SOCI 101 InQuisitive Ch. 6

Events in labeling theory

(1) socially deviant act (2) individual called a truant which propels the individual into a process of self-labeling and being labeled by others (3) the public labeling starts to affect how others see this individual (4) how the individual is seen by others now affects how the individual sees himself (5) individual starts to behave in a manner that is consistent with how he has been labeled

Foucalt's views on the history of social control methods

- Foucalt draws several contrasts between premodern and modern penal practices - where premodern practice targets the body, modern practice targets the soul - where premodern practice is punitive, modern practice is reformative - where premodern practice is about spectacle, modern practice is about surveillance

Functionalism

- a search and attention to functional importance of a person's behavior in relation to the rest of the social group

Informal behavior sanctions

- adults have no real authority over children that are not theirs - not having legal authority

Howard S. Becker

- applied labeling theory to the question of how deviance begins - social groups create deviance, first by setting rules for what is right and wrong and second by labeling rule breakers

Retreatist vs Rebel

- complementary cousins - they have in common a rejection of both the goals and means approved by society - they react in opposite ways: the one by retreating, the other by attacking

organic social sanctions

- court system (highly developed form)

Circumstances in which crimes are more likely to be reported

- crime is more likely to be reported more often when individuals feel comfortable doing so, such as when they know where to go, have options, and have been directly encourage to report crime - crime is more likely to be reported in communities where it is rare - crime is less likely to be reported in communities where it is common, and where members of the neighborhood feel they have little power - media discussions of crime and the benefits of reporting crime may encourage victims to come forward, particularly if they feel they are helping others avoid becoming victims

Deterrence theory

- crime occurs because people make a rational calculation regarding the costs and benefits of crime - based on this theory, programs that monitor former criminals are meant to prevent recidivism - theory based on the idea that individuals make choices based on their calculation of the costs and benefits of that action (rational) - focuses on ways to make crime less appealing - programs focus specifically on how to reduce recidivism, or the act of returning to criminal activity after having spent time in the criminal justice system

conformist

- embraces socially acceptable goals and the means to achieve those goals

innovator

- embraces socially acceptable goals but rejects the means to achieve those goals

ritualist

- embraces socially acceptable means but rejects the goals

What happens as society becomes more fully modern (Durkheim)

- expect the death penalty to disappear entirely - a formal court system appears - does not believe that the balance between organic and mechanical sanctions oscillates back and forth - mechanical social sanctions will have their limited place in society - ratio of organic to mechanical social sanctions will increase

Eyes and ears of the street (Jane Jacobs)

- includes both those at play and those at work - anyone who is part of the community - informal monitoring done by people while they are also occupied with other things

Formal behavioral sanctions

- instructions from a police officer (illegal to disobey) - if the law exists, individuals are legally responsible for enforcing it

Labeling theory: secondary deviance

- labeling prompts secondary deviant behavior - eventual effect of primary deviance

Symbolic interactionist theory of social deviance

- labeling theory: a recognition of the impact of assigning labels to people and behaviors - micro vs macro: a focus on individual psychology rather than the social dynamics of large populations

Labeling theory: primary deviance

- leads to labeling - where deviance begins

Broken windows theory of social deviance

- major crimes can be reduced by fighting minor ones - graffiti can signal the first stages of neighborhood decay - not about targeting major crimes directly

Social deviance

- modes of action that do not conform to the norms or values held by most members of the group or society - includes not only rude and illegal behavior, but also behavior that is nonconformist and makes other people uncomfortable

Factors that make someone a social deviant (Robert Merton)

- not recognizing or not accepting socially approves goals - about one's personal behavior within society as it actually is - failure to recognize and accept socially approved means of achieving one's goals - key question is how one's goals and the means to meeting them compare with what society prescribes

Functions of the Youth Control Complex

- not seen as a force for good - to stigmatize young people - to criminalize young people - to punish young people - a coming together of different institutions in a way that is contrary to everyone's best interests

Emile Durkheim

- offered a functionalist theory of the causes of suicide

Labeling theory

- point is that people learn to be deviant rather than starting out that way - cycle starts with behavior and leads to changes in self-image

rebel

- rejects both socially acceptable goals and the means to achieve the goals, and wants to change or destroy the social order

retreatist

- rejects both socially acceptable goals and the means to achieve those goals and does not participate in society

Robert Merton

- strain theory as a functionalist account of social deviance - explains how society gives us certain templates for acting correctly and incorrectly - character type: innovator, conformist, retreatist, rebel, ritualist

altruistic

- suicides occur in communities that are highly integrated - individual members can lose sight of their own identity and may feel the need to commit suicide for the good of the group

egoistic

- suicides occur in communities that are not well integrated - individuals may feel like no one will notice if they are gone, or that no one cares about them

Durkheim's views on modern versus premodern punishment

- the death penalty has more staying power than Durkheim would have expected - death penalty shows no sign of disappearing in the U.S.

Paradoxical relationship between deviance and social cohesion (Dalton Conley)

- the deviant member of society ends up contributing to the strengthening of the social fabric - deviant member publicly reminds everyone of the line between what is acceptable and what is not - other members of the group join together in order to punish and/or rehabilitate the offender

punitive social sanction

- to enact vengeance on the wrongdoer - to discourage the wrongdoer from repeating his action and to discourage others from imitating him

Restitutive social sanction

- to restore the status quo that existed before the offense - aim at reversing or at least mitigating the effects of the misdeed

Rehabilitative social sanction

- to transform the wrongdoer into a productive member of society - described as therapeutic

Actions that would reduce crime according to differential opportunity theory

- treats people as rational agents who choose the economically more attractive option - increased returns on legitimate work make honest work a more attractive prospect, relative to the alternative life of crime - tougher penalties would make crime less attractive relative to law-abiding activities - key idea is that when confronted with two options, such as law-abiding life or a law-breaking one, people choose based on which option provides a greater economic return

Erving Goffman

- work may be thought of as a contribution to the labeling theory, closely related to the symbolic interactionist tradition - applied social interactionist theory to the dynamics of total institutions - theorized how total institutions often become breeding grounds for secondary deviance because no barriers exist between the usual spheres of life