Deck 4: Deviance and Social Control

Question 1

Any behavior,practice,or condition that results in disapproval,hostility,or sanction if it becomes known is referred to as ______.

A)crime
B)deviation
C)nonconformity
D)deviance

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which of the following theoretical perspectives sees a certain amount of deviance as useful for society?

A)biological
B)symbolic interactionist
C)economic
D)functionalist

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of a pluralistic society?

A)made up of many different groups and subcultures
B)different groups have different norms and values
C)norms and values may change over time
D)beliefs are stable and unchanging

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Merton's idea that when there is a discrepancy between the cultural goals for success and the means available to achieve those goals,rates of deviance will be high is referred to as ______.

A)control theory
B)conflict theory
C)strain theory
D)opportunity theory

Question 5

An act defined in the law as punishable by fines,imprisonment,or both is referred to as ______.

A)deviance
B)law breaking
C)crime
D)criminality

Question 6

Which of the following is NOT one of the types of deviant reactions to strain,as outlined by Merton?

A)conformity
B)innovation
C)rebellion
D)ritualism

Question 7

Which of the following would be considered a deviant means to achieve the goal of economic success?

A)working hard at a job even though you hate it
B)selling powder cocaine to wealthy businesspeople
C)attending graduate school
D)opening your own business

Question 8

The idea that laws are designed in the interests of the ruling class is referred to as ______.

A)class-dominant theory
B)control theory
C)capitalist culture theory
D)strain theory

Question 9

In the United States,which of the following would NOT be considered a normative cultural goal that people strive for?

A)earning economic success
B)consumption of luxury goods
C)gaining recognition,fame,or prestige
D)maintaining a steady routine,day to day

Question 10

Which of the following studies does NOT reflect a biological approach,at least in part?

A)a study that tries to find a relationship between criminal convictions of parents and criminal convictions of their children
B)a longitudinal study that follows pairs of twins and records their deviant behavior
C)a study that measures the influence of peer groups on deviant activity
D)an experiment that measures brain activity before and after watching a violent or pornographic film

Question 11

According to Robert K.Merton,what condition is created by the contradiction that success is not always attainable through conventional means?

A)anomie
B)conformity
C)social solidarity
D)strain

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of a functionalist view of deviance?

A)Deviance is an abnormality that society ultimately seeks to eliminate.
B)The labeling of some as deviant can contribute to social solidarity for those who conform to norms.
C)Deviance enhances our sense of the boundary between right and wrong.
D)Who is and who is not labeled deviant reflects the interests of the ruling class.

Question 13

Which of the following groups of people did Durkheim find to have higher rates of suicide?

A)Married men had higher rates of suicide than single men.
B)Protestants had higher rates of suicide than Catholics.
C)Women had higher rates of suicide than men.
D)Poorer people had higher rates of suicide than wealthy people.

Question 14

Which of the following theories identifies the role of cultural diversity in conflicts between social groups?

A)conflict theories
B)subcultural theories
C)cultural theories
D)class-dominant theories

Question 15

Which of the following is a characterization of control theory?

A)Deviance among children and teenagers can be explained by looking at their exposure to deviant peer groups.
B)Strong social bonds that discourage deviance can be formed with individuals or institutions.
C)The majority of deviant acts are carefully planned.
D)Groups with power will use that power to maintain control in society.

Question 16

Which of the following theories argues that people with access to deviance are more likely to engage in deviant acts?

A)strain theory
B)opportunity theory
C)control theory
D)conflict theory

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of deviance?

A)can encompass criminal and noncriminal actions
B)not restricted to any specific racial,gender,or age group
C)is only based on legal judgments,does not include moral stances
D)includes things such as medical conditions,illnesses,and physical abnormalities

Question 18

The act of having multiple wives is referred to as ______.

A)monogamy
B)Mormonism
C)polygamy
D)polyandry

Question 19

Which type of crime is no longer considered a capital offense by the U.S.Supreme Court?

A)crimes committed by juveniles
B)violent crime
C)organized crime
D)crimes of the powerful

Question 20

Which of the following is true of phrenology?

A)has been disproven
B)focused on body types of nondeviants
C)claimed that skull configurations of deviant individuals were no different than those of nondeviants
D)led researchers to abandon the search for biological causes of deviance

Question 21

Which of the following would NOT be considered an example of "everyday" deviance?

