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SYLLABUS
DR. ALLISON FOLEY, Ph.D.
SOCIAL DEVIANCE
Sociology/Criminal Justice 3330
HYBRID COURSE meeting in class MW 9:00-10:50am Allgood N240
DR. FOLEY’S CONTACT INFORMATION:
Email:
[email protected]
In person:
Office – Allgood Hall Room N229
Office Hours: M 1-4pm and by appointment
Phone:
706-667-4578 (direct line; no voicemail)
706-737-1735 (Sociology department)
REQUIRED READING
1.) Adler, P., & Adler, P. (2015). Constructions of Deviance. 8th Edition.
***If you do not purchase this text in the Jagstore, I advise you to get the 8th edition. This edition
has material, required for this class, which does NOT appear in older versions. If the cost is
prohibitive, please get the 7th edition, as opposed to not purchasing a book at all. Students who
do not obtain a book are at significantly high risk for failing the course. If you get an older
edition, it will be YOUR responsibility to obtain the 8th edition material by borrowing a
classmate’s book.***
2.) Venkatesh, Sudhir. (2008). Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets.
3.) On occasion, and as you can see on the Course Calendar at the end of the syllabus, additional
readings will be assigned to supplement the text. These readings will be provided for you
electronically.
ACCESSING COURSE MATERIALS ONLINE
Because this is a hybrid course, it is imperative that you have consistent access to Desire2Learn.
It is your responsibility to be sure you can access Desire2Learn within the first week of classes.
All access issues should be directed to ITS, who you can call, email, or visit in University Hall.
Generally, if you cannot pull up a reading or a PDF, always try another browser or another
computer, restart the computer, or update the computer’s version of Adobe Reader.
COURSE GOALS AND DESCRIPTION
"…deviance is not a quality of the act the person commits, but rather a
consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an
'offender.' The deviant is one to whom that label has successfully been
applied; deviant behavior is behavior that people so label" (Howard S. Becker
in Outsiders, 1963:9).
The above quotation represents one of many possible ways to understand the concept of
deviance. The overall goal of this course is to introduce you to and explore the concept of
deviance, the methods by which sociologists learn about it, its theoretical underpinnings, and its
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causes and consequences. We will ask ourselves, “What constitutes deviance? How can we
define it? Why do we define it in this way? Who defines it? Why does it exist? What are the
consequences of deviance?” It will be easy to fall into discussions of criminal behavior but
remember that this (the violation of law) is only one type of deviance. While discussions of
criminal behavior are certainly important and relevant, we cannot understand the violation of law
without first, or simultaneously, understanding the violation of norms. As such, we will focus
more so on understanding the power of norms in governing (or controlling) people and their
behavior, beliefs, lifestyles, and identities.
To do this, we will examine the concepts of social power and social order and study how
these factors influence the definition and regulation of deviant behavior as well as the lives and
identities of deviant persons. We will see how groups of people utilize social power to create and
shape definitions of what is normal and what is deviant, thus creating and maintaining their idea
of the proper social order – a social order that perpetuates their powerful status. We will also see
how these groups come to place the label of “deviant” onto individuals or groups and we will
examine the consequences of such labeling on individuals and groups. It is important to
remember that we are starting our examination of deviance with that which has already been
defined by society as deviant. This is not to suggest that everything we study SHOULD be
defined as deviant; it means that, historically, it has been. We can, will and should deconstruct
and challenge these definitions. Keep an open mind!
Learning Outcome: Students will demonstrate and apply knowledge of core criminological
concepts and theory.
Teaching Method: To inspire and engage students, you can expect me to enter the classroom
with enthusiasm and a willingness to keep the floor open for discussion. I prefer an interactive
classroom and like to pose questions—some will be directly related to course readings and others
will be more broad. You can also expect me to provide clear expectations on Day 1 as to what is
required of you. I believe learning does not need to be difficult, but I do challenge students to do
a lot of work. Teaching cannot happen, however, unless you, the student, are able to connect and
apply the material to your own life and experience. I model this in class and I expect you to do
the same in your coursework. This will also assist in the development of analytical and critical
thinking skills. With these expectations, I challenge you to develop and exercise your
sociological and criminological imaginations—to consider the role of social, historical, and
structural factors as significant explanations for human behavior and the relationship between
individuals and society.
