Deviant Groups Research Articles

Accounting For Deviant Behaviors Among Marathon Runners

ABSTRACT Cheating among those who participate in sports activities is by no means a new phenomenon. Deviance among sports groups has traditionally involved either noncompliance with the rules or the consumption of illicit, performance enhancing substances. Such acts of deviance grow increasingly troublesome and punishable when rewards, such as financial gain or personal accolades, come into play. This is often the case for those who engage in the sport of marathon running. Participation in marathons has continued to grow over the past decades, and as more people seek to partake in these challenging courses, more opportunities for cheating arise. Cheating in marathons is somewhat unique compared to other sports activities, and thus, it is important to gain a further understanding of how people may perform acts of deviance, how might such deviant actors attempt to minimize their blameworthiness using accounts in the form of excuses and justifications toward those who would seek to socially demonize them, and applying previously established sociological concepts to new deviant groups.

Relationship between Informal Labeling and Juvenile Delinquency in Juvenile Offender: Focusing on the Mediation Effect of Involvement in Deviant Groups

Relationship between Informal Labeling and Juvenile Delinquency in Juvenile Offender: Focusing on the Mediation Effect of Involvement in Deviant Groups

The role of group (in)efficacy in controlling deviance on group cohesion and on social identity management strategies: Social control identity motivated model

The social control identity motivated (SCIM) model proposes that perceived failure of group social control mechanisms in punishing deviance increases the threat associated with the emergence of deviance in groups. Based on this assumption, this model explains the psychosocial processes involved in the consequences for social cohesion and social identity management strategies of a match or mismatch between the implemented formal social control and the mechanisms that group members expect to be implemented based on social identity motivation processes. This model explains members’ commitment to the reinforcement of ingroup social order and status quo (in case of a match), or a need to cope with perceived inefficacy of ingroup formal social control (in case of mismatch). In response to perceived inefficacy of ingroup formal social control, individuals may engage in various identity-motivated processes, including disinvestment from the ingroup, informal social control responses, or efforts to strengthen the ingroup’s normative system through social innovation or social control mechanisms reinforcement. By accounting for the interplay between formal social control mechanisms and identity motivated social control expectations, the SCIM model intends to contribute to the understanding of social identity protective strategies in response to deviance, by highlighting that (in)efficacy of group social control mechanisms shapes this dynamic. This model is justified with both direct and indirect empirical support, and we discuss the potential of the model’s applicability, as well as the need for additional research to understand determinants of each type of response, thus leaving this model open to potential refinement.

“We Want You!” Applying Social Network Analysis to Online Extremist Communities

ABSTRACT Current literature on online criminal and deviant groups recognizes the role of online forums in the transfer of knowledge and socialization of members, but debates on the role of the Internet in the socialization and radicalization processes in the context of online extremist groups. This study contributes to the discussion by examining online radicalization process through the use of social learning theory and social network analysis. This innovation allows for assessment on the impact of online interactions with forum members on radicalization process. Findings found strong support of differential association and differential reinforcement, but showed the possibility of other mechanisms, such as self-radicalization, at play. Findings from the study highlight the need to for theory integration, the inclusion of online peer association, and replication to address the complex phenomenon of online radicalization.

Breeding terrorism: an anomie’s anatomy of the terrorism in Indonesia

This article investigates the emergence of terrorism in Indonesia through the anomie sociological perspective. The data for this analysis was gathered from various sources, including documents of terrorist attacks in Indonesia from the internet, personal diaries, and interviews with terrorist prisoners. The anomie theory provides a means of analysis to illuminate the understanding of terrorism, its roots, and causes. From the anomie perspective, terrorism is not viewed as a savage group that allows the killing of innocent people nor a political party that wants to destroy and seize the secular government or Western countries. In the Indonesian context, terrorism is just seen as deviant groups or individuals resulted from global capitalism that destroys the equilibrium of the Muslim world. The anomie consists of two distinct forms: the terrorist attacks and the anomic interpretation of the Islamic holy text (Quran and Sunnah). Both conditions result in a threat to the government that they consider as infidel and aligned with the West. The anomie theory provides more promising remedies to abolish terrorism more permanently and to reduce the tensions between the government and the terrorists by proposing social integration and restoring equilibrium in the Muslim world, especially in Indonesia, as a focus for implementing these remedies.

