Durkheim's Functions Of Social Deviance

“Deviance in sociological context describes actions or behaviors that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules (e.g., crime) as well as informal violations of social norms.”

Please describe the impact Marx, Durkheim, & Weber had on sociology as prominent contributors of the discipline.

In sociology, the term deviance refers to all violations of social rules, regardless of their seriousness (Essentials of Sociology 136). Deviance is an individual or organizational behavior that violates societal norms and is usually accompanied by negative reactions from others. According to a sociologist S. Becker, he stated that it is not the act itself that makes an action deviant, but rather how society reacts to it.

Some deviate from societal norms because they want to acquire a new means of belongingness or membership that they can’t get elsewhere. For example, like the gang bangers in Los Angeles who shot the woman’s son may have done it to get into the gang to feel a part of something because they weren’t or didn’t feel accepted by the larger society. Some deviate due to poverty by innovating a way to make money quickly by selling drugs like that in New Orleans. Finally, some are even forced to deviate like the man who was laid off because he couldn’t repay his debt so he lost his home and was forced to become a dangerous consumer, hurting the economy, and a part of the other millions of poor people. Deviance is increasingly hurting the lives of many families and people as it is constantly changing and globally flows throughout the

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?

The movie The Boondock Saints provides an excellent example of positive deviance through innovation. The Social theory of deviance can easily explain the brothers’ actions. The movie can be used to study deviance as the brothers kill people who are mafia members, breaking the norms of society. Even though the acts they are committing are clearly illegal and deviant, the people of South Boston do not react in a negative way. Since the Social theory is very broad, it will be easier to look at the brother’s acts under three sub theories: Labeling, Conflict and Strain theories.

Deviance can be defined as an absence of conformity to the social norm. Not all deviant behavior is necessarily illegal or harmful to individuals, these behaviors can range from standing in another’s personal space to murdering another individual. In some cases, it can be looked upon as a positive change or a unique and favorable act. Although, considered deviant because it is not the social norm, it still can have a very positive social aspect or lead to social change. Culture and the societies within these cultures have a significant impact on what is considered deviant and what is acceptable or even lawful behavior. The degree of deviance is measured by society’s reaction towards the action and the lawful sanctions that may take

Deviance is socially constructed because it is defined and outlined firmly by society’s norms. As a result, a deviant act in one society may not be considered deviant within a different society. Societies define themselves through the shared common values of the individuals and in order for a society to maintain these values and cultural identity they create and maintain boundaries (Erikson, 2005, p17). These boundaries allow individuals to relate to each other in an articulate manner and so that they may develop a position within society (Erikson, 2005, p17). The boundaries are created by individuals’ behavior and interactions in their regular social relations. Deviance then becomes the actions which society perceived to be outside of its boundaries. In other words, an act is viewed as deviant when it falls outside of those commonly shared values and norms which created the boundaries. This is because the society is making a declaration about the disposition and arrangement of their boundaries. Boundaries are not fixed to any society rather they shift as the individual’s redefine their margins and position on a larger cultural map (Erikson, 2005, p20).

Social groups create deviance by making the rules whose infraction constitutes deviance, and by applying those rules to particular people and labeling them as outsiders. From this point of view, deviance is not a quality of the act the person commits, but rather a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an

It is believed that deviance encourages social change. A good example of this would be how race and ethnicity are strongly linked to crime rates. The amount of African Americans that were involved in crimes was a higher proportion than any other race. African Americans makes up 13 percent of the population but were accounted for 28.9 percent of the arrest. There are several reasons why arrest for African American could be this high but the main cause would probably be because of social standing.

Deviance is the behavior and the standards of expectations of a group or society. It is also behavior that is considered dangerous, threatening or offensive. The people that are deviant are often labeled to be weirdos, oddballs, or creeps. In the United States, people with tattoos, drug addicts, alcoholics, and compulsive gamblers are all considered deviant. Sociologists believe that everybody is deviant from time to time. They believe each person will violate a social norm in certain situations. People are considered deviant if they don't stand for the national anthem at a sports event, dress casually to a fancy restaurant, or skip classes. One category of deviance is Crime. Crime is a violation of norms

Theories of Deviance are limited in their ability to explain deviant acts if one adopts the view that these theories are universal. There is no universal, right or wrong theory, rather each theory provides a different perspective which only "fully makes sense when set within an appropriate societal context and values framework" .

I enjoyed reading your post. As we know Durkheim defines deviance as an essential component in creating a balance in the society. I think deviance is only difference. It's only 'wrong' if it's deemed as such. Deviance creates social change, it can be good. I mean, what is deviance? Was the civil rights movement deviant behavior? It was 'different' and against the government, certainly. All crime is deviant, but you wouldn't say all crime is inherently bad.And drugs may be deviant, but why are they bad? Because we (or someone in authority) say they are. Things only have the meanings we attribute to them, so deviant behavior is only 'wrong' because we say it is.The definitions we attribute to things depends on our interaction with each other,

When individuals contemplate the term deviance, they often think of it as behavior that is inherently bad. Contrary to that belief, deviance is described as a behavior that departs from the social constructs of a society(Thio 2010). Deviance, criminal or not, is commonly used amongst mass media to entertain their viewers. The media relies on their audience’s inherent social constructs to make a profit. Without the meanings attached to these deviant behaviors, there wouldn’t be any motive behind showing them.

Author of the 2002 Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice, Charles R. states that the word deviance is one that “usually refers to some behavior that is inconsistent with the standards of acceptable conduct prevailing in a given social group, although the term has also been used to designate personal conditions, ideas, or statuses that are stigmatized or disreputable” (p. 1). Assuming this ideal as fact, we must consider those who influence the change in behavior that is deemed “disreputable.” In order to understand this, the Nation must be observed in a large scale while searching for the persons that are most influential. In this way, we must designate which behaviors are considered deviant and how those influential people help those behaviors to be deemed so. Anything similar to gang activity, drug use, violence of any