SOC 1500 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Group Conflict
23 Mar 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Crime: a human conduct in violation of the criminal laws of a state, etc. that has the power to make such laws. Problems: yields the moral high ground of powerful individuals, the nature vs. nurture of crime can"t be separated. Statutory law: law in the form of statutes or formal written strictures made by a legislature or governing body with the power to make law. Crime is the result of criteria that have been built into the law by powerful groups and are then used to label selected undesirable forms of behaviour as illegal. Any definitions of crime must include all forms of antisocial behaviour. Most crimes can be regarded as deviant forms of behaviour. Deviant behaviour: human activity that violates social norms. Some forms of deviance aren"t criminal, and the reverse is true as well. Most agree that sexual assault, murder, etc. are against the law, there"s less agreement about the legal status of drug use, gambling, etc.
