Sociologists study two closely linked ideas: crime and deviance. A crime is an act that breaks the formal laws of a society and can be punished by the state. Deviance is any behaviour that breaks the informal norms or expectations of a group, even if no law is broken.
Crime versus deviance
Some acts are both criminal and deviant, such as theft. Some are criminal but not seen as very deviant by many people, such as breaking a minor traffic rule. Some are deviant but not criminal, such as talking loudly during a quiet prayer or wearing pyjamas to a wedding.
- Crime: breaks a law, punished by courts.
- Deviance: breaks a social norm, punished informally by disapproval.
Deviance varies
What counts as deviant is not fixed. It depends on:
- Time: attitudes change across history. Actions once accepted may later be banned, and the reverse can happen too.
- Place: a rule may apply in one country but not another, so the same act can be legal in one place and illegal elsewhere.
- Culture: different faith and community groups hold different norms about dress, food, greetings and celebration.
- Situation: shouting is fine at a football match but deviant in a library.
Norms, values and sanctions
Societies teach norms (rules for behaviour) and values (shared ideas about right and wrong). When people follow norms they may receive positive sanctions such as praise. When they break norms they may receive negative sanctions such as a frown, a fine or a prison sentence.
Deviance is not a quality of the act itself, but of society's reaction to it.
Why the idea is useful
Because deviance is relative, sociologists avoid assuming that any group is naturally good or bad. Instead they ask how and why particular acts come to be labelled as unacceptable, and who has the power to decide.