Deck 6: Identifying Deviant Behavior

Question 1

Sociologist's multifaceted conceptualization of ______ include(s) behavior, conditions, and beliefs.

A) social norms
B) deviance
C) culture
D) social roles

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Behavior that is defined as deviant ______.

A) varies depending on the approach used
B) defies universal values
C) is a matter of individual opinion
D) challenges religious mores

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which approach treats deviance according to how unusual it is or by its probability?

A) the legalist approach
B) the statistical approach
C) the normative approach
D) the limited approach

Answer 3

B

Question 4

A group of basketball players enters a restaurant and they are much taller than everyone else. How would the statistical approach describe this group of basketball players?

A) They would be considered deviant based on their height.
B) They would be considered normal because their height serves a function.
C) They would be considered deviant because there are fewer of them than the other patrons.
D) They would be considered normal based on the fact that they are basketball players.

Question 5

What are types of social norms as noted by sociologists?

A) folkways, mores, and laws
B) folklores, morals, and laws
C) roles, social behavior, and identity
D) mores, beliefs, and identity

Question 6

A teenager shoplifts an expensive shirt from a store. Sociologists would most likely categorize his deviant behavior using the ______ approach.

A) statistical
B) normative
C) legalistic
D) moralistic

Question 7

The legalistic approach toward deviance considers only ______ to be deviant.

A) punishments
B) crimes
C) violations of rights
D) violent acts

Question 8

A man dresses as a pirate and walks around town. How would the legalistic approach to deviance view this behavior?

A) The behavior would be acceptable as long as there was a valid purpose.
B) The behavior would not be a problem based on this approach.
C) The behavior would be a violation of societal norms.
D) The behavior would be unacceptable under any circumstance.

Question 9

The ______ approach considers a violation of any norms deviant.

A) statistical
B) legalistic
C) normative
D) absolutist

Question 10

A person who is late for work decides to drive over the speed limit by 15mph. If caught by the police, this person will face a(n) ______.

A) universally held value
B) informal sanction
C) formal sanction
D) personal code of conduct

Question 11

How would the relativist perspective explain sneaking into a movie theatre to watch for free?

A) It is not a deviant act in comparison to more serious acts.
B) It is a deviant act because it is against the law.
C) It is not a deviant act if it is committed by children.
D) It is a deviant act only to the extent that culture regards it as deviant.

Question 12

Which statement best describes the relativist perspective of deviance?

A) Deviant behaviors, conditions, and beliefs differ from culture to culture.
B) All cultures share similar ideas of what deviant behavior, conditions, and beliefs are.
C) Deviance is an inherited characteristic.
D) Sociological research on deviance is largely based around the deviant behavior of minorities.

Question 13

Most cultures regard marital infidelity as deviant. Which perspective would view it as deviant even in cultures where it is socially acceptable?

A) statistical
B) absolutist
C) normative
D) relativist

Question 14

The view that some behaviors, conditions, and beliefs are inherently deviant is based on which of the following perspectives?

A) the subjective perspective
B) the objective perspective
C) the relativist perspective
D) the absolutist perspective

Question 15

______ occurs when researchers evaluate other cultures from the perspective of their own cultural standards.

A) Relativism
B) Ethnocentrism
C) Absolutism
D) Objectivity

Question 16

A White business executive is convicted of embezzlement but is given probation over imprisonment. A minority youth is convicted of petty theft and is sentenced to three months in jail. How would the conflict perspective explain this?

A) The businessman is able to pay the money back, so no crime was committed.
B) The in-person theft is statistically more important.
C) The businessman has committed a minor wrongdoing.
D) The legal system tends to treat deviance by the poor and minorities as serious crimes.

Question 17

The ______ perspective perceives deviance as socially constructed and focuses on power dynamics in determining who is considered deviant.

A) symbolic interactionist
B) functionalist
C) conflict
D) anomie

Question 18

Many 19th century theories focused on ______ as the main cause for deviant behavior and crimes.

A) biological abnormalities
B) social differences
C) sexual abnormalities
D) racial differences

Question 19

Which theorist was one of the first to explain how deviance varied in rates across place, time, and groups?

A) George Herbert Mead
B) Ceasare Lombroso
C) Emile Durkheim
D) Charles Horton Cooley

Question 20

Emile Durkheim argued that in times of great social change, norms that constrain deviant behavior fail. He used the term ______ to describe this.

A) conflict theory
B) anarchy
C) chaos
D) anomie

Question 21

Which perspective claims that crime and deviance should be understood in terms of what they contribute to society?

A) structural functionalism
B) conflict theory
C) symbolic interactionism
D) feminist theory

Question 22

Which of these is an example of a moral entrepreneur?

A) a televangelist delivering a sermon
B) a mom volunteering for Mothers Against Drunk Drivers
C) a developer creating high tech weapons systems
D) a neighborhood homeowner's association organizing street cleaning

Question 23

A moral entrepreneur seeks broad changes in norms and the enforcement of them, or a focus on ______.

