SOC 2070 Lecture 2: Week 2 readings.docx
Document Summary
Chapter 2 explaining deviant behaviour: positivist theories: sociology of deviance is made up of, 1. Sees deviance as objectively real and scientifically explainable: 2. Need to infer information available: guiding principle i trust my sense to tell me whats true, if not observable through 5 sense then not scientifically meaningful. Things such as a political regime are non-empirical: must infer what happens through variety of indirect indicators. Possession of certain observable properties that makes them deviant in nature: deviance is defined by norms and that norms are relative to time and place. There is internal consistency among deviant categories that an explanation for their existence is possible. Are things just labels or is there a common thread: determinism, ask what causes the deviant behaviour, beliefs or conditions, belief that the world works in a cause-and-effect fashion, scientists seek naturalistic explanations. The location of cause-and-effect can be found in the material world. Avoid spiritual, supernatural or paranormal explanations for causality.
