Outline and briefly discuss the main theories in Sociology In sociology there are several theories that each has different perspectives‚ concepts and views on the way society is. The main ones are Functionalism which looks at society as a whole‚ Marxism which reject the idea that society is based on a consensus and Interpretism which is where it looks at the individuals look on society rather than society. Feminisms is a list of views written by women on the role of women in society‚ Postmodernism
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Explain why crime and deviance can be understood as normal. This essay will discuss whether it is possible to classify crime and deviance as normal in everyday social life by basing on theories of Emile Durkheim‚ Robert Merton and Marxist criminologists. However‚ to in order to do this‚ one should first comprehend the essence of both concepts. It is important to be aware that crime is only a form of deviance that is simply more defined and regulated. Deviance‚ in a sense‚ is essentially rule-breaking
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Conflict Theories According to Karl Marx in all stratified societies there are two major social groups: a ruling class and a subject class. The ruling class derives its power from its ownership and control of the forces of production. The ruling class exploits and oppresses the subject class. As a result there is a basic conflict of interest between the two classes. The various institutions of society such as the legal and political system are instruments of ruling class domination and serve to
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Deviance Deviance: Behavior that violates the standards of conduct or expectations of a group or society. However‚ different culture defines deviance differently. Same behavior can be defined as conformity for some culture but in contrast defined as obedience for other culture. * Example: Alcoholism (some society look it as an acceptable behavior but some society (Islamic) look it as deviance. Deviance involves the violation of group norms‚ which may or may not be formalized into law.
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Critically discuss three sociological approaches to explaining crime? One of the most predominant areas of study in sociology is in the explanation of crime and deviance in society. Criminal acts are those which violate established formal laws‚ whereas deviance refers to the breaking of social norms. Crime and deviance are a social construct as they are decided by the people in a society and can vary greatly depending on the society in question‚ as well as the time period being studied. In the
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The Objective/Subjective Dichotomy Objectivism: Deviance as an Act The assumption that there is something inherent in a person‚ behavior or characteristic that is necessarily deviant Statistical Rarity If a behavior or characteristic is not typical‚ it is deviant. Harm If an action causes harm‚ then it is deviant. Folkways: If you violate these norms you may be considered odd‚ rude or a troublemaker Mores: Those standards that are often seen as the foundation of morality in a culture
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Outline and assess Functionalist explanations of crime and deviance. This question includes assessment of your understanding of the connections between crime and deviance and sociological theory. Functionalist explanations of deviance begin with society as a whole looking for the origins of deviance in the nature of society‚ not the biological or psychological make up of an individual. Functionalists favour quantative methods to look at society‚ using statistics to see society as a whole‚ rather
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Deviance is a behavior that violates the social norms‚ in other words‚ it is a behavior that violates the standard of conduct or expectations of a group or society (Wickham 1991: 85). Though it may be sometimes positive‚ it is mostly considered in a negative view. The functionalist‚ interactionist and conflict perspectives seek to explain the concept of deviance. According to the functionalists‚ deviance is a common part of human existence with both negative and positive consequences for social stability
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Assess the usefulness of consensus theories for an understanding of crime and deviance in society. Consensus theories are the theories that believe that every society share the same views‚ norms and values. The main consensus theories are Functionalism and Subcultural. Functionalism is the theory of how or why society functions and how it remains in a state of stability. It tries to explain the role that all people within society have‚ from children to criminals‚ in order to maintain stability
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There are many different factors that have to be considered when examining the role of access to opportunity structures in causing crime and deviance. Merton’s ‘Strain theory and anomie’ argues that deviance arises from the structure of society and that unequal access to legitimate opportunity structures is the cause of deviant behaviour. The main point that Merton’s theory outlines is the fact that people engage in deviant behaviour because they are unable to achieve socially approved goals by legitimate
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