social deviance chapter 1
All of the following are part of the positivist perspective on deviance, EXCEPT that deviance is
a label.
The author argues that an integrated definition of deviant behavior must focus on
both deviant behavior and the deviant label.
Early criminologists believed deviance was intrinsically real because they believed criminals possessed
certain biological traits absent in non-criminals.
Most positivist sociologists today continue to reject the idea of free will as an explanation of deviance because free will cannot explain why one person
commits deviant acts while others do not.
The __________ perspective is more pertinent for studying less serious kinds of deviance.
constructionist
Definitions of deviance fall into two opposing perspectives, the positivist and the
constructionist.
Early in the twentieth century, criminologists believed that
criminals are born, not made.
If you believe that deviant behavior has characteristics that distinguish it from conforming behavior, you believe deviance is
intrinsically real.
Deviant behavior is any behavior that
is considered deviant by public consensus, which may range from maximum to minimum.
Which statement about the definition of deviance is TRUE?
Sociologists cannot agree on a precise definition of deviance.
Which of the following statements about the definition of deviance is TRUE?
There is usually a great deal of disagreement among people as to what they consider deviant.
Which of the following is one reason why, for U.S. citizens, deviant behavior is more or less, rather than completely, deviant?
U.S. society is pluralistic.
Which ONE of the following questions reflects the constructionist and labeling perspective on deviance?
Why is a given act defined by society as deviant?
To say that deviance is a subjective experience means that the deviant person is
a conscious, feeling, thinking subject.
According to the labeling theory, deviance is
a label imposed by others upon a given behavior.
Among sociologists, there is
a lack of consensus about what behavior should be seen as deviant.
From the constructionist perspective, deviants are
actively seeking meaning in the deviant activities.
All of the following are definitions of deviance proposed by different sociologists, EXCEPT that deviance is
always immoral behavior.
According to the constructionist perspective, deviant behavior is
an expression of human volition.
All of the following are assumptions of the constructionist perspective on deviance, EXCEPT that deviance should be seen as
an objective fact.
Sociologists who study the role of power in the definition of deviance have discovered that the rich and powerful
can avoid the label of deviance.
Deviance as an "observable object" means that deviance
can be studied in a factual way.
To say that deviance is determined behavior implies that humans
cannot choose between good and bad.
The positivist perspective assumes that deviance is
determined behavior.
According to the constructionist perspective, sociologists need to
develop an internal, subjective view of people.
Attributing deviant behavior to choice is a form of pseudo explanation because the concept of choice
does not explain why someone chooses either deviance or normal behavior.
Which of the following kinds of deviance is best understood through a positivist perspective?
higher-consensus deviance
Which of the following aspects of deviance would be of special interest to constructionist sociologists?
how deviants seek positive meanings in deviant activity
Millions of people at one time or another have smoked marijuana. If sociologists asked a sample of U.S. citizens about this behavior, they would most likely discover that
many people disagreed about the deviant status of marijuana.
Determinist, objectivist, and absolutist are other terms for aspects of the __________ perspective on deviance.
positivist
The fact that the same behavior can be seen as normal by some and as deviant by others is called the
relativist view.
The main purpose of the positivist approach to deviance is
seeking out the causes of deviant behavior.
Today's positivist sociologists now recognize the importance of __________ for understanding deviant behavior.
social factors
One problem positivist sociological researchers face that natural scientists do not is
sociologists have difficulties with personal biases and making moral judgments about research subjects.
Which of the following conditions separates the positivist and constructionist perspectives on deviance?
the amount of public consensus about what type of behavior is deviant.
According to sociologists who study the role of power in the definition of deviance, deviance is any act that
the powerful consider to be a violation of some social rule.
Which of the following types of people are examples of positive deviants?
the saint, the intellectual, and the genius