A)drinking at an underage party
B)refusing to move over for people on the sidewalk
C)tattooing your arms
D)driving down the wrong side of a busy road

Question 22

The explanation that exposure of new police officers to attitudes favorable to the commission of deviance and crime accounts for the use of excessive force is consistent with which theory of deviance?

A)labeling theory
B)subcultural theory
C)class-dominant theory
D)differential association theory

Question 23

The United States imprisons a higher percentage of the population than any other advanced industrialized nation.Which of the following is NOT a reason for the high incarceration rate?

A)mandatory minimum sentencing
B)increased police brutality
C)the war on drugs
D)three-strikes laws

Question 24

The desire of capitalist employers to keep wages down yet needing high-wage earners to buy their products is an example of which theory of deviance?

A)strain theory
B)opportunity theory
C)differential association theory
D)structural contradiction theory

Question 25

Criminal conduct of corporations and their employees is referred to as ______.

A)fraud
B)organized crime
C)state crime
D)white-collar crime

Question 26

Even though individuals may disagree about what is considered deviant,sociologists have the academic authority to determine what is deviant or not.

Question 27

Which of the following is NOT one of the arguments of those who oppose the death penalty?

A)It is not an effective deterrent.
B)Innocent people have been wrongfully convicted.
C)The cost of execution is greater than the cost of life in prison.
D)It is a human rights violation.

Question 28

Which of the following is characteristic of state crimes?

A)Governments keep statistics on their own criminal behavior.
B)They are committed to advance government interests.
C)Such crimes are uncommon.
D)They are the least harmful type of crime.

Question 29

The argument that deviant behavior is little more than a product of the labels people attach to certain types of behavior is referred to as ______.

A)opportunity theory
B)differential association theory
C)labeling theory
D)feminist theory

Question 30

Which theory would argue that kids and teenagers exposed to violent subcultures develop attitudes favorable toward violence?

A)labeling theory
B)subcultural theory
C)class-dominant theory
D)differential association theory

Question 31

Which of the following would NOT be considered organized crime?

A)a woman who sells her escort services on Craigslist
B)the black market
C)a drug-trafficking ring
D)a money-laundering racket

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT considered a property crime?

A)arson
B)robbery
C)larceny
D)burglary

Question 33

The majority of early biological theories have stood the test of time and are widely supported by modern criminologists and sociologists.

Question 34

What are the policies and practices that push schoolchildren,especially the most at-risk children,out of classrooms and into the juvenile and criminal justice systems known as?

A)the school-to-prison pipeline
B)zero-tolerance policies
C)disproportionate minority contact
D)juvenile justice programs

Question 35

Which of the following is an example of informal social control?

A)expelling a student for breaking school policy
B)arresting an individual for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct
C)sentencing a convicted murderer to life in prison
D)grounding a teenager for sneaking out at night

Question 36

While there is widespread agreement that certain acts,such as homicide or sexual molestation,are deviant,there is a lack of consensus about many other behaviors,such as visible tattoos and facial piercings.

Question 37

Which of the following would be least likely to be considered sexual deviance in the United States?

A)exchanging sexual favors for cash or other goods
B)engaging in sexual acts with multiple partners at once
C)living with your partner without being married
D)sexting,or sending nude or partially nude pictures of yourself to strangers via an electronic device

Question 38

Countries that provide a wider social safety net for their citizens witness lower rates of crime.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of a feminist perspective on deviance?

A)Nearly all research on deviance focuses on male deviance.
B)Nearly all research on deviance is conducted by men.
C)Women's deviant behavior is more likely to be stigmatized than men's.
D)Biological differences between men and women must be taken into account.

Question 40

Which of the following does NOT illustrate a class-dominant theory?

A)The disparity in severity of sentencing for pure cocaine and crack cocaine is so large because pure cocaine is more often used by upper-class White people while crack cocaine is more common among poor Black people.
B)The passage of marijuana decriminalization legislation is deterred by powerful lobbying efforts of the pharmaceutical industry.
C)Individuals turn to robbery and larceny because they lack legitimate educational and employment opportunities.
D)Tagging graffiti on a building is considered a crime because of American notions of private property.

Question 41

Some traditional ideas about sex,such as the idea of waiting to have sex until marriage,are becoming increasingly viewed as deviant.

Question 42

Explain labeling theory,and illustrate it with an example of primary and secondary deviance.

Question 43

Property and violent crimes in the United States have been steadily increasing.

Question 44

According to Durkheim,as social solidarity decreases,anomie increases,and suicide rates ______.

Question 45

According to opportunity theory,some people do not engage in deviance because they lack the means or community in which to do so.