GENERAL COURSE EXPECTATIONS:
RESPECT: Be respectful to your professor and to your fellow students. This is required in order
to receive full participation/engagement points for this course. To determine part of your grade in
this area, I will consider your adherence to the following rules, which appear in order of
significance on your grade.
Be on time. Stay alert, attentive, and in the classroom until you are dismissed.
Do not be disruptive when anyone else is speaking. No whispering, no side
conversations, no speaking “on top” of another person.
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Do not criticize or make hateful comments to anyone. There is a respectful way to
disagree with people and I expect you to work on this throughout the semester.
No phones and no laptops unless you have written permission for note taking from TDS.
Do not dominate conversation – I want to hear from everyone in the classroom, and so
does everyone else.
RESPONSIBILITY: Attend class regularly and complete the assigned reading before class in
order to contribute constructively to discussion. It is YOUR responsibility to find out what you
missed in class. You must contact me, or another student, to find out what you missed and the
best way to do this is to come to office hours.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Students must also adhere to the GRU Honor Code,
(http://www.gru.edu/mcg/honor/honorcode.php), which specifically prohibits lying, cheating,
stealing, and plagiarism. Plagiarism, according to the GRU Honor Code constitutes an
“intentional act of verbatim repetition, borrowing, or paraphrasing the work of another without
[PROPERLY] crediting the source of material with the intent of gaining an unfair advantage.”
Students caught plagiarizing in this class will suffer AT MINIMUM a zero for the assignment
and AT MAXIMUM a zero for the course and referral to the Dean for expulsion.
Plagiarism is also:
Turning in a paper purchased or otherwise acquired from “paper mills” and the like.
Turning in another student's work with or without that student's knowledge.
Copying any part of your paper from a source without proper in-text citations.
Paraphrasing materials from a source without proper in-text citations.
Copying materials from a source text, supplying acknowledgement through in-text
citations, BUT LEAVING OUT QUOTATION MARKS.
Be proactive and empower yourself on the meaning of plagiarism.
Seek assistance from quality resources to help you understand citations and to write well.
Here are the best sources!
http://guides.gru.edu/content.php?pid=459901&sid=3764609
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/01/
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ also contains great information on how to do citations,
APA format, and grammar and punctuation, etc.
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR LEARNING:
Technical Support: For assistance in improving technical writing skills, contact the Writing Center in
UHall 235, 706-737-1402, or [email protected].
Student Needs: Students with disabilities should have equal educational access and opportunity. If you
have a disability that requires assistance, I am happy to accommodate if you contact GRU Testing and
Disability Services within the first two weeks of class. TDS is located in Galloway Hall. Call 706-7371469, email [email protected], or visit http://www.gru.edu/admin/tds/ for more information.
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COURSE GRADING POLICIES
LATE POLICY: I do not give full credit for late work unless you provide DOCUMENTATION
of a LEGITIMATE EXCUSE for your absence/inability to complete your work on time.
Legitimate excuses include: illnesses, hospitalizations, observance of religious holidays,
university-related absences (due to sports travel, etc.), and work or family emergencies.
Documentation includes: A note from a doctor, a religious leader, a coach, a supervisor/boss, a
family member (or funeral program or announcement in the newspaper), etc.
If I receive your late work but do not receive documentation of a legitimate excuse, half a letter
grade will be deducted from your final score for each day it is late. This equates to a 5%
deduction per day. If you turn your work in on the same day that it was due, but after I collected
the assignments from other students in class, you will receive a 5% deduction. If you turn it in
the day after the due date, you will receive a 10% deduction, etc. I WILL NOT GRADE YOUR
ASSIGNMENT IF IT IS OVER 5 DAYS LATE unless you notified me ahead of time about your
situation AND ALSO rescheduled the due date with me IN WRITING/ELECTRONICALLY.
