My group was assigned the broad topic of social deviance and crime. Social deviance is a phenomenon that has existed in all societies where there have been norms. There are two possibilities for how an individual will act in the face of social norms: conform or violate. However, there is often a blend of conformity and deviance in the ways people behave. Furthermore, deviance can be relative to time and place because what is considered deviant in one social context may be non-deviant in another. For example, killing somebody is considered wrong, except when governments permit it during warfare or for self-defense. There are also forms of deviance that are about as universal as anything in the social sciences can be, such as when one
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The meeting we attended was held at The Friendship House in Nashville on February 5th. Out of all the meetings listed online we chose this particular one because The Friendship House was only fifteen minutes away from campus and it was at a convenient time in the afternoon. We were able to sit in a room amid at least twenty people who claimed the title of an alcoholic. We listened closely as they shared their name, their shared title, and their individual stories. Being able to listen to who these people really are, not just knowing that they either have or still do abuse alcohol, and their experiences with battling life in sobriety was eye opening and allowed me to gain a new perspective concerning the idea of social deviance. While at the meeting, I observed three related sociological concepts, which were stereotypes, in-groups/out-groups, and socialization. In regards to …show more content…
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2015), “16.6 million Adults ages 18 and older (7.0 percent of this age group) had an AUD in 2013.” (p. 1). This data shows how prevalent alcohol use disorders are in today’s society, and it shows that even those who are underage can be affected by alcoholism. Furthermore, research by Edenberg and Foround (2013) states that “Abundant evidence indicates that alcohol dependence (alcoholism) is a complex genetic disease, with variations in a large number of genes affecting a person's risk of alcoholism.” (p. 1). This research disproves the common misconception that alcoholism is largely caused by environmental factors and that it is that person’s choice to continue drinking. However, alcoholism is a detailed combination of genetic markers that is also affected by environment, to a lesser extent. Moreover, according to O’Tousa and Grahame (2014), “Characteristics of individuals with severe alcohol use disorders include heightened cue sensitivity, compulsive seeking, craving, and continued alcohol use in the face of negative consequences.” (p. 1). This assertion reflects the serious psychosocial consequences of long term alcohol abuse. It illustrates how the traditional mechanisms, action-outcome and stimuli-response, that humans have been conditioned to follow can be broken down in
The meeting we attended was held at The Friendship House in Nashville on February 5th. Out of all the meetings listed online we chose this particular one because The Friendship House was only fifteen minutes away from campus and it was at a convenient time in the afternoon. We were able to sit in a room amid at least twenty people who claimed the title of an alcoholic. We listened closely as they shared their name, their shared title, and their individual stories. Being able to listen to who these people really are, not just knowing that they either have or still do abuse alcohol, and their experiences with battling life in sobriety was eye opening and allowed me to gain a new perspective concerning the idea of social deviance. While at the meeting, I observed three related sociological concepts, which were stereotypes, in-groups/out-groups, and socialization. In regards to …show more content…
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2015), “16.6 million Adults ages 18 and older (7.0 percent of this age group) had an AUD in 2013.” (p. 1). This data shows how prevalent alcohol use disorders are in today’s society, and it shows that even those who are underage can be affected by alcoholism. Furthermore, research by Edenberg and Foround (2013) states that “Abundant evidence indicates that alcohol dependence (alcoholism) is a complex genetic disease, with variations in a large number of genes affecting a person's risk of alcoholism.” (p. 1). This research disproves the common misconception that alcoholism is largely caused by environmental factors and that it is that person’s choice to continue drinking. However, alcoholism is a detailed combination of genetic markers that is also affected by environment, to a lesser extent. Moreover, according to O’Tousa and Grahame (2014), “Characteristics of individuals with severe alcohol use disorders include heightened cue sensitivity, compulsive seeking, craving, and continued alcohol use in the face of negative consequences.” (p. 1). This assertion reflects the serious psychosocial consequences of long term alcohol abuse. It illustrates how the traditional mechanisms, action-outcome and stimuli-response, that humans have been conditioned to follow can be broken down in