Question 46

Like any other crime,the FBI maintains accurate documentation of state crime that is made readily available to the public.

Question 47

______ control is the attempts by people or groups to control the behaviors of others,whereas social power is the ability to effectively exercise those attempts.

Question 48

Some theorists claimed deviants were ______,throwbacks to primitive early humans.

Question 49

According to control theorists,most deviant acts are spontaneous and unplanned.

Question 50

______ deviance occurs at the moment an activity is labeled deviant by others,whereas secondary deviance occurs when the person being labeled deviant accepts the label as part of his or her identity and begins to act in conformity with the label.

Question 51

White-collar criminals are not considered deviant,as they are striving toward accepted cultural goals and using similar means,such as business practices or loopholes,to achieve them.

Question 52

The majority of ______ who engage in deviant or criminal behavior are themselves victims or survivors.

Question 53

Explain the difference between deviance and crime.

Question 54

______ are acts defined in the law as punishable by fines,imprisonment,or both,whereas deviance can refer to any attitude,behavior,or condition that violates cultural norms.

Question 55

According to differential association theory,the more we associate with people whose behavior is ______,the greater the likelihood that our behavior will also be deviant.

Question 56

Control theorists would argue that forming connections with other people and institutions is more important than the presence of anomie in understanding deviance.

Question 57

Subcultural theories only examine differences in deviance between immigrant or ethnic groups and dominant U.S.culture.

Question 58

Provide three or four examples of how deviance may occur in the classroom,ranging from the breaking of everyday norms,such as folkways,to offenses that would receive serious sanction.

Question 59

The United States is a pluralistic society.Explain what is meant by this statement,and illustrate it with examples.Include at least one example that illustrates changes over time.

Question 60

Police brutality and corruption can be viewed in terms of police subcultural norms.

Question 61

Compare and contrast Durkheim's theory of anomie,Merton's strain theory,Cloward and Ohlin's opportunity theory,and Gottfredson and Hirschi's control theory.Identify common themes,as well as the principles on which they differ.(You do not have to compare every theory with every other theory-just basic similarities or differences between a few. )

Question 62

Identify and discuss three key explanations of the rising prison population,as well as its relationship to race,class,and gender.

Question 63

Discuss the relationships between racism,stigmatized behavior,and crime.

Question 64

Use structural contradiction theory to explain violence and crime in poor neighborhoods.

Question 65

Explain the difference between formal and informal social control and their relationship to social power.Identify two groups of people who hold social power to exercise formal or informal social control.

Question 66

Discuss feminist perspectives on deviance.

Question 67

One twin study found that 35% of identical twin brothers have both been convicted of a crime,and 21% of fraternal twin brothers have both been convicted of a crime.Explain this finding using a (1)biological perspective and (2)symbolic interactionist perspective.Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each.

Question 68

Propose a research a study that looks at some type of deviance.Include discussion of how you would frame your research question and what theory or theories you would apply,select an appropriate research methodology,weigh any ethical implications,and discuss any challenges or threats to data collection,reliability,or validity that may arise.

Question 69

Apply conflict theory to understand police brutality and the extrajudicial killing of Black men and women by police in the United States.

Question 70

Apply a conflict perspective to explain white-collar crimes and why the people who commit them are less likely to face formal punishment.

Question 71

Explain the differences between everyday deviance,sexual deviance,and crime,and provide three examples of each.

Question 72

Apply a functionalist perspective to explain the existence and persistence of crime.

Question 73

Identify an example of a subculture and a counterculture that engages in deviant behavior,and use subcultural theories to explain why the behavior is considered deviant.

Question 74

Discuss the relationship between organized crime and opportunity theory.

Question 75

Explain Robert Merton's strain theory,and recreate his typology of deviance that can arise from strain,including the reaction to goals and means.Illustrate each with an example.

Question 76

Apply a symbolic interactionist approach to the phenomenon of cyberbullying.

Question 77

Identify the elements that must be present for an act to be considered criminal.

Question 78

In many cities across the United States,there are calls for the demolition of public housing,pointing at disrepair,mold,and infestation as reasons to redevelop.However,these properties are all owned and managed by a government entity.Present an argument for whether or not the deterioration of public housing,the demolition of people's homes,and the displacement of the poor,mostly residents of color,could be considered a state crime.

Question 79

Identify and explain early biological perspectives on deviance and crime.Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses,and discuss how these theories have held up to scrutiny.

Question 80

Discuss the relationship between agents of socialization and differential association theory.