Chapter 6 Flashcards
(37 cards)
Deviance
Straying away from the norm or the usual; a neutral term
Overt Characteristics
actions or qualities taken as explicitly violating the cultural norm.
Covert Characteristics
the unstated qualities that might make a particular group a target for sanctions. Include age, ethnic background, sex, and even poverty.
Strain Theory (Robert Merton)
A disconnect between society’s culturally defined goals and the uneven distribution of the means necessary to achieve those goals.
Subcultural Theory (Albert Cohen)
Seeks to explain the development of “delinquent subculture
Delinquent Subculture
made up of young lower class males suffering from a status frustration
Status Frustration
failing to succeed in middle-class institutions, especially school, they become socialized into an oppositional subculture which the values of school are inverted
non-utalitarian
object which weren’t stolen because they were needed but simply because the act of steeling respected in delinquent subculture.
norms
the rules or expectations of behaviour
negative sanctions
negative reactions to behaviour
positive sanctions
positive reactions to behaviour
Labelling Theory (Howard Becker)
theory that labels applied to individuals and groups outside the mainstream become internalized both by those cast as deviant and by the majority group
Master Status
a status which dominates any and all other statuses, and may eventually become internalized
contested
not everyone agrees
Social constructionism
puts forth the idea that certain elements of social life– including deviance, but also gender, “race,” and other elements–are not natural but artificial, created by society or culture.
Essentialism
argues that there is something “natural,” “true,” “universal,” and therefore “objectively determined” about these aspects of social life.
Stigma
a human attribute that is seen ago discredit an individual’s social identity.
Types of Stigma (Goffman)
- Bodily Stigma
- Moral Stigma
- Tribal Stigmas
Bodily Stigma
abominations of the body and various physical deformities
Moral Stigma
blemishes of individual character perceived as weak will, domineering or unnatural passions, treacherous and rigid beliefs, and dishonesty. These can include imprisonment, addiction, suicidal attempts, alcoholism, homosexuality, unemployment, and radical political behaviour.
Tribal Stigma
Tribal stigmas of race, nation, and religion, these being stigma that can be transmitted through lineages and equally contaminate all members of a family.
The other
is an image constructed by the dominant culture to characterize subcultures
Racializing deviance
making ethnic background a couvert characteristic of deviance, as though all people of a particular ethnic group are involved in the same supposedly deviant behaviour
multiculturalism
a set of policies and practices designed to promote respect for cultural differences