Residual varus alignment after posterior-stabilized total knee arthroplasty limits medial soft tissue remodeling

BackgroundProper lower limb alignment and soft tissue balance are significant indicators to measure the success of total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Previous studies have confirmed that soft tissue relaxation around the knee after TKA will change over time; however, the relationship between lower limb alignment and soft tissue balance after TKA remains unclear. We studied (1) whether the change of soft tissue balance around the knee with time after posterior-stabilized (PS) TKA would affect the alignment of the lower limbs; (2) Whether the accuracy of lower limb alignment during PS TKA affects postoperative soft tissue remodeling.MethodsIn this study, 100 patients were recruited after PS TKA. Among them, 50 patients with a hip knee ankle (HKA) angle of ≤ ± 3° were set as the neutral group, and 50 patients with an HKA angle of > ± 3° were set as the deviation group. The imaging results measured the HKA angle before the operation as well as the HKA, varus, and valgus angles at 1, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months after TKA. Clinical assessment included range of motion (ROM), Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and Knee Society Score (KSS).ResultsEight people were excluded from the study. After the exclusion, the study enrolled 47 patients in the neutral group and 45 patients in the deviant group and were followed for up to 2 years. There was no statistical significance in mean varus angles as well as HKA angle changes during the follow-up phase of each groups (P > 0.05). The mean valgus angles of the patients in the neutral group group were 2.47°, 3.45°, 3.63°, 3.60° and 3.63°, and in the deviation group were 2.45° (P = 0.841), 2.88° (P < 0.001), 3.07° (P < 0.001), 3.06° (P < 0.001), and 3.10° (P < 0.001). ROM, WOMAC and KSS of the two groups were significantly improved after operation, with no difference between the two groups.ConclusionThis study shows that whether the alignment is accurate or not in the early stage after TKA, the relaxation of the medial and lateral soft tissues of the knee joint change; however, this change will not significantly affect the alignment of the lower limbs. Postoperative residual varus deformity limits medial soft tissue remodeling.Level of evidenceIII.

Identity, Groups, and the Making of a Deviant: The Group’s Use of Deviants in Maintaining Its Collective Identity

Deviant group members normally represent a threat to the group’s collective identity. Paradoxically, however, because group processes themselves evoke dilution of the individual’s identity, deviants may simultaneously play an important role in the group’s identity consolidation. The group’s relatedness with deviants is based on complex group and intergroup dynamics that influence not only the group’s attitude toward the deviant but also what the deviant represents for the group. This article touches on what the deviant’s role may be in a group’s projective processes and how the group may use the deviant in an attempt to maintain its collective identity. At times, what may benefit the group may not be seen as such, whereas what may harm the group may be regarded as preferable. Some of the unconscious processes that may underpin such dynamics are also addressed along with the introduction of the concepts of advancing and depreciating deviants. The article also evaluates how the deviant’s role for the group may change depending on the context.

The experience of creating a database "The photographic images of students of educational institutions of the State labor reserves of the Sverdlovsk region (1940s-50s)"

The purpose of the database is to reconstruct the "ceremonial" and "non-official" portraits of students of state labor reserves (using the example of visual images of students of educational institutions of the Sverdlovsk region in the 1940s and 50s). The analysis of the information contained in the database will in the future allow answering a number of research questions and identify important characteristics of the visual image and social portrait of students: types of activities, including various aspects of work and educational activities, "bodily activity" of students; acts of human interaction and non-verbal communication (gestures, facial expressions, body poses, etc.); objects of material culture used; everyday stereotypes of behavior reconstructed through a series of photographs; "atypical experience", description of deviant groups of students, irregular clothes, atypical behavior. When creating the database, the concepts of visual images in L.N. Mazur's historical research, D. Zeitlin's digitalization of visual anthropology, G. Kreidlin's nonverbal semiotics, and K. Girtz's "dense description" were taken into account. The results of the study are: 1) development and description of the database structure that allows taking into account the features of visual sources aimed at reconstructing the "ceremonial" and "non-official" portraits of students of educational institutions of the Sverdlovsk region in the 1940s and 50s through a detailed description of the poses, gestures, visual behavior, spatial interaction, clothes and shoes of the persons depicted in the photo; 2) primary analysis of 145 photographs from the official albums of 4 educational institutions devoted to the description of the results of their participation in the All-Union Socialist Competition in 1943-1945; 3) more accurate identification and systematization of external behavioral practices of students based on the database; 4) demonstration of the possibilities of detailed description of images by means of the database to identify individual sides of the "non-official portrait" of students. The results of the study can be used in the study of everyday life and socio-cultural portrait of students in the Soviet period.