A) a social epiphany
B) an ethical worldview
C) moral conversion
D) public morality

Question 24

Individuals who want to manufacture public morality and seek to change norms to fit their own moral viewpoint are called ______.

A) religious crusaders
B) social advocates
C) biased politicians
D) moral entrepreneurs

Question 25

Moral entrepreneurs are composed of rule creators and ______.

A) deviants
B) rule violators
C) rule enforcers
D) criminal enforcers

Question 26

There are two steps to create public morality: the first is to generate awareness and the second is moral ______.

A) hazard
B) diplomacy
C) dilemma
D) conversion

Question 27

Which of these is a component of moral conversion?

A) reconciling the cause with your religion
B) appealing to a higher authority
C) seeking endorsements from public figures
D) making a financial investment in the cause

Question 28

How would a moral entrepreneur introduce a folk devil to reduce acceptance of divorce?

A) by studying the causes of divorce
B) by creating a news story about how divorced women are seducing married men
C) by researching divorce rates in other countries
D) by conducting surveys to assess society's views on divorce

Question 29

In the early 1980s, the widespread fear of an AIDS epidemic emerged in the United States that caused widespread discrimination against gay men. What is this is an example of?

A) a moral panic
B) a freefall
C) an attribution error
D) ethnic cleansing

Question 30

When there is widespread fear that public morality will collapse, ______ become a target for public anxiety.

A) political leaders
B) religious figures
C) folk devils
D) individuals of authority

Question 31

The medicalization of deviance has led to the transition of evidence of sin from "badness" to ______.

A) fatalism
B) ordinary
C) sickness
D) zealotry

Question 32

Which theory notes that someone is defined as deviant because others react to the person as such?

A) structural functionalist
B) labeling
C) conflict
D) biased

Question 33

The statement, "If men define situations as real, they are real in their consequences." is the gist of ______.

A) the Thomas theorem
B) conflict theory
C) the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
D) the medicalization of deviance

Question 34

Rule breaking that is not labeled deviant is ______ deviance.

A) primary
B) secondary
C) cognitive
D) innate

Question 35

After Joachim broke into the school and stole a computer, the kids all called him a thief and refused to have anything to do with him. As a result, Joachim felt he had nothing to lose when he robbed a bank with a plan to skip town. This act is called ______ deviance.

A) primary
B) secondary
C) complementary
D) subordinate

Question 36

A young man applies for several jobs in his small-town community. In the past, he drank heavily and developed a reputation as unreliable. As a result he does NOT get hired. This is a consequence of ______.

A) social identity
B) role conflict
C) social location
D) stigma

Question 37

After an unfortunate incident, Tim received a dishonorable discharge from the military. Dishonorable discharge is a(n) ______ label.

A) unofficial
B) social
C) official
D) criminal

Question 38

After Wanda was caught shoplifting, her mother was much harsher with her in all aspects of her life because she said Wanda was the bad daughter. Wanda was experiencing ______.

A) role engulfment
B) stigma normalization
C) deviance expansion
D) status immersion

Question 39

The power to define others as deviant and to resist having the label applied to oneself is related to ______.

A) age
B) gender
C) geography
D) social position

Question 40

A politician employs illegal immigrants for housekeeping services. A nearby restaurant also employs illegal immigrants. The restaurant is fined, but the politician does NOT suffer any consequences. How would social location explain this?

A) The politician lives in an area that is not as heavily regulated.
B) The restaurant is a public establishment, whereas the politician's home is not.
C) The politician has more power and position to resist consequences.
D) The restaurant is a business and subject to stricter regulations.

Question 41

In his book, Punished, Victor Rios talks about how in low-income Black and Latino boys' social world, the normal misbehavior of adolescence such as fighting is treated as serious crime in need of criminal justice intervention. He calls this environment ______.

A) a powder keg
B) the consequence of poverty
C) a biased social system
D) the youth control complex

Question 42

People who are labeled as deviant, but have NOT committed an act of crime or violated social norms, are what Howard Becker refers to as ______.

A) stigmatized
B) falsely accused
C) stereotyped
D) powerless

Question 43

A juvenile offender is caught stealing and must speak before the judge to try to get his sentence reduced. How would he accurately employ a denial of injury?

A) by accepting responsibility and asking for lenience
B) by pointing out that he did not physically harm anyone
C) by directing attention to the actions of others
D) by promising to pay for the stolen goods

Question 44

A woman accused of assault defends herself by explaining that the other person encouraged the attack by calling her names. What is occurring?

A) The woman is using a technique of neutralization.
B) The woman is using her social position.
C) The woman is using stigma management.
D) The woman is using a compensatory strategy.

Question 45

A teenage girl is caught smoking marijuana. When asked why she did it, she claims that she isn't to blame, but rather her friends are because they told her to. This is an example of which technique of neutralization?

