In part two of the course, we have delved into the process by which we, ourselves, are a product of our society (through processes such as status attainment, socialization, and group conformity). But we are also possessed of free-will to go against the social norms and mores that shape our social existence, thereby becoming deviant. This assignment asks you to discover acts of deviance in the news (or, as I like to call it, the “daily deviance report”).
STEP 1: Find a current article about a recent crime that has been reported on within the past three weeks. Look for language within the article that lends itself to a sociological explanation of the deviant behavior using one or more of the theories of deviance. Be sure to find a current event relevant to crime and deviance. Check reputable online news sources for an actual article about a crime or deviant behavior. There are always major deviant acts each week that make the national, regional, and/or local news.
Review articles should be a minimum of 500 words, recent (no older than three weeks), relevant (related to crime, deviance, and social control), and from a reputable news source (check the library website for free access to national news sources, if needed).
STEP 2: Write a thorough summary of the article. Be sure to convey your best understanding of the alleged crime and how it has been reported.
STEP 3: Using your sociological imagination, write an analysis of the article that connects the main idea(s) of the article to specific key terms and theories from the past three chapters on Social Structure (Chp 4), Socialization (Chp 5), Groups (Chp 6), and Deviance (Chp 7), Crime and Social Control. Highlight (in bold, color, or otherwise) a majority of the following sociological vocabulary words used in your analysis: ascribed status, achieved status, social role, social identity, nature/nurture, in-group/out-group, reference group, conformity, deviance, crime, law, label, sanctions.
STEP 4: Be sure you have Included a link to your article, check for any writing errors, and submit your response paper.
Your paper should be two pages in length (approximately 500-600 words), double-spaced, have 1-inch margins, use a standard font, and written in paragraph form (not just a bullet list response). It should also include a citation to the news article that you are using and link to that article. Here is an example of citation style for news website sources:
References:
Feuer, A. (2017, September 15). Judge says DACA cutoff is too early. The New York Times. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A504584283/AONE?u=morrisville&sid=AONE&xid=936f0bd2
AUTHOR………..DATE………………..ARTICLE TITLE………………….NEWSPAPER NAME………………..URL OF NEWSPAPER WEB SITE/DATABASE