Key Terms
- conflict theory
- a theory that examines social and economic factors as the causes of criminal deviance
- control theory
- a theory that states social control is directly affected by the strength of social bonds and that deviance results from a feeling of disconnection from society
- corporate crime
- crime committed by white-collar workers in a business environment
- corrections system
- the system tasked with supervising individuals who have been arrested for, convicted of, or sentenced for criminal offenses
- court
- a system that has the authority to make decisions based on law
- crime
- a behavior that violates official law and is punishable through formal sanctions
- criminal justice system
- an organization that exists to enforce a legal code
- deviance
- a violation of contextual, cultural, or social norms
- differential association theory
- a theory that states individuals learn deviant behavior from those close to them who provide models of and opportunities for deviance
- formal sanctions
- sanctions that are officially recognized and enforced
- hate crimes
- attacks based on a person’s race, religion, or other characteristics
- informal sanctions
- sanctions that occur in face-to-face interactions
- labeling theory
- the ascribing of a deviant behavior to another person by members of society
- legal codes
- codes that maintain formal social control through laws
- master status
- a label that describes the chief characteristic of an individual
- negative sanctions
- punishments for violating norms
- nonviolent crimes
- crimes that involve the destruction or theft of property, but do not use force or the threat of force
- police
- a civil force in charge of regulating laws and public order at a federal, state, or community level
- positive sanctions
- rewards given for conforming to norms
- power elite
- a small group of wealthy and influential people at the top of society who hold the power and resources
- primary deviance
- a violation of norms that does not result in any long-term effects on the individual’s self-image or interactions with others
- sanctions
- the means of enforcing rules
- secondary deviance
- deviance that occurs when a person’s self-concept and behavior begin to change after his or her actions are labeled as deviant by members of society
- self-report study
- a collection of data acquired using voluntary response methods, such as questionnaires or telephone interviews
- social control
- the regulation and enforcement of norms
- social disorganization theory
- a theory that asserts crime occurs in communities with weak social ties and the absence of social control
- social order
- an arrangement of practices and behaviors on which society’s members base their daily lives
- strain theory
- a theory that addresses the relationship between having socially acceptable goals and having socially acceptable means to reach those goals
- street crime
- crime committed by average people against other people or organizations, usually in public spaces
- victimless crime
- activities against the law, but that do not result in injury to any individual other than the person who engages in them
- violent crimes
- crimes based on the use of force or the threat of force