Sociology Ch. 6

who created the control theory?

Sociologist Walter Reckless

serial murder (serial killers)

the killing of several victims in three or more separate events

social order

we create norms to serve as guidelines and to maintain social order and conformity

examples of crime

white collar crime, corporate crime, hate crime

example of genetic predispositon

woman are incline to nurture their children so have more empathy, greater self-control, and less risk-taking behavior, while men engage in more violent behavior so less empathy, lower self-control, and tendency for danger

what is inner control?

(self-control) -our internalized morality-conscience, religious principals, ideas of right and wrong -fears of punishment and the desire to be a "good" person

white collar crime

Edwin Sutherland's term for crimes committed by people of a high status in the course of their occupation

differential association

Edwin Sutherland's term to indicate we learn to deviate by those we associate with in our lives

deviance encourages social unity

affirms the group's moral boundaries by punishing deviants create a "we" feeling among group ex. "you cannot get away with that"

positive sanctions

an expression of approval for following a norm, ranging from a smile or good grade in class to a material reward such as a prize

negative sanctions

an expression of disapproval for breaking a norm, ranging from a mild, informal reaction such as a frown to a formal reaction such as a fine or prison

capital punishment

death penalty

people involved in differential association

families, friends, neighbors

example of deviance

homosexuality

genetic predisposition

inborn tendencies (a tendency to commit deviant acts)

medicalization of deviance

to make deviance a medical matter, a symptom of some underlying illness that needs to be treated by physicians

corporate crime

type of white collar crime, where corporate executives commit crimes in order to benefit their corporation

what are the different explanations for deviant and criminal behavior

sociology/biology: look for answers inside individuals, genetic predispositions psychology: focus on conditions within individuals, personality disorders sociology: sociologists look for answers outside social environments of an individual

what does labeling theory focus on?

the significance of reputations, how reputations or labels help set us on paths that propel us into deviance or divert us away from it

criminal justice system

the system of police, courts, and prisons set up to. deal w/ people who are accused of having committing a crime

personality disorders

the view that a personality disturbance of some sort causes an individual to violate social norms

labeling theory

the view that the labels people are given affect their own and others' perceptions of them, thus channeling their behavior into either deviance or conformity

deviance

the violation of norms (or rules or expectations)

crime

the violation of norms written in law

stigma

"blemishes" that discredit a person's claim to a "normal" identity

social control

a group's formal and informal means of enforcing it's norms

example of street crimes

mugging, rape, and burglary

what is outer control?

(formal and informal) consists of people-such as family, friends, and the police-who influence us not to deviate

examples of differential association

-boys & girls in scouts vs boys and girls in gangs -families that are involved in crimes tend to have their children on a similar path -most parents want their child out of a "bad" neighborhood away from delinquents

ex of medicalization of deviance

-deviance, including crime is a sign of mental sickness -rape, murder, stealing, cheating, are external symptoms of internal disorders, consequences of a confused or tortured mind, and should be treated by health experts

ex of police discretion

-in New York city, to keep their crime statistics low, the police will keep some crime victims waiting in the police station for hours so they will leave -some police will listen but will not make a written record about it

ex of corporate crime

-sears executives defrauded $100 million from victims so poor that they had filed for bankrupty -citigroup was caught stealing from the poor

difference between "white-collar crime" and "street crime"

-white collar crime is a crime that people from a high and respectable status commit to help their occupation -street crime is committed by one in a lower social class and does it as way to survive

what are the functional, conflict, and symbolic interaction perspectives of deviance

1. deviance clarifies moral boundaries and affirms norms 2. deviance encourages social unity 3. deviance promotes social change

What are the five different techniques of neutralization?

Denial of Responsibility, Denial of Injury, Denial of victim, condemnation of the condemners, and appeal to higher loyalty

what are the two control systems that work against our tendencies to deviate?

Inner control and outer control

examples of stigma

a facial birthmark, blindness, deafness, mental handicaps, a huge nose, ears that stick out

deviance clarifies moral boundaries and affirms norms

a group's ideas about how people should think and act, deviance challenges those boundaries ex. "you broke an important rule, and we cannot tolerate that."

degradation ceremony

a term coined by Harold Garfinkel, to refer to a ritual whose goal is to remake someone's self by stripping away that individual's self identity and stamping a new identity in its place

three-strikes law

a third felony conviction leads to a higher mandatory sentencing

an example of applying control theory

at a nightclub and everyone is extremely weird and happy, your friend tells you that everyone is doing a drug. your inner controls are the inner voices you hear of your parents, teachers, police, etc. outer controls are like the security guard looking at you. which do you decide to do what control is stronger?

examples of the five different techniques of neutralization

denial of responsibility: "I'm not responsible for what happened because...." said it was an "accident" denial of injury: "What I did wasn't wrong because no one got hurt." "just having fun" denial of victim: trashing a teacher's car for giving them a bad grade, protecting their selves because its what the people "deserved" condemnation of the condemners: "hypocrites", "who are they to accuse me of something" appeal to higher loyalty: "i help to do it to help my friends"

example of a social order

depend on grocery clerks to sell you milk, depend on paying the same price as everyone else

"killing is a deviant in mainstream society, but for members of the mafia, not to kill after certain of their norms are broken would be the deviant act"

differential association

example of a positive sanction

getting a raise, getting an A in a class

example of a negative sanctions

getting fired, failing a class, gossiping

examples of labeling theory

negative labels: pervert, cheater positive labels: very truthful, highly intelligent

deviance promotes social change

not everyone agrees on what to do when people push break rules, deviance may force a group to rethink and redefine its moral boundaries helping groups and whole societies to adapt to changing things

street crime

often committed by those of the lower social class as a way to survive

difference between "deviance" and "crime"

one is against the law while the other is against a moral or value one contains

shaming

public humiliation

control theory

the idea that two control systems-inner control and outer controls-work against our tendencies to deviate

recidivism rate

the percentage of released convicts who are rearrested

police discretion

the practice of police, in the norma course of their duties, to either arrest or ticket someone for an offense or to overlook the matter