SOCI 1010 Lecture Notes - Differential Association, Labeling Theory, Yasser Arafat
10 Feb 2013
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Document Summary
All societies have some degree of deviance: any behaviour, belief, or condition that violates significant social norms in the society or group in which it occurs. Deviance is relative an act is deviant when it is socially defined as such. Deviance varies in seriousness and may be difficult to define, but some forms may be officially defined as crimes: behaviours that violate criminal law and are punishable with fines, jail terms, and other sanctions. In a functioning society, deviance will be limited because most people share common cultural goals agree on the appropriate means for reaching them. When people are denied legitimate access to a goal, some may seek access through deviant means. For deviance to occur, people must have access to illegitimate opportunity structures: circumstances that provide an opportunity for people to acquire through illegitimate activities what they cannot get through legitimate channels (theft, drug dealing, robbery)
