In this Second Edition of his investigation into the relative nature of social deviance and how the public perceives it, author John Curra demonstrates that what qualifies as deviance varies from place to place, time to time, and situation to situation. Through thought-provoking examples that include the blue people of Kentucky, a woman who believes she is a vampire, autoerotic asphyxiators, and others, Curra illustrates that deviance cannot be explained in terms of absolutes, nor can it be understood apart from its social setting. This insightful book approaches sex, violence, theft, suicide, drugs, and mental disorders in such a way that definitive or objective judgments become impossible.

This text provides a comprehensive and balanced exploration of the many differet forms of deviant behaviour and the major sociological perspectives and theories of deviance. It includes many examples, boxed inserts and first-hand accounts of deviant behaviour. New to this edition is a chapter on social control, crime and social problems, a consideration of feminist theories of deviance and a discussion on the new sociology of social control.

An English language adaptation of a Hebrew textbook introduces theories of crime and delinquency drawn from sociology.Chapter topics include: criminology and social deviance; theoretical and methodological issues in criminology; ecological theories; strain theories; differential association and learning theories; control theories; social reactions to crime; conflict and radical perspectives on crime; and recent developments.

Designed to appeal to today's students, the eleventh edition examines topics with relevance for today - cultural and social reactions to deviance; the growing interest in white collar and corporate crime; and the importance of the Internet and computer communications in changing views on deviance in modern life.

This text seeks to make sociology come alive as a vital and exciting field, to relate principles to real-world circumstances, and to attune students to the dynamic processes of the rapidly changing contemporary society.

This text is the industry standard for publishing the most recent and relevant articles in the field. It demonstrates to students how the concepts and theories of deviance can be applied to the world around them. The authors include both theoretical analyses and ethnographic illustrations of how deviance is socially constructed, organized, and managed. The Adlers challenge the reader to see the diversity and pervasiveness of deviance in society by covering a wide variety of deviant acts represented throughout the text. Most importantly, the Adlers present deviance as a component of society and examine the construction of deviance in terms of differential social power, whereby some members of society have the power to define other whole groups as "deviant." This edition offers broad, more comprehensive theoretical coverage.