Term Paper on "Ciminality and Deviant Behavior as Marshall"

Term Paper 5 pages (1470 words) Sources: 1+ Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Ciminality and Deviant Behavior

As Marshall B. Clinard so astutely points out, in today's American culture, "We are witnessing two extremely dangerous and volatile situations -- a growing incidence of criminal activity in the middle and lower levels of society linked to antisocial behavior and an increasing absence of concern in many Americans based on an attitude of moral apathy" (1992, 46). Clinard also provides some rather startling statistics to support these statements via a number of reports issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) within the last forty years. First of all, in 1963, the year that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas by a lone gunman, there were approximately "2,180 crimes committed per 100,000 American citizens; by 1983, this figure more than doubled to some 5,463 crimes committed per 100,000 American citizens" (1992, 48). Thus, the rapid rise in crime outlined by these figures has much to do with the rise of deviant behavior, also known as Antisocial Personality Disorder, which James W. Coleman sums up as "a personality disorder characterized by ruthlessness and aggression and is undoubtedly an inheritance from our past history as the world's most successful predator" (1998, 75).

In the essay "Cultivating Criminality: The Centrality of Deviance to the Scientific Dictatorship," Phillip D. Collins describes four specific functions of deviancy when it comes to criminality and criminal behavior according to the findings of sociologist Emile Durkheim. First of all, deviance permits "the enhancement of conformity," based on the idea that "abstract concepts of criminal law can only be illustrated by their violation." Thus, by committing crimes against society, the deviant person "tangibly enacts principles that are antithetical to the law" and is then "sacrificed on the altar of conformity for the education of the public," meaning that the deviant person is held up to the light of criticism and thereby tagged as a deviant person. Second, the deviant person serves as the "reinforcement of solidarity among law-abiding individuals," i.e., "social cohesion" which ultimately "unifies the citizenry and facilitates the stability of society;" in other words, "society requires an enemy" in order to maintain its glorified position as good and well-behaved (2006, Internet).

Third, the deviant person provides a type of "safety valve" or catharsis which allows "people to avenge themselves against the dominant social order," an act which also "fractures the social body by promulgating fear and paranoia" among law-abiding citizens which then becomes "an agent of stability." Basically, fear generates social stability, due to the realization that breaking the law may lead to imprisonment or perhaps death. Lastly, the deviant person induces social change, particularly through crime statistics and social experiments which can be tracked by law enforcement officials and agencies like the FBI (Collins, 2006, Internet).

Obviously, all of these functions are very closely related to society as a whole and although deviance itself can be observed and measured in various ways, the most important aspect for our purposes is a psychological entity known as Antisocial Personality Disorder which "has been demonstrated to be the number one reason why criminality in the United States has increased over the years to bring about so much social chaos and dysfunction" (Humphrey, 2005, 145).

Those who have been diagnosed by a psychiatrist as exhibiting Antisocial Personality

Disorder "have a lifelong pattern of irresponsible behavior and show little concern for the rights of others, the norms of society, the dictates of conscience" and especially the law (Gregorian, 2000, 85). Generally, problems linked to Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) begin in childhood or adolescence with disruptive troublemaking, a clear disrespect for authority, violation of rules and laws dictated by society, the destruction of property and usually some type of violent behavior, either toward authority figures (i.e., parents, law enforcement, etc.) or peers, such as friends, family members or even complete strangers. When these individuals attain adulthood, their lives often become tumultuous and filled with risk-taking and their social relationships deteriorate or become completely unmanageable.

Also, those afflicted with APD usually become involved in highly-illegal activities, such as theft, drug dealing, carjacking, armed robbery and even cold-blooded murder. Not surprisingly, there does exist "an appreciable risk that those who suffer from APD will die early by homicide, suicide, drug overdose or by accident" and according to the research currently available, "there is a marked gender difference in APD, for it is more commonly diagnosed in men which reflects the male… READ MORE

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