Preview

universality of deviance behaviour

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
376 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
universality of deviance behaviour
Deviant behavior is behavior which does not adhere to widely-accepted social or cultural norms. For example, murder is a form of extreme deviant behavior which violates the cultural norm which states that it is unacceptable to kill another human being. There are a number of approaches to the study of deviance, along with explanations for why deviant behavior occurs, and how it might be addressed. Numerous colleges and universities offer coursework in this subject, and there are professional publications dedicated to this topic, including the creatively named “Deviant Behavior.”
The first step in understanding deviant behavior is the study of cultural and social norms. Norms vary widely across cultures, and in some cases, behavior which is polite or expected in one culture may be considered rude or inappropriate in another. The study of norms includes the history of such norms, the evolutions of norms over time, and the study of changes which occur in norms as society itself shifts. For example, wearing gloves in public was once a social norm for ladies in much of the Western world, but would now be considered slightly eccentric unless the weather was cold.
Deviance can be viewed from psychological, biological, and sociological perspectives. From the perspective of sociology, issues such as class can play a role in deviant behavior. Theft, a common instance of deviant behavior, could be said to be driven by sociological pressures such as poverty. Biologists may be interested in variations in the brain which lead to expressions of deviance, along with the biological motivations for normal behavior. Psychologists are interested in the thought processes behind normal and deviant behavior, ranging from depression, which may cause people to act out, to the study of early childhood development, which explains how people learn about behavioral boundaries. Deviance is relative to time and place because what is considered deviant in one social context may be non-deviant

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Deviance incorporates behaviors, norms and traits considered a violation of the societal norms or those that trigger negative reactions from the society. There is a wide array of social deviance definitions depending on aspects such as time, situation and the culture. It is also important to note that while some forms of social deviance involve large groups of the community such as piercings and tattoos while, others are only perpetrated by very minute portions of the community such as those who commit murders. Interaction also results in the formation of certain deviant behaviors while others result from conflict or genetic markers. The criminal justice system…

    • 1239 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chapter 6 Study Questions

    • 1594 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Situational deviance is relative to a particular setting as well as dependent upon who is doing the defining. There are different degrees of deviance, there’s individual and system blame. The individual blame theory states that the normative social belief systems of society are functionally correct and contribute to a smooth and harmonious society. The theory of system blame states that deviant behavior as either a manifestation of inequality, or the attempts of the powerful to force their views of right and wrong on those with different views who are powerless to resist.…

    • 1594 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Deviant Act Assignment

    • 946 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A deviant act is one that challenges the social norms of society. According to Erikson, “Deviance is not a property inherent in certain forms of behavior; it is a property conferred upon these forms by the audience which directly or indirectly witnesses them” (Erikson, 1962, p.308). An act of deviance is judged upon and determined by society. What one person sees as deviance does not mean that everyone else shares the same viewpoint. Time is another contributing factor that weighs heavily on a society’s definition of deviance. Over time society’s norms change and thus a person’s perspective of what is deviant will also be likely to change. Nonetheless, a deviant act generates attention and this paper will focus on the social norm of a person’s personal space.…

    • 946 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Midterm

    • 2323 Words
    • 10 Pages

    1. Compare the absolutist, relativist, and social power perspectives. Which perspective do you believe would best describe your approach to deviance? Why would you choose this approach? Which of these approaches exhibits the most respect for deviant’s choice of behavior? The absolutist perspective, dominated by religious settings, hold that deviance is universal and what is wrong in one place, is wrong everywhere. This tactic to describing deviance rests on the supposition that all human behavior can be considered either innately good or innately bad. Deviant acts come to define the individual’s character and can often be based on stereotypes i.e., all parents who spank are abusing their children or all Muslims are terrorists. The absolutist perspective assumes an extensive unanimity over definitions of deviance, universal norms, and taboos. Durkheim said that social laws replicate unbiased facts integrated into functionalist notions of deviance. This perspective maintains that deviance is pathological and an objective fact. Deviance is considered unethical and reproachful of social order, requiring unyielding, retributory measures.…

