doi: 10.2307/799690pmid: N/A
Article PDF first page preview Close This content is only available as a PDF. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799691pmid: N/A
Abstract This paper responds to a number of recent criticisms of labeling theory. Some have criticized labeling theory for empathizing with deviants. These critics ignore the emphasis of the interactionist perspective to take the role of the other in social research. Marxists criticize labeling theory for ignoring oppression and exploitation. But it is argued that the interactionist perspective demands the sort of investigation urged by Marxists. Finally conceptual problems of defining what is deviance and who is a deviant are discussed. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * " This paper is part of a larger investigation supported by a fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation; I am grateful for its generous support. In addition, the Research Foundation of the State University of New York permitted me a summer unencumbered by teaching responsibilities by awarding me a Faculty Research Fellowship. I would also like to thank Gerald Suttles, Forrest Dill, Robert Stevenson and Terry J. Rosenberg for critical comments on an earlier draft of this paper; they have been most helpful. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
Kitsuse, John, I.;Spector,, Malcolm
doi: 10.2307/799692pmid: N/A
Abstract This paper explores parallel developments in labeling theory and in the value-conflict approach to social problems. Similarities in their critiques of functionalism and etiological theory as well as their emphasis on the definitional process are noted. In addition, the failure of both formulations to develop the distinctiveness of their common insight is examined. An analysis of this failure is presented. This content is only available as a PDF. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799693pmid: N/A
Abstract The question of changing social classes, and in particular of classes in close proximity, has been explored since the early 1960s through various perspectives. This paper examines two of these perspectives, the cultural and the situational, in the context of the culture of poverty debate and the thesis of “embourgeoisement.” Both cases exemplify serious weaknesses in social class research, weaknesses that are traced to the failure of each to deal adequately with the relationship of culture to class structure. A third perspective, the adaptational, is proposed to provide a more viable framework for the analysis of changing social classes by seriously considering the features and processes of class-culture. This content is only available as a PDF. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799694pmid: N/A
Abstract This paper relates the revival of interest in the sociology of law, and in particular criminal law, to recent changes of perspective in the field of criminology. It considers the debate between conflict and consensus theorists over the nature of the criminal law and argues that efforts to settle the dispute in favor of one model or the other are somewhat misdirected. An attempt is made to reconcile the two viewpoints and to suggest how remaining points of disagreement can be used to stimulate more productive research. This content is only available as a PDF. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799695pmid: N/A
Abstract Issues associated with conflict, interactionist, and organizational perspectives on criminal justice are examined. These perspectives are then applied in a study of the pre-sentencing process. Data collected in a western Canadian province indicate a division in the judicial wisdom regarding the use of probation officers, as advisors, in the pre-sentencing process. An analysis of cases in which pre-sentence recommendations are requested reveals an influence of variables emphasized in the conflict perspective: the offender's race and socio-economic status. Somewhat more pervasive in their impact are intervening variables emphasized in the interactionist perspective: the probation officers' perceptions of demeanor and evaluations of success prospects. A comparison of cases where recommendations are, and are not, received adds further support to the view that involvement of probation officers in an advisory capacity encourages an intrusion of extra-legal considerations into the sentencing process. These findings are discussed in terms of a viewpoint developed in the work of Everett Hughes. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * A version of this paper was originally presented at the American Sociological Association Meetings in San Francisco, August, 1975. The author wishes to express his appreciation for helpful comments offered during the period of the research by Gwynn Nettler, A.R. Gillis, James Hackler, Andrew Harrell, George Kupfer, Marvin Wolfgang, Austin Turk, and John Simpson. None of these individuals is accountable for the final form of the research; this responsibility lies with the author. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799696pmid: N/A
Abstract This paper considers the prospects for the development of a Marxian interpretation of deviance and control. The weaknesses of conventional perspectives are identified and an approach is suggested which applies the insights of Marxian theory to an investigation of deviance production in modern society. This process is explored with special attention to the capitalist mode of production, the system of class control in capitalist societies, the genesis and maintenance of “problem populations,” the channeling of these populations into deviant statuses, and the distinctive character of deviant groups. The emergence of monopoly and state capitalism is examined in an attempt to understand the dynamics of structural change, deviance production and social control. The overproduction of deviance in advanced capitalist societies and attempts at the “solution” of this problem are also discussed. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * " Revised version of a paper presented at the American Sociological Association meetings, August, 1975. I would like to thank Cecile Sue Coren and Andrew T. Scull for their criticisms and suggestions. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
Williamson, John, B.;Hyer, Kathryn, M.
doi: 10.2307/799697pmid: N/A
Abstract There is great diversity among studies of the poor in the way poverty is measured. The present study reviews the alternative meanings of the term “poverty” implicit in the measurement procedures suggested. Drawing upon a five year panel study based on a national sample, a comparison is made among sixteen alternative measures of poverty. On the basis of this analysis we conclude that caution is required when making comparisons between studies using different measures of poverty. Of particular note is the evidence that measures which draw the poverty line high differ from those which draw it low, that measures based on low income differ from those based on SES, and that measures based on welfare status differ from those not so based. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * Revised version of a paper presented at the 1975 Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Social Problems. We are grateful to Michael Useem and Barry Bluestone for their criticisms of an earlier draft of this paper. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
Adamek, Raymond, J.;Lewis, Jerry, M.
doi: 10.2307/799698pmid: N/A
Abstract Utilizing self-reports of Kent State students' protest and socio-political activity before and after May 4, 1970, this study evaluates the plausibility of two hypotheses. The radicalization hypothesis suggests that exposure to extreme social control violence, such as that employed by National Guardsmen on Kent's campus, would lead to greater protest activity. The pacification hypothesis suggests that protest activity would decrease after exposure to social control violence, to be replaced by inactivity, or by “more acceptable” socio-political activity. The data support the radicalization hypothesis. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * This study was supported by the Office for Research and the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio. A shorter version of this paper was presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Montreal, August 1974. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
doi: 10.2307/799699pmid: N/A
Abstract This case study explores some major sources of ineffectiveness which plagued an innovative alcoholism treatment program located in a skid row mission. The findings identify ambiguous and competing goals, conflicting vested interests, conflicts over organizational resources, and a lack of treatment technology as major sources of ineffectiveness. The agencies sponsoring this venture contributed to these problems, especially by their lack of planning and the imposition of unrealistic success criteria. The study has implications for the problem of massive program failure. In this regard, a particularly surprising finding is the extent to which large public expenditure actually diverted the treatment program from servicing one segment of its target population and indirectly contributed to the skid row alcoholism problem by introducing men to the area who might not otherwise have found their way there. This content is only available as a PDF. © 1975 Society for the Study of Social Problems, Inc.
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