...Grid-group cultural theory Explanations > Culture > Grid-group cultural theory Description | Discussion | So what Description This model has two dimensions, each a measure of sociability. Group The group dimension describes how strongly people are bonded together. At one end there are distinct and separated individuals, perhaps with common reason to be together though with less of a sense of unity and connection. At the other end, people have a connected sense of identity, relating more deeply and personally to one another. They spend more time together and have stable relationships. When people group together, then laws are more easily defined and policed. For society to survive when bonds are weaker and central control is less possible, individuals must necessarily display self-restraint. In management, low group does not manage resources, whilst high group does. Grid The grid dimension describes how different people are in the group and how they take on different roles. At one end of this spectrum people are relatively homogeneous in their abilities, work and activity and can easily interchange roles. This makes them less dependent on one another. At the other end, there are distinct roles and positions within the group with specialization and different accountability. There are also different degrees of entitlement, depending on position and there may well be a different balance of exchange between and across individuals. This makes it advantageous...
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...Deviance is defined as the recognized violation of cultural norms. This is an extremely broad definition, and depending on who is explaining it, the above definition can mean a variety of different things. Critically examine the theory of deviance with reference to young people and their membership in deviant subcultures or gangs. Deviance is associated with young people today and is rapidly on the increase within the street and school environment. Young deviants are engaging in gang membership and subcultures with a means of social belonging, social interest and ethnic identity. There are several sociological and subcultural theories which deem to explain deviance. Some of the theories are functionalist pretentious that criminal activity is motivated by economic needs, while others conceive a social class basis for deviance. Deviance sociologically can be defined as a norm or rule-breaking behaviour which in most cases is focused to negative social sanctions. It describes actions or behaviours that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules. Examples of this would be crime. Cultural norms are behaviour patterns that are characteristic of specific groups. Such behaviours can be learned from parents, teachers and peers. Some norms are healthy whereas some are not. Unhealthy norms usually proceed to crime. Crime is defined as a behaviour which is prohibited and liable to be punished by law. Deviance is a behaviour not prescribed by law. Deviants are seen...
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...Francis Deviance Deviance is a behavior or action that goes against the social norms of a society. I choose Deviance as my topic because there have been a lot of social norms that have been broken through the years like how same-sex marriage, abortion, divorce, and euthanasia are a few examples of act that were not permitted and so was considered an act of deviance. Knowing this, a study of deviance in sociology would be relevant because there would many factors to consider in identifying what is a deviance in society. Like in the table made by Robert K. Merton, deviance can be affected by conformity, innovation, ritualism, and retreatism. If all four are failed to be met then rebellion becomes the new means which leads to deviance. Another example would be the hippy movement of the mid-1960’s where in people around the world wanted peace so they banded together and made communities that propagated about ending the war and making peace, but that ended badly as these hippies were not only propagating peace, but also rebellion against the government for letting the war go on. There are several theories about deviance like social pathology, biological theory, psychological theory, social disorganization theory, labeling theory, anomie or structural stress theory, conflict theory, and cultural transmissions or differential association theory. Social Pathology is how deviant behavior is caused by physical and mental illness, malfunctions or deformities. Biological Theory is how...
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...Deviance is defined as as a violation of social norms, in regards to sociology. But what if deviance is actually just the opposite? What if deviance is simply a social norm? Cultural deviance theory suggests that the conformity to cultural norms of lower class societies actually causes crime. Simply stated, if you are in a lower class of society, committing a crime is actually an act of conformity. In the case of these poor societies, it is more obscure to not conform to the consistent lifestyle of crime. Moreover, does deviance really even exist in these societies? Those born into a lower class society, according to the cultural deviance theory, are born into a life of crime. Members of the poor society are expected to commit crimes, due...
