Sociology Of Deviant Behavior

The following compendium consists of seven chapters. All of these statements focus upon the theoretical developments and controversies associated with the theory of crime and/or deviance that developed in the United States in the mid-to-late twentieth century. The theories and controversies remain salient in the sociological analysis of deviance, crime, and delinquency to this day. The authors hope and believe that this compilation will be valuable to professors and students of upper-level undergraduate courses and those pursuing advanced sociological degrees and careers in sociology, as well as providing a sharper understanding of the comparative analysis of sociological theory. Their aim is to reveal that, at each stage of the development of sociological understanding and knowledge, theory matters.

Deviant Behavior offers an engaging and wide-ranging discussion of deviant behavior, beliefs, and conditions. It examines how the society defines, labels, and reacts to whatever, and whoever, falls under this stigmatizing process—thereby providing a distinctly sociological approach to the phenomenon. The central focus in defining what and who is deviant is the audience—members of the influential social collectivities that determine the outcome of this process. The discussion in this volume encompasses both the explanatory (or positivist) approach and the constructionist (or labeling) perspectives, thereby lending a broad and inclusive vista on deviance. The central chapters in the book explore specific instances or forms of deviance, including crime, substance abuse, and mental disorder, all of which share the quality that they and their actors, believers, or bearers may be judged by these influential parties in a negative or derogatory fashion. And throughout Deviant Behavior, the author emphasizes that, to the sociologist, the term "deviant" is completely non-pejorative; no implication of inferiority or inherent stigma is implied; what the author emphasizes is that specific members of the society—social circles or collectivities—define and treat certain parties in a derogatory fashion; the sociologist does not share in this stigmatizing process but observes and describes it.

What makes behavior deviant, and who gets to decide what deviance is? Deviant Behavior seeks to answer these questions and more. This compelling new text covers the social forces that shape deviance, the motivations and consequences of deviant behaviors, and how our definition of deviance changes over time. Authors John A. Humphrey and Frank Schmalleger discuss a wide range of deviant behaviors—from criminal acts to extreme forms of everyday behavior—and provide students the necessary foundation to understand the impact of globalization on traditional and emerging forms of deviance. Readers will explore deviance in the modern world using a systematic application of social and criminological theories to a range of deviant behaviors to help them better understand themselves, others, and society. Included with this title: The password-protected Instructor Resource Site (formally known as SAGE Edge) offers access to all text-specific resources, including a test bank and editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides.

The Handbook of Deviance is a definitive reference for professionals, researchers, and students that provides a comprehensive and engaging introduction to the sociology of deviance. Composed of over 30 essays written by an international array of scholars and meticulously edited by one of the best known authorities on the study of deviance Features chapters on cutting-edge topics, such as terrorism and environmental degradation as forms of deviance Each chapter includes a critical review of what is known about the topic, the current status of the topic, and insights about the future of the topic Covers recent theoretical innovations in the field, including the distinction between positivist and constructionist perspectives on deviance, and the incorporation of physical appearance as a form of deviance

Through a series of 45 carefully selected readings (20 new to this edition), Deviant Behavior explores the ramifications of deviance for both the individual and society, examining the responses of society to deviant behavior and the reasons why certain people violate the social norm. Overall, the text probes the establishment and maintenance of deviant categories; the motivations behind deviant behavior; the formal and informal labelling of individuals and particular segments of society as deviant; the effects of institutionalization; the efforts of those considered deviant to shake the label; and the way deviant categories and structures can be altered.

This book is for the student in the introductory course on deviant be havior and in related courses. A wide range of ideas and facts is set forth in a way that should be comprehensible to the student without prior knowledge of this area of study. In Chapter 1, "The Nature of Deviance," various ways of defining deviance are explored and one is settled upon: Deviance is behavior that is unusual, not typical, in a society or group. Chapter 2 is devoted to a preliminary consideration of several main currents of social thought that seek to explain why deviance comes about and is perpetrated. These explanations fall into four broad theo retical categories. First, there are those theories that view the major sources of deviance as having to do with the extent to which individ uals are bound into or dissociated from the group; these are termed social integration theories. Second, there are the cultural support the ories, which specify that there are subcultures of deviance, that is, bod ies of customs and values that advocate a given form of deviance and are socially transmitted from one person to another through the learn ing process. Third, there are social disorganization and conflict theo ries, which focus on the ways in which a lack of group organization and the presence of broad social and cultural conflicts bring about de viance.