Question 1

According to Sutherland, criminal behavior is ______.

Accepted Answer

According to Sutherland's Differential Association Theory, criminal behavior is learned through interaction with others.

Question 2

In Akers's social learning theory, differential association refers to ______.

Accepted Answer

Differential association, according to Akers's social learning theory, involves the interaction with individuals who engage in deviant behavior or violate the law, which can influence one's own behaviors and attitudes towards those behaviors.

Question 3

According to Ronald Akers, it is the ______, combined with specific contexts, that encourage or discourage the initial delinquent or deviant acts.

Accepted Answer

According to Ronald Akers, it is the anticipated balance of reinforcement, combined with specific contexts, that encourage or discourage the initial delinquent or deviant acts. This concept is central to his social learning theory, which suggests that the potential rewards or punishments associated with a behavior play a significant role in determining whether an individual will engage in that behavior.

Question 4

What is the social learning approach designed to explain?

Accepted Answer

The social learning approach is designed to explain both the process of becoming deviant and the process of desisting from deviance, as it focuses on how individuals learn behaviors and norms through interaction with their environment and others.

Question 5

Kevin's family makes meth. From a young age, Kevin was taught that making methamphetamine wasn't hurting anyone, was rewarded for helping to make methamphetamine, and was not exposed to any consequences for making methamphetamine. Kevin's was home-schooled and was never exposed to any other views on methamphetamine. The social learning approach suggests that Kevin will ______.

Accepted Answer

The social learning approach suggests that individuals learn behaviors through observation, imitation, and modeling from their environment. Since Kevin was raised in an environment where making methamphetamine was normalized and rewarded, without exposure to any consequences or differing views, it is likely that he will persist in making meth as he has learned this behavior from his family.

Question 6

According to Karl Marx, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat are two conflicting classes that structure society.

Accepted Answer

Karl Marx posited that society is structured around the conflict between the bourgeoisie (the capitalist class who owns the means of production) and the proletariat (the working class who sell their labor).

Question 7

The proletariat are the owners of the means of production in society.

Accepted Answer

The proletariat, in Marxist theory, refers to the class of workers who do not own the means of production and must sell their labor to survive.

Question 8

According to Sellin, conduct norms define approved and disapproved behaviors within cultural groups.

Accepted Answer

Sellin's theory of culture conflict and crime suggests that conduct norms, which are the rules of behavior that are considered acceptable and unacceptable by members of cultural groups, play a crucial role in defining what is considered criminal behavior within those groups.

Question 9

Austin Turk's conflict model of criminality focuses on the creation and enforcement of informal norms.

Accepted Answer

Austin Turk's conflict model of criminality focuses on the societal conflicts that lead to the creation and enforcement of laws, emphasizing the role of power differentials in defining criminal behavior, rather than on informal norms.

Question 10

The functional perspective would argue that deviance persists because it serves a useful purpose and contributes to the stability of society.

Accepted Answer

The functional perspective, particularly associated with sociologist Emile Durkheim, posits that deviance plays an integral role in society by reinforcing norms, promoting social cohesion, and stimulating social change, thereby contributing to the overall stability and functionality of society.

Question 11

The terms "latent functions" and "dysfunctions" both refer to phenomena that are recognized by participants in a social system.

Accepted Answer

Latent functions are unintended and unrecognized consequences of social processes, while dysfunctions are recognized negative consequences, indicating that participants in a social system may not always be aware of latent functions.

Question 12

According to Emile Durkheim, in every society, some form of crime exists.

Accepted Answer

Emile Durkheim argued that crime is a normal aspect of society and that it is impossible for any society to be entirely free of crime. He believed that crime serves certain functions, such as promoting social change and reinforcing social norms.

Question 13

Emile Durkheim is widely regarded as the founding father of modern criminology.

Accepted Answer

Emile Durkheim is widely regarded as one of the founding fathers of sociology, not specifically of modern criminology.

Question 14

The four components of social learning theory are toughness, smartness, excitement, and autonomy.

Accepted Answer

The four components of social learning theory are attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation.

Question 15

According to differential association theory, criminal subcultures perpetuate criminal and deviant behavior.

Accepted Answer

Differential association theory, proposed by Edwin H. Sutherland, suggests that criminal behavior is learned through interaction with others in a process where individuals are exposed to values, attitudes, techniques, and motives for criminal behavior, thus perpetuating criminal and deviant behavior within subcultures.

Question 16

Unlike other approaches to the study of deviant behavior, the social learning approaches focus exclusively on what causes people to stop being deviant.

Accepted Answer

Social learning approaches focus on how behaviors (including deviant behaviors) are learned through interaction with others and the environment, not exclusively on what causes people to stop being deviant.

Question 17

In the social learning approach, negative formal and informal sanctions and norm-abiding definitions can counter the influence of reinforcement, exposure to deviant models, and norm-violating definitions.

Accepted Answer

The social learning approach posits that both positive reinforcements (like rewards) and negative sanctions (punishments or disapprovals) influence behavior. Negative sanctions and norm-abiding definitions can counteract the effects of positive reinforcements for deviant behavior, exposure to deviant models, and definitions that favor norm violation, thereby promoting conformity to societal norms.

Question 18

The social learning theory emphasizes the influence of socioeconomic status on the norms people learn.

Accepted Answer

The social learning theory primarily emphasizes that people learn from observing others, focusing on the imitation of behaviors, attitudes, and emotional reactions, rather than directly highlighting the influence of socioeconomic status on norms.

Question 19

Reinforcement, exposure to deviant models, and norm-violating definitions are all components of the social learning approach to deviance.

Accepted Answer

These components are integral to the social learning theory, which posits that individuals learn deviant behaviors through observation, imitation, and reinforcement of behaviors exhibited by others in their social environment.

Question 20

Summarize Sellin's ideas about the relationship between culture, crime, and deviance.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Summarize Sellin's ideas about the relationship between...

Quiz 3: Theories of Deviant Behavior: II Contemporary Perspectives