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...Ari Denburger AJ-1 Mr. Lacasso 2/16/2014 Deviance related to crime Deviance is a title that insinuates the violation of social norms in society which has been defined through law. Deviance can be described as adjacent to criminal and improper behavior imposed by the people who break the social norms of a society, thus becoming subjective to a label of “deviant”. Deviants often have punishment bestowed upon them by law enforcement officers and their local court systems. The question asked by criminologist throughout time is, “what is the underlying cause of crime?” “Is crime a learned behavior forced by strain due to the depleting environment an individual inhabits?” “Are individuals with a genetic mutation destined to become deviant?” All of these may be a result of biological and social constructionist theories of deviance, this essay will define the opposing differences and the relation of the two in this essay. Both hold contributing factors to the construction of deviance in society, but are both highly conflicting theories. Before going into the theories of deviance, the definition of deviance must be further explained. The codification of deviance can vary widely between different cultures, a norm in one culture can be considered deviant in another. For example, the notion of cannibalism has been proved by anthropologists to be a spiritually divine form of ritualistic sacrifice in the ancient Aztec culture of Mexico. Yet in Western culture murder and...
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...Reflection Two How can one define deviance in a society? Who is considered to be a deviant? In a society, deviance is any behavior or belief that violates the culture’s norms. However, the norms constantly change as the popular culture continues to transform with time. Mass media, on the other hand, is what constantly spreading and influence popular culture as it has becomes part of nearly everyone’s daily life. Since deviance depends in the current culture’s norms, which involves a large group of people in a society, one can say that it learned at a macro level. Therefore, mass media plays an important role in defining deviance socially as it sends powerful messages that spread popular culture to its targeted audience. There are several theories surrounding deviance. One should understand these theories to understand how the media plays apart in defining and promoting social deviance. Three theories that explain deviance are the Strain theory, Opportunity theory and Control theory. While each theory has its own unique analysis on deviance, one similarity they all share is that deviance is the result of unachieved goals through the normal accepted means. As a result, the pursuer of goals will rely on means that the society may not accept. The society will label those who do not follow the norm deviant. However, the label deviance is subjected differently between different groups in the society. While one large group in the society may accept a norm, other groups may not. For...
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...Chapter Eight: Deviance and Social Control Chapter Summary Sociologists use the term deviance to refer to any violation of rules and norms. From a sociological perspective, deviance is relative. Definitions of “what is deviant” vary across societies and from one group to another within the same society. Howard S. Becker described the interpretation of deviance as, “…not the act itself, but the reaction to the act that makes something deviant.” This coincides with the symbolic interactionist view. In some cases, an individual need not do anything to be labeled a deviant. He or she may be falsely accused or discredited because of a birth defect, race, or disease. Even crime is relative when interpreting the deviance of the actor. Deviance is based on adherence to and violation of norms. Human groups need norms to exist. By making behavior predictable, norms make social life possible. Consequently, all human groups develop a system of social control, which involves formal and informal means of enforcing norms. Those who violate these norms face the danger of being labeled “deviant.” Violators can expect to experience negative sanctions for the violation of norms. Members of society who conform to societal norms, especially those who go above and beyond what is commonly expected, receive positive sanctions. In some societies, such as the Amish, shaming is a common negative sanction that acts strongly as a means of social control, minimizing deviance. Biologists,...
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...Using material from item A and elsewhere, assess the usefulness of sub cultural theories in explaining “sub cultural crime and deviance” in society. Functionalist sociologists adopt a normative definition to explain crime and deviance. They categorise it as something which breaks off from or violates social norms. This means that there is an assumption that society is based on value consensus and thus laws reflect the interests and views of the majority of the population. On the other hand critical criminology such as Marxism would use the relativistic definition to define crime and thus support the notion that the law reflects the interests of the ruling class instead. One sub cultural theory which is useful in explaining sub cultural crime and deviance is Merton’s strain theory. He argued that in society, certain members may experience a strain between the cultural goals of society for example the American dream and the legitimate means to achieve these goals. Deviance results from the structure of society and reaching these goals depends on an individual’s social mobility. In a stratified society goals are inevitably linked to a person’s position in the social structure. As a result, when some members are unable to achieve goals they become disenchanted and may seek out alternative ways. Merton argued that capitalist societies suffer from anomie - a strain/conflict between the goals set by society and the legitimate (law abiding) means of achieving them. However, Merton...
