Exam 7: Deviance and Crime

The term __________ refers to illegal or unethical acts involving the use of power by government officials,or illegal/unethical acts perpetrated against the government by outsiders seeking to make a political statement,undermine the government,or overthrow it.

Suppose that a bully comes into town and the residents band together in order to oppose the threat.This illustrates which function of deviance?

__________ crimes involve an illegal action voluntarily engaged in by the participants.Many people assert that such conduct should not be labeled a crime; these offenses are often referred to as victimless crimes because they involve a willing exchange of illegal goods or services among adults.

__________ is any behavior,belief,or condition that violates significant social norms in the society or group in which it occurs.

Describe the underground economy and the ways it enables criminal networks.

Some postmodern theorists emphasize that the study of deviance reveals how the powerful exert control over the powerless by taking away their free will to think and act as they might choose.

Persons from __________ socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to be arrested for violent and property crimes.

Outline the four major goals of punishment: retribution,deterrence,incapacitation,and rehabilitation.

Describe the crime classifications and how crime statistics are gathered.

Criminologist Ronald Akers created the __________ theory,which combines differential association theory with elements of psychological learning theory,suggesting that both deviant behavior and conventional behavior are learned through the same social processes.

__________ deviance occurs when a person who has been labeled a deviant accepts that new identity and continues the deviant behavior.

Define punishment,state the four functions of punishment,and explain the restorative justice perspective.

__________ crimes include robbery,burglary,larceny,motor vehicle theft,and arson.In most of these crimes,the primary motive is to obtain money or some other desired valuable.

Incapacitation is punishment that a person receives for infringing on the rights of others.It imposes a penalty on the offender and is based on the premise that the punishment should fit the crime.The greater the degree of social harm,the more the offender should be punished.

Expanding on Merton's theory,sociologists Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin suggested that,for deviance to occur,people must have access to illegitimate opportunity structures.

Provide a personal definition of deviance.Then identify and discuss what you think are the five most deviant acts that you can imagine a person doing.

According to the conflict perspective,the poor commit street crimes in order to survive; they find that they cannot afford the essentials such as food,clothing,shelter,and health care.Thus,some crime represents a rational response by the poor to the unequal distribution of resources in society.

Sociologist Walter Reckless stated that society produces pushes and pulls that move people toward criminal behavior; however,many people do not resort to deviance because of inner containments-such as supportive family and friends,reasonable social expectations,and supervision by others.

Many people do not resort to deviance because of __________ containments such as self-control,a sense of responsibility,and resistance to diversions.

Sociologists __________ suggested that 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 achieve through legitimate channels.