COMPONENTS OF YOUR GRADE (375 points total):
 EXAMS: There will be a midterm and a final exam. Both are worth 100 points. The majority
of questions are multiple choice. Some are fill in the blank with a word bank. At my
discretion, I may include one to three short answer or essay questions. Study guides with
sample questions are made available one week prior to the exam date. Generally, my students
find these to be extremely helpful.

NORM VIOLATION PAPER: This paper will be worth 50 points and you have two options
to choose from – refer to the end of your syllabus for details. This paper will be submitted via
Dropbox on D2L.

THEORY ESSAY ASSIGNMENT: This assignment is very similar to a take home test. It
will be worth 50 points total and will consist of a set of essay questions. This paper will be
submitted via Dropbox on D2L. The assignment will be available on D2L upon completion
of the midterm.
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CLASS ASSIGNMENTS, ENGAGEMENT AND PARTICIPATION: 75 PTS
o QUIZZES: Every Wednesday, there will be a short, 5 point quiz on Desire2Learn. These
quizzes will be open from 8:45 to 9:15. They are timed and will need to be completed
within 15 minutes. Don’t fret too much about these. They are 5 point quizzes and
designed to be very brief. You’ll see in the course calendar that the topics are given in
advance and most of the quizzes are either about the videos you watch or Gang Leader
for a Day. A couple are more substantive and are scheduled over the most important
content in the course – content you actually have to write about later on. They’ll also help
you study for the midterm and final. We will meet in class directly after the quizzes. The
lowest quiz score will be dropped.
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o CLASS ASSIGNMENTS and ENGAGEMENT AND PARTICIPATION: The remaining
points in this overall category are devoted to a few other assignments (two of which you
will see scheduled in the course calendar) and to engagement and participation points.
Generally, 10-15 points (approximately 3-5% of your total grade) will be awarded based
on the extent to which students follow the course expectations outlined earlier in this
syllabus, the level of detail and depth the student demonstrates in assignments and
discussion posts, and the extent to which students participate in discussion and
demonstrate their engagement in the course through other means online or in class.
GRADING SCALE:
A: 336 to 375 points
B: 298 to 335 points
C: 261 to 297 points
D: 224 to 260 points
F: 223 points and fewer OR any point value if caught plagiarizing
Incomplete: Will not be given to students who do not complete any coursework.
W: You must initiate ALL withdrawal procedures. I do not withdraw students myself. If you
disappear and don’t come to me to discuss receiving a W before the last month of class, you
will receive an F. Per university policies, you will not be able to withdraw unless you have
completed some coursework and unless you have extenuating circumstances.
Grade Disputes: Please keep all returned work in the event that you have a grade dispute at the
end of the semester.
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COURSE CALENDAR
(Subject To Slight Change At My Discretion)
UNIT 1: What is Deviance?
May 18:
Topic:
Other:
General Course Introduction
RECEIVE VIDEO ASSIGNMENT
May 20:
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
May 25:
Happy Memorial Day Weekend. No Class Today.
