The social deviance – the nature and the function (Finding out Emile Durkheim’s point of view to the social deviance)

Abstract

The social deviance is the important notion of the sociology. This notion is often understood as a violation or deviance from the established cultural norms. Although the definition of the social deviance is brief, it is general and highly abstract, which means that it contains a lot of basic characteristics. In the famous book “Suicide” by Emile Durkhiem, the great sociologist asserted that suicide was always a big social deviance and that the cause of all types of suicide came from society. Thus, the social deviance, like all other social behaviors, originates from society and is always guided by society. In other words, the deviant behavior has a social nature, which is deviance exists only in relation to cultural norms. People become deviant as others judge them in such a way. Both the norm and the way that the deviant behavior is defined involve the social power. Emile Durkheim also made a great contribution to the Theory of Function since its inception, considering the function as an essential and indispensable need of the social life and firmly asserted that any "social events", (a great invention associated with E. Durkheim) which existed and happened in society, had to perform certain functions to meet the operational needs and social development. It is also E. Durkheim, who pointed out the basic and extremely significant functions of the social deviance. Deviance affirms cultural values and norms. Responding to deviance clarifies moral boundaries and promotes the social unity. In addition, deviance encourages the social change.