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...often pragmatic and, paradoxically, irrational. (A great many of what we call manners, having no logical grounds, would make for good examples here.) Norms are rules of conduct, not neutral or universal, but ever changing; shifting as society shifts; mutable, emergent, loose, reflective of inherent biases and interests, and highly selfish and one-sided. They vary from class to class, and in the generational "gap." They are, in other words, contextual. Deviance can be described as a violation of these norms.[3] Deviance is a failure to conform to culturally reinforced norms. This definition can be interpreted in many different ways. Social norms are different in one culture as opposed to another. For example, a deviant act can be committed in one society or culture that breaks a social norm there, but may be considered normal for another culture and society. Some acts of deviance may be criminal acts, but also, according to the society or culture, deviance can be strictly breaking social norms that are intact. Viewing deviance as a violation of social norms, sociologists have characterized it as "any thought, feeling or action that members of a social group judge to be a violation of their values or rules";[4] "violation of the norms of a society or group";[5] "conduct that violates definitions of appropriate and inappropriate conduct shared by the members of a social system";[6] "the departure of...
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...Thursday 11th September 2014 Assess the usefulness of sub cultural theories in explaining sub cultural crime and deviance in society today. There are many different institutions in societies around the world. The main dominate cultures around society will share the same theories of society of what is acceptable when it comes to the norms and values of crime and deviant behaviour. Subcultural groups however differ from the main cultures of society and have a different view of the norms and values of crime and deviance. It could either be a small group in the society who either believe crime either is or isn't acceptable, none the less their view differs from the norms of values of the majority of the society. Subcultural theories can be seen to exist when a dominate cultures has the same theories of crime and the subcultural theories will differ. This may, for instance be that everyone in that society believes that crime is unacceptable and frowned upon. However in lower deprived areas they may believe crime isn't as bad as middle class people deem it to be and that in fact the acts committed which are termed criminal or deviant aren't seen as this. Merton would support the view of subcultural on the same basis that subcultural tend to be differentiated when it’s through a Marxist view point with the differentiation between middle and lower class. Merton saw that individuals in society were socialised by primary socialisation so that in that culture of the society they were...
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...Social Problems and Deviance Outline and critically analyse Labelling theory and Merton’ strain theory. Introduction: This paper will cover Strain theory and labelling theory . This will be done by an overview and explanation of the two theories, and by comparing and contrasting the theories based on the explanations of Robert Merton and Becker. The question that inspired Robert Merton, “What was the cause and explanation of why delinquents commit delinquent acts.” Robert Merton created and dedicated his research on this question that later developed into his theory that he named Anomie Strain Theory. The labelling theory links deviance not to action but to the reaction of others. The labelling theory is used as a sociological theory of crime influential in challenging positivity criminology. The key people to this theory were Becker and Lemert. While it was Lemert who introduced the key concepts of labelling theory, it was Howard Becker who become their champion. He first began describing the process of how a person adopts a deviant role in a study of dance musicians, with whom he once worked. He later studied the identity formation of marijunana smokers. This study was the basis of his Outsiders published in 1963. Labelling theory claims that deviance and conformity results not so much from what people do but from how others respond to the actions, it highlights social responses to crime and deviance. The foundations for this view of deviance are said to have to have...
