Deviance is a
behavior that violates
significant social norms and is disapproved by large numbers of people. The sociology of deviance is concerned
primarily with violations of behaviors that are considered unacceptable or
offensive by majority.
Deviance
also varies from one situation to another.
A behavior only becomes
deviant when it is socially defined as such and
definitions vary from time to time, place-to-place and group-to-group.
How do sociologists explain this? They say, “deviance is relative,” meaning, it is based on the
social definitions of some group.
Behaviors can be considered deviant only within the context of the norms
and values of a particular culture.
Thus, one
act may be unacceptable to one group, but the same act has a
high degree of acceptance to another group.
Biologists say that deviance is caused by
factors which come from within individuals.
They say that deviant behavior is a result of aberrant genetic traits,
as in the case of homosexuals, criminals, and mentally ill individuals.
In
contrast, sociologists say that factors “outside” the individual cause
deviance. In other words, they presume
that an individual’s environment may cause him to show deviant characteristics.
Psychologists however explain that a
person’s deviant behavior is caused by abnormalities in the individual’s
personality - or what we call personality disorders. Likewise, other
psychologists view deviant behavior as a form of aggression against others or
against society because of frustration.
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