4.1.1

Defining Crime & Deviance

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Crime and Deviance

Crime is any act that breaks the law. Deviance is a behaviour that deviates from the norms of a society.

Defining crime

Defining crime

  • Crime is any act that breaks the law.
  • If the perpetrator is detected, then they can be prosecuted.
  • If the perpetrator is found guilty then they can be sentenced.
Defining deviance

Defining deviance

  • Deviance is a behaviour that deviates from the norms of a society.
  • If one is deviant, they might face sanctions (but not the law).
  • For example, going against the school rules by being late.
Factors that determine crime or deviance

Factors that determine crime or deviance

  • What makes something either a criminal behaviour OR a deviant behaviour can depend on:
    • Time.
    • Place.
    • Culture.
    • Social situation.
Time example

Time example

  • Time: when the acts takes place.
    • Smoking in public places in the UK is illegal so it is a crime if one does it.
    • Smoking in a house with a child next to you is deviant (not illegal but strongly discourages by social norms).
Place and social situation examples

Place and social situation examples

  • Place.
    • Being naked at a nudist beach is acceptable, doing the same thing in the middle of the street is illegal.
  • Social situation: the context.
    • Singing in a concert is expected but laughing during a funeral is not.
Culture examples

Culture examples

  • Culture: depending on one’s traditions.
    • Drinking alcohol is legal in the UK and smoking cannabis is illegal.
    • However, in many Muslim-majority countries drinking alcohol is illegal.
    • Moreover, medical marijuana is legal in some American states and not others.

The Changing Definition of Crime and Deviance

What do sociologists mean when they say that crime and deviance are socially constructed?

Social construction of crime

Social construction of crime

  • Socially constructed behaviour refers to behaviour that is invented by and accepted by a society.
  • Social construction of crime and deviance depends on factors such as:
    • Time.
    • Place.
    • Social situation.
    • Culture.
The changing definition of crime

The changing definition of crime

  • Drug and alcohol consumption:
    • It is illegal to drink alcohol in many Muslim-majority states but it is legal in the UK. This shows how crime can depend on culture.
  • Suicide:
    • It used to be a crime until the 1960s. This shows how crime can depend on the time.
The changing definition of crime cont.

The changing definition of crime cont.

  • Homosexuality:
    • It used to be illegal until 1967 when the Sexual Offences Act was passed that made it legal for men over 21 years old.
  • Cross-dressing:
    • A man dressed as a woman for the needs of a play has traditionally not been considered a crime, as women were not allowed to be actors.
    • However, a man dressing up as a woman in his spare time has been considered a crime. This shows how crime can depend on the social situation.
The changing definition of crime 3

The changing definition of crime 3

  • Killings:
    • Killing someone at war and killing someone in the middle of street. This shows how crime can depend on the place.
What can be defined as a deviant act?

What can be defined as a deviant act?

  • Providing a clear definition is difficult as it varies with social expectations.
  • Becker (a known interactionalist) states that whether an act is deviant depends on whether society deems it as such.
  • This is known as labelling theory.
Jump to other topics
1

The Sociological Approach

1.1

Introduction to Sociology

1.1.1What is Sociology?1.1.2Culture & Socialisation
1.2

Sociological Approaches

1.2.1Marxism1.2.2Marxism 21.2.3Functionalism1.2.4Feminism
1.3

The Consensus vs. Conflict Debate

1.3.1The Consensus vs. Conflict Debate1.3.2End of Topic Test - The Sociological Approach
2

Families

2.1

Functions of Families

2.1.1Functionalist Views on Family2.1.2Marxist Views on Family2.1.3Feminist Views on Family
2.2

Family Forms

2.2.1What is a Family?2.2.2Nuclear Family2.2.3Families in a Global Context2.2.4The Rapoports & Family Diversity2.2.5Causes of Family Diversity2.2.6End of Topic Test - Family Forms
2.3

Conjugal Role Relationships

2.3.1Conjugal Roles
2.4

Changing Relationships Within Families

2.4.1Timeline2.4.2Domestic Abuse2.4.3Symmetrical Family
2.5

Criticisms of Families

2.5.1Functionalist Views of Families2.5.2Marxist Views of Families2.5.3Feminist Views of Families2.5.4Declining Marriage Rate2.5.5End of Topic Test - Criticisms of Families
2.6

Divorce

2.6.1Reasons For Rise in Divorce Rate2.6.2Consequences of Divorce2.6.3Functionalist Views2.6.4Marxist Views2.6.5Feminist Views2.6.6End of Topic Test - Divorce
3

Education

3.1

Roles & Functions of Education

3.1.1The Functionalist Approach3.1.2Evaluating Different Perspectives3.1.3Types of School3.1.4Alternative Education3.1.5State & Private Schools
3.2

Processes Within Schools

3.2.1Internal Processes3.2.2External Processes
3.3

Educational Achievement

3.3.1Measuring Educational Success3.3.2Social Class & Education3.3.3Social Class & External Factors3.3.4Gender & Education3.3.5Ethnicity & Education3.3.6Parental Choice3.3.7History of UK Education Policy3.3.8Recent UK Education Policy3.3.9End of Topic Test - Education
4

Crime & Deviance

4.1

The Social Construction of Crime

4.1.1Defining Crime & Deviance4.1.2Sociological Explanations of Crime4.1.3Interactionist Explanations of Crime4.1.4Alternative Explanations of Crime
4.2

Social Control

4.2.1Informal Social Control4.2.2Formal Social Control4.2.3End of Topic Test - Social Construction of Crime
4.3

Criminal & Deviant Behaviour

4.3.1Explanations of Crime4.3.2Social Class & Crime4.3.3Gender & Crime4.3.4Ethnicity & Crime4.3.5Age & Crime4.3.6Criminal Responsibility4.3.7The Prison System4.3.8Media Reporting of Crime4.3.9Functionalist Explanations of Crime
4.4

Data on Crime

4.4.1Measuring Crime4.4.2End of Topic Test - Criminal & Deviant Behaviour
5

Social Stratification

5.1

Social Stratification

5.1.1What is Social Stratification?5.1.2Functionalism5.1.3Socio-Economic Class5.1.4Socio-Economic Class 25.1.5Life Chances5.1.6The Affluent Worker5.1.7End of Topic Test - Social Stratifictaion
5.2

Poverty as a Social Issue

5.2.1Defining Poverty5.2.2Factors Affecting Poverty5.2.3Explanations of Poverty5.2.4Impact of Globalisation5.2.5End of Topic Test - Poverty as a Social Issue
5.3

Power & Authority

5.3.1Weber5.3.2Sociological Perspectives5.3.3Power Relationships5.3.4End of Topic Test - Power & Authority
6

Sociological Research Methods

6.1

Research Methods

6.1.1Research Design6.1.2The Scientific Method6.1.3Other Considerations6.1.4Primary Sources6.1.5Secondary Sources6.1.6Surveys6.1.7Sampling6.1.8Questionnaires6.1.9Interviews6.1.10Observation6.1.11Statistics6.1.12Case Studies6.1.13Longitudinal Studies6.1.14Ethnography6.1.15Experiments6.1.16Small Scale Research6.1.17End of Topic Test - Research Methods

Practice questions on Defining Crime & Deviance

Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

  1. 1
    Defining crime:Fill in the list
  2. 2
    Which of these actions is an example of deviant, rather than criminal, behaviour? Multiple choice
  3. 3
    Changes to the law on homosexuality:True / false
  4. 4
    When was suicide illegal in the UK until?Multiple choice
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End of Topic Test - Education

Sociological Explanations of Crime