The Clothes Maketh the Cult

The Clothes Maketh the Cult

Tribalism and tribulations: The social costs of not sharing fake news.

Fake news can foster political polarization, foment division between groups, and encourage malicious behavior. Misinformation has cast doubt on the integrity of democratic elections, downplayed the seriousness of COVID-19, and increased vaccine hesitancy. Given the leading role that online groups play in the dissemination of fake news, in this research we examined how group-level factors contribute to sharing misinformation. By unobtrusively tracking interactions among 51,537 Twitter user dyads longitudinally over two time periods (n = 103,074), we found that group members who did not conform to the behavior of other group members by sharing fake news were subjected to reduced social interaction over time. We augmented this unique, ecologically valid behavioral data with another digital field study (N = 178,411) and five experiments to disentangle some of the causal mechanisms driving the observed effects. We found that social costs were higher for not sharing fake news versus other content, that specific types of deviant group members faced the greatest social costs, and that social costs explained fake news sharing above and beyond partisan identity and subjective accuracy assessments. Overall, our work illuminates the role of conformity pressure as a critical antecedent of the spread of misinformation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

The Composite Overfit Analysis Framework: Assessing the Out-of-Sample Generalizability of Construct-Based Models Using Predictive Deviance, Deviance Trees, and Unstable Paths

Construct-based models have become a mainstay of management and information systems research. However, these models are likely overfit to the data samples upon which they are estimated, making them risky to use in explanatory, prescriptive, or predictive ways outside a given sample. Empirical researchers currently lack tools to analyze why and how their models may not generalize out of sample. We propose a composite overfit analysis (COA) framework that applies predictive tools to describe the sources and ramifications of overfit in terms of the focal concepts important to empirical researchers: cases, constructs, and causal paths. The COA framework begins by using a leave-one-out crossvalidation procedure to identify cases with unusually high predictive error given their in-sample fit—a difference we describe as predictive deviance. The framework then employs a novel deviance tree method to group deviant cases that have similar predictive deviance and for similar theoretical reasons. We then employ a leave-deviant-group-out method, which sequentially analyzes how each deviant group affects model parameters, thereby identifying potentially unstable paths in the model. We can then infer descriptive reasons for why and how overfit affects a given model and data sample using the grouping criteria of the deviance tree, construct scores of deviant groups, and resulting unstable paths. These insights allow researchers to identify unexpected behavior that could define boundary conditions of their theory or point to new theoretical phenomena. We demonstrate the practical utility of our analytical framework on a technology adoption model in a new context. This paper was accepted by Dongjun Wu, information systems. Funding: This work was partially supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan [Grants 109-2811-H-007-503 and 108-2410-H-007-091-MY3] and by the 2021 Arts and Social Sciences Benefaction Fund of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. Supplemental Material: The data files and online appendix are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.4705 .

Editorial Introduction: Contributing to the policy process literatures

Editorial Introduction: Contributing to the policy process literatures

Konsep Religiusitas Masyarakat Adat Musi - Talaud

The many sects of belief grow and develop in Indonesia, making some people think that these beliefs are a deviant group. One of the beliefs that live in Indonesia is the Musi Indigenous belief in the Talaud Islands. This study aims to provide a clear and comprehensive picture of the concept of religiosity of the Adat Musi adherents in the Talaud Islands. This research is important because with a clear picture, it is hoped that negative views about the religion of the archipelago or the flow of belief in God Almighty will decrease. This research is a social research with constructivism paradigm and descriptive qualitative approach. The method of data collection was carried out by in-depth interviews. The concept of the religiosity of the Adat Musi can be seen from the teachings of the Adat Musi, the acceptance of revelation by Bawangin Panahal, the rituals of worship, and various kinds of rituals performed by its adherents, starting from the ritual of feeding babies (baptism), marriage rituals, and death rituals. In addition, the ritual of farming and the establishment of houses for the adherents is also an important ritual for the adherents of the Adat Musi. The most emphasized by Adat Musi is the farming ritual which consists of several stages, namely Mallintukku Harele, Mallintukku Wuallannna, and Umanna Amme Wakku.

