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Social Setup: Deviance, Crime, and Law
Bias is the way to prioritize a few ideas and some people over the second, which results in unfair and unequal treatment of people. Lack of internal assessments in decision making by an individual, and the meanings being conveyed to the other party is taken as a generalization. Bias is that mechanism which gives you an incorrect and weak internal assessment (Rothman et al.). Biases change the human behaviors towards the understanding of the societies maybe they are positive (Conformity) or maybe they are negative (deviant) behaviors.
Deviance in sociological terms means, the violation of pre-existing cultural, social norms, whether lifestyles, customs or laws. Deviance can be related to killing someone. ‘‘In modern language and deviance is take in a negative implication but for sociologists, this is not considered as bad or negative’’ (Schoepflin). For the Functionalist school of thought, deviance plays two main roles. First, patterns of recognitions and punishments for deviance create new norms and sets an example to the whole society that what type of behavioral patterns should be there. Individuals need to be aware of these settings to avoid conflicts and problems in society. Second, boundaries are to be defined by different societal parameters for the people living within the groups.
Deviancy is not always negative, but sometimes deviancy is a reason for unity because people living in communities get together to support each other. Homosexuality can be an example of deviance which made LGBT come forward and support each other. Sometimes deviancy in societies can cause disharmony and disturbances because of the rigid behaviors of people. Stigmatizing a few behaviors may be the reason for the disruption in society.
Robert Merton agrees that deviance is the intrinsic part of the present societies; he later on extended the idea of Durkheim's ideas by presenting Strain Theory. In the United States, the black students also participated in the civil rights movement; this shows that they challenged the notions of isolation in society. Durkheim further added that punishing a deviant, it claims and reassures the existing social setup and norms and deviance can be repeated. According to Strain Theory, the goal which is acceptable in society determines the behavior of individuals whether they deviate from conforming. Conformity is the decision for not choosing deviation; they follow the social patterns to achieve their goals and targets.
Strain theorists believe that the existing social structure can be the reason for committing crimes in society because of the pressure they get from their societies. Deviance is the reason for breaking one reason to achieve another cause or a goal. In the United States of America, individuals sell illegal drugs, for them making money is accepted, not the cultural values. The Social Disorganization proponents believe that people who are grown up in those are which lack basic life necessities tend to commit more crimes, and they participate in more deviant behaviors. According to Social Disorganization theory, where there is a lack of social ties between people, and there is no social control, then there are maximum possibilities of crimes.
The data of National Crime Victimization Surveys conduct researches, including 240,000 respondents by interviewing them. They involve 160,000 specific persons as respondents. They are interviewed about nonfatal personal crimes, crimes related to house properties and other crimes. Survey respondents are asked questions related to their origin (whether they are Hispanic or not), age, sex, and race. National Crime Victimization lets people volunteer for the survey, and it has higher rates of crimes as compared to the Uniform Crime Report. The crimes were only reported to NCVS, not to the police. There is only one disadvantage that this report does not approach those people who do not have access to telephones and other facilities. Access to Criminal Justice System would encourage the drop in crime rates and the fair justice system without effected by any biases.
According to Labelling Theory, the behaviors and reactions towards deviance are the factors to change deviant over time to time and culture to culture. Targeting and labeling of specific people can result in the behavior of people towards organizations. Merton believed that respondents or people who are under specific conditions would feel deprived because of the comparison in which they are conditioned. Pressurizing individuals for alternative modes and behaviors can cause and introduce complexity and unmanageable conflicts.
Stereotyping and biases cannot be resisted, and they exist in the social setups. Conflict theory suggests that the causes of deviance and crime are because of social and economic factors. Inequality in the society and prevailing systems cause crimes and deviance. Furthermore, Conflict Theory, being impressed by Karl Marx, believed that the population was divided into groups. The first one, Bourgeois, who were controlling all means of business and production. By their influence of law, government and other authoritative institutions, they successfully managed to centralize the powers. The second class was Proletariats, the working class who were dependent on Bourgeois for their employment opportunities, and their survival.
People can be connected by creating social bonds in society to avoid and minimize deviant behaviors. There are four types of social bonding, i.e. attachments, commitments, social involvement and belief systems (Hirschi). Where there is social bonding among people with diversities, there will be less deviant behaviors, and there will be lower rates of crimes. Absence of these will create disharmony in the society which will promote crimes and deviance in the social setups.
Works Cited
Hirschi, Travis, and Rodney Stark. "Hellfire and delinquency." Social Problems 17.2 (1969): 202-213.
Merton, Robert King, and Robert C. Merton. Social theory and social structure. Simon and Schuster, 1968.
Rothman, Kenneth J., Sander Greenland, and Timothy L. Lash. Modern epidemiology. Vol. 3. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2008.
Schoepflin, Todd. "Deviant While Driving?." Everyday Sociology Blog, January 28 (2011).
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