Review The Section On Asch's Research From Your Textbook ✓ Solved

Review The Section On Aschs Research From Your Textbook Describe Why

Review the section on Asch's Research from your textbook. Describe why the individuals in the Asch experiment usually gave the same answer when they probably knew that it was wrong. How do social control and social bonding explain conformity? While the pressure to conform is intense, people continue to deviate. Using either Merton’s Strain Theory or Becker’s Labeling Theory, explain why some people choose to become deviant. Finally, major crimes occur in our society. Pick a current event (local or national) and describe the crime. Analyze the crime in terms of Durkheim’s four major functions of deviance.

Sample Paper For Above instruction

Introduction

The phenomenon of conformity has fascinated psychologists and sociologists for decades. Early experiments, such as Solomon Asch's conformity study, provide critical insights into why individuals often align their behaviors and judgments with group consensus, even when it contradicts their personal knowledge or beliefs. This paper explores the reasons behind conformity in Asch's experiments, the sociological concepts of social control and bonding, the reasons some individuals choose to deviate using Merton’s Strain Theory or Becker’s Labeling Theory, and analyzes a recent crime in relation to Durkheim’s functions of deviance.

Asch's Conformity Experiment and Its Implications

The Asch conformity experiments conducted in the 1950s demonstrate the powerful influence of group pressure on individual judgment. Participants were asked to match line lengths in a group setting where confederates intentionally provided incorrect answers. Results showed that a significant proportion of individuals conformed to the incorrect group consensus at least once, despite knowing the correct answer. Several reasons explain this behavior, primarily rooted in social psychology and group dynamics.

The core reason individuals conformed in Asch's experiments was the desire to be accepted and to avoid social rejection, a concept closely tied to social control and social bonding. Social control refers to the mechanisms—such as norms, sanctions, and peer pressure—that regulate individual behavior to align with group expectations. When individuals feel social bonds with a group, their adherence to normative behavior increases, fostering conformity to group opinions to maintain cohesion and acceptance.

Furthermore, the need for social bonding, rooted in human nature, drives individuals to seek affiliation and fear rejection. When group opinions are presented as the consensus, individuals often doubt their own judgment, especially under ambiguous or stressful conditions, leading to normative conformity. This phenomenon reflects normative social influence, where compliance occurs to gain approval and avoid disapproval from others. Thus, individuals give the same answers in Asch’s experiments partly to preserve their social bonds and avoid social sanctions.

Theories Explaining Deviance: Merton’s Strain Theory and Becker’s Labeling Theory

While conformity is a common social response, deviance persists, and some individuals choose to deviate intentionally. The decision to engage in deviant behavior can be understood through sociological theories such as Merton’s Strain Theory and Becker’s Labeling Theory.

Merton’s Strain Theory posits that deviance results from a disjunction between culturally approved goals and the socially legitimate means available to achieve them. When individuals experience strain or an inability to attain societal rewards—such as economic success—they may resort to deviant behaviors as alternative means. For example, in a highly competitive economy, individuals facing failure or frustration may turn to theft or drug dealing as means of achieving success, thus engaging in deviance as a response to social strain. This theory emphasizes structural barriers that limit legitimate opportunities, compelling some individuals to deviate to fulfill societal expectations of success.

Conversely, Becker’s Labeling Theory emphasizes the social processes of stigmatization and how societal reactions shape deviance. According to Becker, once an individual is labeled as deviant—such as a criminal—this label becomes a master status, influencing their identity and future interactions. People may adopt deviant behaviors to conform to the expectations associated with their label or as a response to societal rejection. This process creates a self-fulfilling prophecy, wherein individuals embrace deviant roles because they are viewed and treated as deviant by society.

Both theories highlight the importance of social context in deviance. Merton’s theory suggests that structural failures promote deviance, whereas Becker’s theory underscores the role of societal reactions and labels. Individuals may choose deviance when legitimate avenues are blocked or when societal responses stigmatize them, influencing their behavior and identity.

Analysis of a Current Crime in Terms of Durkheim’s Functions of Deviance

A recent national crime example is the rise in cybercriminal activities, including large-scale data breaches and identity theft. Such crimes have significant social implications and can be analyzed through Emile Durkheim’s four functions of deviance: affirming cultural norms, promoting social cohesion, promoting social change, and clarifying societal boundaries.

First, cybercrimes challenge and reaffirm societal norms surrounding privacy, security, and morality. The visibility of these crimes reinforces societal expectations about protecting personal information and the consequences of deviant behavior. When authorities respond to such crimes with arrests and reforms, they reaffirm societal norms and reinforce acceptable behavior.

Second, these crimes can foster social cohesion among victims and law enforcement agencies. The collective efforts to combat cybercrimes and bring perpetrators to justice create a sense of unity and shared purpose, strengthening social bonds and communal identity.

Third, cybercriminal activities sometimes catalyze social change by prompting legislative reforms and the development of new technologies to enhance cybersecurity. These reactions serve to adapt social structures to new threats, demonstrating how deviance can lead to societal progress.

Finally, cybercrimes delineate societal boundaries by clearly marking behaviors that are unacceptable and punishable. Laws and regulations become more rigid as authorities respond to technological deviations, helping to clarify what constitutes criminal behavior in the digital age.

In conclusion, Durkheim’s functions of deviance underscore the social significance of crime. Cyber crimes not only disrupt individual lives but also serve vital social functions by reinforcing norms, fostering solidarity, instigating reform, and defining societal boundaries. Understanding these functions highlights the complex role that deviance and crime play in societal functioning.

References

1. Asch, S.E. (1951). Effects of group pressure upon the modification and distortion of judgments. In H. Guetzkow (Ed.), Groups, leadership, and men; research in human relations. Carnegie Press.
2. Durkheim, E. (1895). The Rules of Sociological Method. Free Press.
3. Merton, R.K. (1938). Social structure and anomie. American Sociological Review, 3(5), 672–682.
4. Becker, H. S. (1963). Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance. Free Press.
5. Giddens, A. (2006). Sociology. Polity Press.
6. Hirschi, T. (1969). Causes of Delinquency. University of California Press.
7. Sherman, L.W. (2013). The decline of crime and punishment: An institutional and cultural change perspective. Criminology & Public Policy, 12(4), 485-504.
8. Sutherland, E.H., & Cressey, D.R. (1978). Principles of Criminology. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
9. Foucault, M. (1975). Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. Pantheon Books.
10. Williams, R. (1974). The Country and the City. Macmillan.