May 27:
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
June 1:
June 3:
Topic:
Norms and the Sociology of Deviance
General Intro pg 1-10 & Intro to Part 1 (pg 11-15) in A&A
D2L Video Quiz
Perspectives on Defining Deviance
Ch. 2 (Heckert & Heckert) in A&A & TBD Article to be
distributed
D2L Quiz
Other:
Perspectives on Defining Deviance, continued
Reading: Ch 3 (Becker) & 4 (Hendershott) in A&A
AND Fish’s NYTimes Column (On Desire2Learn or
accessible here: fish.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/normsand-deviations-whos-to-say/)
UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT DUE TODAY – On D2L
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
Perspectives on Defining Deviance continued
Ch 5 (Quinney) in A&A
D2L Quiz
UNIT 2: Researching Deviance
June 8:
Topic:
Reading:
OTHER:
UNIT 3: Constructing Deviance
June 10:
Topic:
Reading:
Researching Deviance
Intro to Part III, Ch 12, 13, 14 in A&A AND
AND Chapter 1 in Venkatesh’s Gang Leader for a Day
UNIT 2 ASSIGNMENT DUE TODAY – On D2L
RECEIVE NEXT VIDEO ASSIGNMENT
Other:
Moral Entrepreneurial Campaigns
Intro to Part IV, Ch 15 (Reinarman), & Ch 17 (Best) in
A&A
D2L Quiz over Film
June 15:
Topic:
Reading:
Social Power and Labeling
Ch 21 (Chambliss) & Ch 22 (Liederbach) in A&A
June 17:
Topic:
Social Power and Labeling continued…
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Reading:
June 22:
Other:
Ch 18 (Duran) and Ch 20 (Pager) in A&A
AND Anderson article (online) and Ch 2 in Gang Leader
D2L Quiz on Gang Leader
MIDTERM
Reading:
Other:
Chapter 3 in Gang Leader
RECEIVE NEXT VIDEO ASSIGNMENT
UNIT 4: Theories of Deviance
June 24:
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
Structural Theories: Functionalism
Intro to Part II, Ch 1 (Erikson) & Ch 6 (Durkheim) in A&A
D2L Quiz over Film
June 29:
Topic:
Reading:
Structural Theories: Strain
Ch 7 (Merton) in A&A
AND Agnew Article (Desire2Learn)
July 1:
Topic:
Reading:
Interactionist Theories
Ch 8 (Becker) in A&A
AND Becker Article (Desire2Learn)
D2L Quiz
Other:
July 6:
OTHER:
Topic:
Reading:
OTHER:
July 8:
OTHER:
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
UNIT 5: The Deviant Career
July 13:
Topic:
Reading:
Other:
July 15:
Topic:
Readings:
Out of Class Reading and Writing Day
Loner Deviance
Intro Part VI, Chs 34 (Vecitis) & 40 (Herman-Kinney et al)
in A&A
AND Ch 4 & 5 in Gang Leader
THEORY ASSIGNMENT DUE TODAY
Out of Class Reading and Writing Day
Loners or Colleagues?
Ch 35 (Adler & Adler) in A&A
AND the Unit 4 Adler & Adler Readings On D2L
NO QUIZ TODAY! Work on Assignment
Identity Development
Intro to Part V, Ch 27 (Scully & Marolla), 28 (Cromwell &
Thurman) in A&A
AND Chapter 6 in Gang Leader
TBD Assignment Due in class
Stigma Management continued…
Ch 29 (Bemiller), 31 (Khanna & Johnson), 46 (Whitesel &
Shuman) in A&A
AND Ch 7 in Gang Leader
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July 20:
Other:
D2L Quiz
Topic:
Reading:
Exiting Deviance
Ch 48 (Adler & Adler) & 49 (Howard) in A&A
AND Ch 8 in Gang Leader
NORM VIOLATION PAPER DUE TODAY BEFORE
MIDNIGHT!
OTHER:
FINAL EXAM TIME:
We can schedule this anytime July 23, 24, or 27th. We will discuss.
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NORM VIOLATION PAPER PROMPT
Option 1: Experiments in Overconformity
For this paper, students will engage in three acts of overconformity and analyze the reactions of
others to these acts. The point of this assignment is to get out there, violate norms, and determine
how deviant is really is to OVERconform.
(NOTE: YOU MUST NOT ENGAGE IN ILLEGAL BEHAVIOR. YOU MUST NOT VIOLATE
THE POLICIES OF BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS. YOU MUST NOT VIOLATE THE
STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT. YOU MUST NOT DISRUPT A CLASS OR VIOLATE
POLICIES OUTLINED IN COURSE SYLLABI. ALSO, MY CLASS IS TOTALLY OFF LIMITS.)
To complete and report on this assignment, you should:
(1) PERFORM 3 ACTS of OVERCONFORMITY that are designed to a middle class norm.
(2) Aside from being a requirement for this paper, describe your motivation for choosing
each of the acts (e.g., you could perform many acts and have ten norms to choose from: why
did you choose those three acts and/or that particular norm(s)?)
