Theories Of Deviance
I was asked to interview two people on the topic of deviance. I chose to interview my co-workers Timothy and Melissa at Oceans Behavior Hospital that is in Texas and which both work opposite shifts than I do, so we don’t know much about each other, other than our job titles and the shifts each works. They have different political, educational, and cultural backgrounds; however, both are from the state of Texas. Timothy is a 35-year-old husband and father of 4 boys.
He grew up with financial security, received a Bachelors's in Chemistry, has had one actual job that lasted for 3 months, and has a more liberal affiliation. Melissa, is a 34-year-old single mother of 3 girls, no further education after high school with 2 full-time positions, who is considered conservative. Both gave very intriguing answers to my questions that show their very different beliefs. According to John Macionis,“deviance is the recognized violation of cultural norms” (Macionis, 2013). There are many reasons why someone would commit a deviant act just as there are many reasons why others would define the act as deviant. To analyze some of the views people have of deviance, the two interviewees were asked three main questions about the causes and remedies of deviant actions.
I invited Melissa to have a coffee outing with me while she shared her thoughts on the main causes of deviance. She suggested that the lack of resources, competition for those resources available, and lack of outlets for frustration are causes for deviant behaviors. I then asked what could cause or even encourage deviant behavior today. Her answers were simple, social media (all media), and lack of resources. She believes that a combination of these could cause a normal person to become deviant to try and achieve things like approval from others or the ability to fit in somewhere.
When asked about her thoughts for preventing people from breaking society’s rules, she answered, “presence and an increase in access to resources such as money, education, and food. ” I instantly thought of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (1943), Melissa’s explanation for this, is to reduce the need for acting out to survive. She says that sometimes people steal so they can have food or provide for a family and not deviance has bad intentions, but it is sometimes necessary for someone to survive. Her ideas reflect the strain theory of deviance, which states, “the extent and type of deviance people engage in depends on whether society provides the means (such as schooling and job opportunities) to achieve cultural goals (such as financial success)” (Macionis, 2013). Melissa believes that a person’s actions depend on whether or not they have the necessary resources to survive comfortably without being forced to be deviant.
I asked Timothy and his family over for dinner and asked the same three questions. His response to what he thought is the main causes of deviance are, one’s belief and money. He describes money as the “root of all evil” and states that people will commit deviant acts to gain money whether it is stealing, lying, cheating, gambling, or whatever other deviant act. He also lists beliefs such as religion and politics as the main cause of deviance. When asked what he thought caused promote deviant behavior today, he answered pleasure or gratification. People seek a high and sometimes it’s with deviant behavior, some people do what makes them happy even if it is wrong or not socially accepted. Timothy believes that some people find pleasure in doing things that are deviant and continue to do those activities to keep the feeling of happiness. When I asked what he thinks are some effective ways to prevent people from breaking society’s rules, he replied, laws and punishment for breaking the law as well as having better role models in place.
Timothy’sanswers can be described as both labeling theory and differential association theory. The labeling theory states “the idea that deviance and conformity result not so much from what people do as from how others respond to those actions. (Macionis, 2013). From Timothy’s point of view, people commit deviant acts for money and pleasure. A man who lies, cheats, steals, and gambles are doing what he sees as viable ways of obtaining money without getting caught, but others who might observe his actions would think of him as deviant. Also, the differential association theory states “a person’s tendency toward conformity or deviance depends on the amount of contact with others who encourage or reject conventional behavior” (Macionis, 2013). In the end, Timothy believes that being in contact with deviant people sets a foundation for one to also be deviant simply by interaction.
Melissa’sanswers are more subjective. Coming from a more moderate upbringing, Melissa has viewed life’s challenges in a very different way than Tanisha had. Melissa’sperception of what is classified as deviant differs because of this point of view. He suggests that if a person is in “NEED”, then the actions taken sustains one’s life should not be classified as deviant. Merton’s strain theory argued that “society can be set up in a way that encourages too much deviance” and “the type of deviance people engage in depending on whether society provides the means” (Macionis,2013). If basic needs are met, then the deviance, in this case, would not take place.
After conducting my interviews with both Timothy and Melissa, people have different ideas of what deviance is, what causes it, as well as how to prevent it. Knowing the backgrounds of both my co-workers gave me an understanding of what people may say about deviance from varying perspectives. It is interesting to see the different beliefs that people have, and have it been reflected in more than just politics. It is the way we view others and the relationship we have with them that gives us the ideals about what the solutions are to the world's problems. I have to say that I agree with both co-worker’s perspectives. It should be obvious that better access to resources could prevent deviance just as well as punishment, not just with government but from other institutions.
Reference
- Macionis,J. J. (10/2013). Sociology, 15th Edition. [Kaplan]. Retrieved from https://kaplan. vitalsource. com/#/books/9781323259566/