A) denial of victim
B) appeal to higher loyalties
C) denial of responsibility
D) denial of injury

Question 46

Which technique of neutralization involves drawing attention from a person's own behavior by blaming the victim, who only accused him or her out of spite?

A) individuating information
B) condemning the condemners
C) appeal to higher loyalties
D) denial of injury

Question 47

When Toma was arrested for releasing all the animals from a lab that was using them for research, she told the judge she didn't do anything wrong, and that the lab was the criminal. What technique of neutralization was Toma using?

A) denial of victim
B) condemning the condemners
C) appeal to higher loyalties
D) denial of injury

Question 48

Which of these is an example of a visible stigma?

A) homosexuality
B) facial disfigurement
C) criminal record
D) mental illness

Question 49

A public figure commits a crime that makes national headlines. How might this person engage in a compensatory strategy?

A) by condemning the condemners
B) by using denial to create uncertainty and doubt in the public
C) by using increased positivity to try to become more likeable
D) by justifying his or her actions

Question 50

Roger really wanted Maoira to like him, even though she knew he had been incarcerated when he was younger. So he told her about the work he was doing at the prison to help rehabilitate the inmates, including teaching reading and offering advice. What compensatory strategy was Roger using?

A) acknowledgment
B) individuating information
C) increased positivity
D) indirect disclosure

Question 51

Leo didn't want his coworkers at the construction site to know he was married to a man, so he told them he was married to his high school sweetheart and they had two kids. Which stigma management technique did Leo use?

A) fabrication
B) signaling
C) differentiating
D) normalizing

Question 52

Which stigma management technique does NOT involve deception, but rather keeping one's stigmatized identity hidden?

A) fabrication
B) signaling
C) concealment
D) normalizing

Question 53

Rahanna thought it was strange that Jacob wouldn't tell her anything about his past, but she figured out why when she noticed a tattoo of a gang sign on his upper arm. Which stigma management technique was used?

A) fabrication
B) signaling
C) differentiating
D) normalizing

Question 54

When Connie finally called Mason an alcoholic, Mason said that even though he drank a lot, he wasn't like those other drinkers because he could stop any time he wanted to. He just liked to drink. Which stigma management technique did Mason use?

A) concealment
B) signaling
C) differentiating
D) normalizing

Question 55

When the president admitted he had smoked marijuana in his youth, his opponents tried to use it against him, but he maintained that everyone did it in college and it was no big deal. Which stigma management technique did he use?

A) concealment
B) signaling
C) differentiating
D) normalizing

Question 56

Deviance is conceptualized in different ways by different people.

Question 57

The legalistic approach would consider wearing an evening gown to a funeral deviant.

Question 58

Grounding a teenager after breaking curfew would be considered a formal sanction.

Question 59

According to Durkheim, anomie occurs when the bonds between society and the individuals become firmly interconnected.

Question 60

According to Durkheim's functionalist view, when deviance increases, the bar for being defined as "deviant" rises.

Question 61

As moral entrepreneurs, rule enforcers are limited to police, judges, and others in positions of authority.

Question 62

Related to the Thomas theorem, Franklin Tannenbaum determined that police reactions to the ordinary rule-breaking behaviors of adolescents construct them as deviant or "bad," and it's the label that makes the acts deviant, not the acts themselves.

Question 63

Sue and Laurie are members of their high school pep club. They visited a rival school and took the school's flag from the courtyard as a prank. If asked, they would say they are not deviants, as would most people, even though they committed a crime. This is an example of primary deviance.

Question 64

Bill is a son, husband, father, unemployed construction worker, and felon. His master status is most likely as a felon.

Question 65

Unlike other concepts, deviance remains the same across social locations.

Question 66

According to Howard Becker, people who engage in crime are labeled pure deviants.

Question 67

Individuating information acts to reduce stereotypical ideas about the status of an individual who has been stigmatized.

Question 68

Fabrication occurs as an individual creates a false persona in order to avoid stigma.

Question 69

Those who are labeled deviant, or risk being labeled deviant, often engage in techniques of neutralization.

Question 70

Ali talks about his bipolar disorder as if it is just one part of who he is, NOT something to hide or be embarrassed about. Ali is managing a visible stigma.

Question 71

Why does a sociologist need to conceptualize deviance?

Question 72

What is the normative approach to deviance?

Question 73

Explain Durkheim's sociological theory of suicide; in particular, how society affects suicide rates.

Question 74

Explain the impact of social location on deviance.

Question 75

Explain the function of techniques of neutralization.

Question 76

Explain how deviance occurs in different forms (behaviors, conditions, and beliefs), and provide an example of each form.

Question 77

Compare and contrast the relativist perspective and the absolutist perspective of deviance.

Question 78

How does Durkheim describe the concept of anomie?

Question 79

Define and describe the three compensatory strategies.

Question 80

Choose three of the five neutralization techniques, define them and give an example of each.