Deviant Behavior In Sociology

Anona Su
Throughout, we have talked about many types of deviant behaviors ranging from adult-child sexual contact and bestiality to white supremacy beliefs and deaf community. Goffman argued that no matter the stigma experienced, it is extremely discrediting because of language and relationships around the people it affects (1963). Deviant behaviors and characteristics (denoted as: b/c) are highly stigmatized thus discrediting. To combat stigma, groups can be made. Yet, there are many instances where they are unable to form communities of support. To understand these disparities in this paper, I will be addressing factors leading to people with deviant b/c that seek out other people with the same deviant b/c and factors that prevent them from

Collectively, things such as bestiality and adult-child sexual contact are immoral things in society. In the documentary Zoo, they had very secretive small gatherings on the farms for the people (Devor 2007). Yet they quickly got caught and they were thrown in jail for their actions. Society saw their actions as dangerous and disgusting forbidding them to join together. In prisons, child molesters are seen as the worst. Outside of those prison walls, life does not get better and the general population sees them just the same. There still existed transactions that would have kids go around (Dave 2008). Even more, the North American Man-Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) fails at trying to endorse the actions (Young 2008). They cannot gain any support from outsiders or the “wise” (Goffman 1963). Deviant rationalizations, such as the school shootings, showed that the social effects on school shooters took psychological effects on the students. They were told: just need to toughen up, it was part of the experience, or turn the other check (Newman et al. 2005). In turn, they ended up shooting the school by not fitting into the social groups (Newman et al. 2005). By telling them they were wrong, it made it difficult for deviants to form groups and join together when it was necessary. In the case of school shootings, those individuals were hindered by society and unable to find the right resources to support their mental health. In the case of the two sexual deviances, although they did form small interactions, they were not publically known and most of them were kept on the down low. These sexual practices were not normal and they needed to hide this about them. The deviant individuals involved in these b/c that do not join together often are discreditable and passing (Goffman 1963). This means that as an outsider we would not know their deviant and they fit in to the