    • 2323 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Theories are useful tools, which suggest the way things are and not the way things ought to be, we can use them to help us to understand the world around us. In terms of criminal and deviant behaviour the theories proposed in this subject area set out to try and give reason as to why an individual commits criminal or delinquent acts. In this essay I will be using biological, psychological and sociological explanations of criminality to suggest why individuals take part in criminal behaviours.…

    • 1629 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    White-Collar Deviance

    • 3270 Words
    • 14 Pages

    References: Baker. J. (October,2004). The Sociological Origins of “White-Collar Crime.” [The Heritage Foundation; leadership for America], Retrieved from Ebesco database.…

    • 3270 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Youth Suicide in Australia

    • 1973 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Deviant behaviour can be defined as social problems reflect violations of normative expectations. Behaviour or situations that depart from norms are deviant. Deviant behaviour is caused by inappropriate socialization – for example, when the learning of deviant ways is not outweighing by the learning of non-deviant ways. This socialization is viewed as taking place within the context of primary group relations (Rubington & Weinberg, 2003, p.124). Both suicide and binge drinking can be classified as deviant behaviour.…

    • 1973 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    crime patterns

    • 301 Words
    • 1 Page

    What are the fundamental differences between the biological, psychological, and sociological theories of deviance? Choose a sociological theory from your readings and provide a summary of its important ideas and concepts. Then choose a deviant act and utilize the theory to explain why people engage in such behaviors.…

    • 301 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    result, what society accepts as deviant behavior can be different between one or another culture…

    • 563 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Deviance is referred to the breaking or breaching of social norms or some formally enacted rules like underage drinking, breaking a traffic signal, cheating an exam or driving faster than the speed limit are all examples of deviance.…

    • 214 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Deviant Behavior/Tattoos

    • 692 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Beginning from a child we begin to experience different situations and interactions with others. We start getting taught the difference between right and wrong, what may be considered good and what is considered bad, and also taught the things we should and should not do. As we grow older we try to refrain from behavior of which society may disapprove of. Society see’s certain types of behavior as being deviant. First let’s begin by explaining what is a deviant behavior? Deviant behavior can be any behavior that does not conform to what people may consider normal, a behavior that does not meet with many expectations in society. Societies are both social structure and culture. Robert K Merton developed structural strain theory which is a perspective on what is deviance (Crossman, (n.d.)).…

    • 692 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Deviance is part of every culture and society, it is the border line between acceptable and intolerable behavior. Each micro society holds it's own definition as to what deviant behavior actually is. The deviant is one to whom that label has successfully been applied, deviant behavior is behavior that people label. Through out history, there is no doubt in my mind that deviant citizens have been a contributing part to each generation. It is all relative, a label of deviance remains a label of deviance; the question that remains really is "what is deviance?". Being labeled as an outside is not foreign for some people. Matter of fact it is acceptable and a norm to be labeled as deviant for some people. No matter what group of people you deal with through out history or life today, there are social rules written and sometimes unwritten, nonetheless meant to be broken.…

    • 687 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Crime and Deviance

    • 2163 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Deviance is an action that is not acceptable behaviour to the majority of people, breaking “rules” of society which can also infringe into the laws of the land. Such as hooliganism but this is often seen more as non compliance within social norms. An example would be homosexuality which has changed over time, as pre 1969 this was a criminal offence. In Britain and in 1994 the age of consent was reduced to aged 18yrs from 21yrs this only includes males, as females are entitled to participate in same sex relationships from the age of 16. This also changes with…

    • 2163 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Deviant Behavior

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Provide an example of a human behavior that is considered deviant in one society, but is not considered deviant in others. What are the factors that have contributed to this society's perspective of the deviant behavior? Why does this society consider the behavior to be deviant but other societies do not?…

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To explain deviance, many scientists have contributed to theories and ideas. There are biological, psychological, and sociological explanations. The sociological theorists have different perspectives. According to functionalists, deviance is a common part of human society and it has both positive and negative consequences for social stability. Sociologists with a conflict perspective view…

    • 833 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics