Sociology 201 Chapter 6

Positive Deviance

Actions considered deviant within a given context but are later reinterpreted as appropriate or even heroic

Deterrence

An approach to punishment that relies on the threat of harsh penalties to discourage people from committing crimes

Incapacitation

An approach to punishment that seeks to protect society from criminals by imprisoning and executing them

self-fulfilling prophecy

An inaccurate statement or belief that, by altering the situation, becomes accurate. A prediction that causes itself to come true

Innovators

Individuals who accept societies approved goals but not societies approved means to achieve them

ritualist

Individuals who have given up hope of achieving societies approved goals but still operate according to society's approved means

Rebels

Individuals who reject societies approved goals and means and instead create and work toward their own goals using new means

Retreatists

Individuals who renounce societies approved goals and means entirely and live outside conventional norms altogether

tertiary deviance

redefining the stigma associated with a deviant label as a positive phenomenon

labeling theory

theory that society creates deviance by identifying particular members as deviant

stereotype threat

fear that we may confirm a negative group stereotype

Stigma (n)

mark of disgrace

Retribution

A repayment; a deserved punishment

Deviance

A behavior, trait, belief, or other characteristic that violates an alarm and causes a negative reaction

criminal justice system

A formal response by police, courts, and prison officials to alleged violations of the law

Differential Association Theory

A hypothesis that we learn to be deviant through our associations with deviant peers

Stereotype promise

A kind of self fulilling prophecy in which positive stereotypes lead to positive performance outcomes

Passing

Presenting yourself as a member of a different group than the stigmatized group you belong to. Ex. Acting straight

deviance avowal

Process by which an individual self identifies as deviant and initiates his/her own labeling process

Capital punishment

The death penalty

secondary deviance

The subsequent deviant identity or career that develops as a result of being labeled deviant

primary deviance

the initial act of rule breaking that causes one to be labeled as deviant