Contexts of Deviance

Book excerpt: While most readers focus more on deviance than sociology, Contexts of Deviance: Statuses, Institutions, and Interactions brings sociology front and center by examining deviance and social control in their social contexts. This fresh and innovative anthology shows students how deviance and control can be studied at different levels of analysis and from a range of theoretical approaches using different methodologies. The collection is divided into six parts: theory, social control, statuses and identities, institutions, subcultures, and social movements. The readings range from classic to contemporary pieces, from macro-level studies to studies of face-to-face encounters. Contexts of Deviance also represents a wide range of theoretical traditions--from functionalist and critical to post-modern and interactionist. Introductions in each section help students to understand what it means to study deviance and control in a social context, to appreciate research questions at different levels of analysis, and to recognize how a positivist orientation is different from a subjectivist orientation. An instructor's manual and test bank prepared by Thomas N. Ratliff (Arkansas State University), Jessica Middleton (University of California at Irvine), and Ashley Swan (Arkansas State University) are available for qualified instructors.