Deviance and The Strain Theory

Deviance is the violation of cultural norms. Deviance falls into two forms: formal and informal. Formal deviance is the violation of laws in a society, resulting in crime. Informal deviance is the violation of a social norm. This is an action not acceptable by society, but cannot be punishable by law. In order to understand deviance, one must examine why individuals are deviant and what function deviance serves in society. However, there is not a definite answer for either, rather multiple theories.

The strain theory examines the cultural goals set up by society and the institutional means of achieving that goal. An individual must decide whether to accept or reject the cultural goals and the means of achieving that goal. Every act of deviance falls into one of four categories that define how an individual handles determining and achieving goals. Innovation is the acceptance of cultural goals, but the rejection of acceptable means to achieve the goals. A drug dealer serves as an example of innovation. They have the desire to become wealthy, but turn to selling drugs as an easy form of income, rather than obtaining a regular job deemed acceptable by society. Ritualism is the rejection of cultural goals, but the acceptance of the institutional means. The individual loses sight of the actual goal, for example someone who attends a job every day, but only does the job as a routine task. Retreatism is the rejection of both the cultural goals and the institutional means, seen as the most deviant. An example would be a homeless person who is homeless by choice. Rebellion is when an individual rejects the cultural goals and institutional means replacing them with their own goal and means. Hippies are perfect examples of rebellion. The s...

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...ate the violence depicted in the media and they do recognize the difference between media and real life. Society blames the media for youth violence in order to avoid the real issues. No one knows the true answer to why youth commit crimes and suicides (Sternheimer 2003).

Society will continue to rise up against deviance, but one must recognize that deviance plays an essential role in society. Deviance serves society by defining what is acceptable vs. unacceptable, establishing unity, and bringing about social reform. However, the negative aspect of deviance is somewhat society’s responsibility. Could society not eliminate some of the negative aspects of deviance? Is there a way for society to change labels? As with any issue, nothing can be perfect. One must recognize the essential role society plays into defining, creating, and practically assisting deviance.