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...Cultural Diversity in Criminal Justice There are many deviance theories that can be apply to the criminal justice system. Theories examine how individuals engage in crime. Deviance is any behavior that does not conform to the normal norms of a society and behavior is unacceptable to culture. Deviance is measured by society’s reaction to the violation of their social order is defined by a culture as deviant. Deviance is a label used to maintain the power, control, and position of a powerful individual or group. People deviate from social norms while some conform because of their raising and social pressures (Hayes, T.A. (2010). Labeling theory focus on individuals who society has judged to be criminal and thus label them as such. This theory looks at how a criminal, interacts with their society. Labeling theory was quite popular in the 1960s and early 1970s. Howard Becker (1963), states that criminal behavior changes throughout time. Becker says that personal motives and the influence by society have nothing to do with criminal behavior. Specific attention is giving to those that have been label a criminal and society react and operate with them. Once a person has the label of’ criminal, it becomes a constant status, even if they are mother or father criminal is the one that sticks with them. Becker states that individuals with this label begin to be associated with the word criminal (Becker, H. (1963)). The media is one of the key contributors of stereotyped characters. They...
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...Chapter Eight: Deviance and Social Control Chapter Summary Sociologists use the term deviance to refer to any violation of rules and norms. From a sociological perspective, deviance is relative. Definitions of “what is deviant” vary across societies and from one group to another within the same society. Howard S. Becker described the interpretation of deviance as, “…not the act itself, but the reaction to the act that makes something deviant.” This coincides with the symbolic interactionist view. In some cases, an individual need not do anything to be labeled a deviant. He or she may be falsely accused or discredited because of a birth defect, race, or disease. Even crime is relative when interpreting the deviance of the actor. Deviance is based on adherence to and violation of norms. Human groups need norms to exist. By making behavior predictable, norms make social life possible. Consequently, all human groups develop a system of social control, which involves formal and informal means of enforcing norms. Those who violate these norms face the danger of being labeled “deviant.” Violators can expect to experience negative sanctions for the violation of norms. Members of society who conform to societal norms, especially those who go above and beyond what is commonly expected, receive positive sanctions. In some societies, such as the Amish, shaming is a common negative sanction that acts strongly as a means of social control, minimizing deviance. Biologists, psychologists, and...
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...What Is Deviance? The word deviance connotes odd or unacceptable behavior, but in the sociological sense of the word, deviance is simply any violation of society’s norms. Deviance can range from something minor, such as a traffic violation, to something major, such as murder. Each society defines what is deviant and what is not, and definitions of deviance differ widely between societies. For example, some societies have much more stringent rules regarding gender roles than we have in the United States, and still other societies’ rules governing gender roles are less stringent than ours. Gender and Deviance In the United States, women who cry in public in response to emotional situations are not generally considered deviant—even women who cry frequently and easily. This view of women has remained relatively constant. Over the past fifty years, however, society’s perception of men who cry has changed. A man who cried publicly in the 1950s would have been considered deviant. Today, men who cry in response to extreme emotional situations are acting within society’s norms. Male politicians cry when announcing defeat, male athletes cry after winning a championship, and male actors cry after winning an award. By today’s standards, none of these men is committing a deviant act. Relativism and Deviance Deviance is a relative issue, and standards for deviance change based on a number of factors, including the following: * Location: A person speaking loudly during a church service...
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...Throughout the study of sociology, a reoccurring theme is that deviance seems to exist in the eye of the beholder, much like beauty. No act committed is automatically deviant, but must be defined as such. From as far back as medieval times to the present, it has always been the upper class dominating the lower class, those on the higher end of the social ladder that shapes the society people live in and define what deviant behaviour is and what is not. Those who have the power over such decisions can be classified as Moral Entrepreneurs, They strongly believe that their set of norms is the “right” way to live, their foundation is built on the belief that deviance lies within the individual, and therefore if you want to understand the deviance you must first seek out the problem within the individual and then treat them to get rid of deviance. Those who lack power and social standing are classified as the Cultural Paradigm and they have the complete opposite view of the Moral Entrepreneurs, they believe that the problem lies within society rather than in the individual therefore in order to deter deviance the problem that lies within society must be fixed. A clash of two titans in a one sided battle, however who is correct in terms of which manner is the better one to deter deviance. Should people be looking at the individual or at the society in which they live in? Through the eyes of great minds such as Becker, Kaplan, Denton and Parnaby it will become clearer that it is indeed...
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