The Theories of Deviance



The Theories of Deviance

Introduction

Sociologists refers the Deviance or deviant behavior as the diverse forms of the human behavior, which are considered and defined as wrong, illegal, immoral, commendable or worthy of punishment by the social system. Social deviance typically leads to violations of the standards, and reactions in the form of conduct, which are stigmatized by the society for example, drug abuse, mental illness, few forms of sexuality, and many other forms. The criminology discipline applies various principles to the diverse range of deviant behavior through reactions of law-making, law-breaking, and illegal conducts. The most dominant scholars of the early researches on sociological deviance proposed that the suicide is significantly a known crime with respect to the conduct of social deviance.

Deviant behaviors are not limited to conducts described by criminal statutes, but concerns of the potential relationships among various structures of the deviance. Considering the hypothesis that suicide and homicide are the two streams of deviant behavior, such as the nations comprises of the high rate of homicide encompasses of low rate of suicidal deviance or vice versa. Similarly, there are deviant behaviors of criminal and non-criminal forms for example, the use of alcohol and mental illness. There are several theories and studies that sociologists suggested as the relationships between deviant behavior of criminal and non-criminal violations of the principles as well as the general themes and standards that apply to social deviance (Durkheim, 1897).

Background and Purpose of the Theories

The basic purpose of the deviance studies, researches, and theories was the evolution of the factors causing deviant behavior and how they may lead to deviant behavior. Thus, the Sociologists seek to identify and describe the occurrence of deviance in the society with their theories. The factors that impact the social deviance at a large scale include the social learning, socialization, frustrations, and impact of labeling. These four derived to form the four theories of social deviance that are developed in the past fifty years.

The Anomie Theory

Anomie Theory refers to deviance due to frustration, which is the feeling of the deprivation from achieving the certain goals in the society or the persons, believes that the means for the accomplishment of the society's goals are closed to them. For example it may result in, suicides, drug abusing, robbery, and other crimes

The Control Theory

Control theory refers to the improper socialization that results in the deviant behavior when the persons loss their self-control. For example it may result in, suicides, murdering, and other crimes

The Differential association

The differential associations refer to the deviant behavior due to the inappropriate social learning such as, the use of alcohol or drugs.

The Labeling

Labeling refers to those deviant behaviors that depend on the interpretation of the powerful individuals of the society, actually the people in power who define or label such behaviors.

Theories of Merton and Durkheim

Merton's Strain Theory

Robert Merton argued, although some deviance is necessary for functioning of the society, whereas too much of the deviant behavior may end in negative social ...