Sociology: A Brief Introduction (14th ed.) New York: McGraw-Hall.

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DEVIANCE AND SOCI1001A Introduction to

 Becker, an influential sociologist studying social deviance, has argued

 Deviance and social control

 Theoretical perspective on deviance

 Apart from focusing on sources and foundation of social order,

 Earlier explanations of disruptive behaviors have often revolved

 Sociologists try to examine these disruptive behavior by ascertaining

 What is defined as deviant is contextually and

 Crime is “a violation of criminal law for which

 Itis very likely that all of us are deviant from

 “attempts by society to regulate people’s thoughts and behavior”

 Deviance is necessary and functional for society (Macionis, 2018)

 Responding to deviance clarifies boundaries

 Responding to deviance brings people together

 Encouraging social change

 Merton’s theory of deviance (a. k. a. Merton’s strain theory/anomie

 Conventional or institutionalized means

 Innovation — accepting the cultural goals

 Ritualism — giving up on achieving cultural

 Retreatism — rejecting both the cultural

 Rebellion — rejecting both the cultural goals

 Symbolic interactionists focus on how our interactions with others

 The differential association theory describes how people learn to

 Primary deviance – “a violation of a norm that may be an isolated act or

 These initial acts of deviance or crime often go undetected and are

 Secondary deviance – “If an individual continues to violate a norm and

 Devianceamplification as a result of societal reaction to the deviance – a

 Labeling and agents of social control (Schaefer, 2022)

 Itfurther notes that it is important to recognize that some individuals and

 Scholars adopting the conflict perspective often focus on power

 Capitalism is often regarded as one of the main underlying

 Threatening property of others, idleness and unemployment, resistance to

Albeit engaging in the same

Image source: Macionis (2018, p. 239)

Level of analysis Micro Macro Macro

What is Deviance is part of Deviance is a basic Deviance results from

What is Deviance is variable: Deviance is universal: Deviance is political:

 Macionis, J. J. (2018). Sociology. (global 16th ed.). Harlow: Pearson Education.

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