(3) Describe these experiences in full, as though you were journaling about them. Discuss
when you performed the act at you did, where you were and who you were with, how you
felt while doing it, and—here’s the key—the reactions of others to your acts.
(4) Identify and describe the norm you were testing in full and whether you violated any
other of the Ten Middle Class Norms in addition. Given this, identify and describe the type
of deviance you participated in, according to Heckert & Heckert’s typology in Chapter 2. The
definitions of each type of deviance in the typology should be provided and your full
understanding of these types should be evident.
(5) Identify how one other perspective (the normativist perspective, above, is the first) on
defining deviance (from Unit 1) would explain the reactions you received and why your
behavior is considered deviant. Then identify which perspective provides the best or most
complete explanation and describe why this is so. In this discussion, be sure to identify those
theoretical perspectives clearly, describe the arguments they make in your own words, and
then apply those arguments using illustrations to explain the deviance in your acts.
(6) Conclude by discussing what your experience tells you about the importance/relevance of
the norm you intended to violate and the importance of norms and/or deviance for society in
general.
Assignment Submission Guidelines: Papers must be typed in 12 pt font, be double spaced, have
standard 1” margins, and be PROOFED AND SPELL CHECKED! Please, please proof read and
spell check! Take your paper to the writing center on campus if need be. The final product
should be about 5-6 pages. WHEN YOU REFERENCE COURSE MATERIAL YOU MUST
CITE THE AUTHORS OF THE CHAPTERS USING APA STYLE IN-TEXT CITATIONS.
You do not need to include an abstract or a reference/works cited page.
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Option 2: My Deviant Career
For this option, students will analyze their own histories of deviant behavior! (I can
assure you that I will keep any information you tell me as confidential as I possibly can – just do
not tell me about any plans you have to commit serious/violent crimes as I am required to report
this.) The goal of this paper is to choose one way in which you are deviant and discuss that in
full, rather than discussing three different ways you might deviate from social norms. You should
not talk about one specific act, however, unless you are absolutely certain you have a lot to write
about. The best papers are those which analyze your deviant IDENTITY, not a deviant behavior.
If you aren’t sure if you have a deviant identity, ask yourself if you feel or felt stigmatized and
labeled – like you were different in a negative way and like you had to hide parts of yourself
from others. If so, you have or had a deviant identity. If not, you’re either incredibly good at
deflecting your stigma and rationalizing your behavior, or you don’t have a deviant identity.
Here is how you should write about this:
(1) Describe the deviance generally as an introduction. In other words, how are or were
you deviant? Make references to other course readings when relevant. You need to
talk about identity development and stigma management AND tie this discussion to
the course concepts that are presented and discussed in the readings related to identity
development and stigma management.
(2) Apply Tittle & Paternoster’s 10 Middle Class Norms and Heckert & Heckert’s
typology to your deviance. Obviously, to do this you will have to identify and
describe a) the norms you violated, b) how other people evaluated you, and c) where
you fall in Heckert & Heckert’s typology.
(3) Discuss how one theoretical perspective on defining deviance (from Unit 1) OR one
of the specific theories of deviance (from Unit 2) would explain your deviance. You
should also discuss whether this theory provides a full explanation of your deviance –
how well suited is it to explain your deviance? This is your chance to critique or
defend the validity and overall usefulness of the theory. In doing this, you should
discuss the strengths and weaknesses of it.
(4) Conclude by discussing what your self-analysis tells you about the
importance/relevance of deviance for both you and society more generally.
Assignment Submission Guidelines for Both Papers: Papers must be typed in 12 pt font, be
double spaced, have standard 1” margins, and be PROOF READ AND SPELL CHECKED!
Please, please proof read and spell check! Take your paper to the writing center on campus if
need be. The final product should be about 5-6 pages. WHEN YOU REFERENCE COURSE
MATERIAL YOU MUST CITE THE AUTHORS OF THE CHAPTERS USING APA STYLE
IN-TEXT CITATIONS. You do not need to include an abstract or a bibliography.