Deviance as Crime, Sin, and Poor Taste (From Constructions of Deviance: Social Power, Context, and Interaction, P 11-20, 1994, Patricia A and Peter Adler, eds. -- See NCJ-151012)

• NCJ Number: 151013
• Author(s): A B Smith; H Pollack
• Date Published: 1994
• Length: 9 pages
• Sale Source: Wadsworth Publishing Co
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Reprinted from "Deviance as a Method of Coping," Crime and Delinquency, V 22, N 1 (1976)

Annotation

Individuals perceive deviance according to age, status, social class, and other factors and often define deviance along a continuum that views deviance as crime, sin, or poor taste.

Abstract

Criminal acts, such as murder, rape, arson, assault, robbery, and burglary, clearly represent unacceptable behavior. White collar crimes, such as tax fraud, stock manipulation, commercial bribery, misrepresentation in advertising and salesmanship, and embezzlement, are also viewed by society as illegal conduct. Deviant acts considered to be sinful include such behavior as obscenity, extramarital sex, lewdness, homosexuality, gambling, and drunkenness. The moral perspective on deviance is based on religious and social values. In contrast to deviance as crime or sin, certain deviant acts are defined as simply being in poor taste. The roots of all forms of deviance lie in sociological and psychological pressures generated within the individual by social forces frequently beyond his or her control. Nonetheless, since the very notion of a free society is based on individual responsibility, the control of deviant behavior must involve both the individual and the community at large. 3 notes