Advantageous comparison: using Twitter responses to understand similarities between cybercriminals (“Yahoo Boys”) and politicians (“Yahoo men”)

This article is about the manifestations of similarities between two seemingly distinct groups of Nigerians: cybercriminals and politicians. Which linguistic strategies do Twitter users use to express their opinions on cybercriminals and politicians? The study undertakes a qualitative analysis of ‘engaged’ tweets of an elite law enforcement agency in West Africa. We analyzed and coded over 100,000 ‘engaged’ tweets based on a component of mechanisms of moral disengagement (i.e., advantageous comparison), a linguistic device. The results reveal how respondents defend the actions of online fraudsters (“the deviant group”) by strategically comparing them to the wrongful acts of corrupt politicians (“the respectable group”). Similarly, the results show how respondents positioned this linguistic strategy to compare “the powerless group” (online fraudsters) and “the powerful group” (politicians) in society. Indeed, tweet responses suggest that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) generally looks downwards for culprits (i.e., online fraudsters) while ignoring fraudulent politicians. We conclude that the process by which some actions are interpreted as a crime compared to others is a moral enterprise.

Collective deviance: Scaling up subjective group dynamics to superordinate categories reveals a deviant ingroup protection effect.

Six experiments examined responses to groups whose attitudes deviated from wider social norms about asylum and immigration (in the United Kingdom), or about taxation levels (in the U.S.). Subjective group dynamics (SGD) theory states that people derogate in-group individuals who deviate from prescriptive in-group norms. This enables members to sustain the subjective validity of those norms and, hence, a positive social identity. Research also shows that in-group deviants who accentuate the difference between the in-group and out-group norm (e.g., extremists) are derogated less than deviants who attenuate that difference (e.g., a member who veers toward the outgroup's norm; Abrams et al., 2000). We hypothesize that these effects and the associated group dynamics should scale up when people evaluate deviant groups that are part of larger in-categories. Consistent with SGD theory, participants in Experiments 1, 2, and 3 derogated an in-category attenuating deviant group and upgraded an out-category attenuating deviant group relative to groups that consolidated or accentuated the respective norms of those categories-thereby reinforcing in-category norms relative to out-category norms. Across all experiments, this pattern of differential evaluation was associated with greater subjective validity of the in-category norm. We also hypothesized a novel Deviant Ingroup Protection (DIP) effect, wherein people should curtail derogation of an in-category deviant group when that group is their own. Consistent with this hypothesis, participants in Experiments 4, 5, and 6 evaluated an accentuating in-group, or an attenuating in-group, equally to or more positively than other in-category groups. Implications for political and organizational entrenchment are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Adolescents' Evaluations of those who Challenge Exclusive and Inclusive Peer Norms.

Early and middle adolescents' judgments and reasonings about peers who challenge exclusive and inclusive peer group norms were examined across three studies with varying intergroup contexts. Study 1 participants included (N = 199) non-Arab American participants responding to an Arab American/non-Arab American intergroup context. Study 2 included (N = 123) non-Asian and (N = 105) Asian American participants responding to an Asian/non-Asian American intergroup context. Study 3 included (N = 275) Lebanese participants responding to an American/Lebanese intergroup context. Across all three studies participants responded to ingroup and outgroup deviant group members who challenged their peer groups to either include or exclude an outgroup peer with similar interests. Findings indicated that adolescents approved of peers who challenged exclusive peer norms and advocated for inclusion of an ethnic and cultural outgroup, and disapproved of peers who challenged inclusive group norms and advocated for exclusion. Non-Arab and non-Asian American adolescents displayed ingroup bias when evaluating a deviant advocating for exclusion. Additionally, age differences were found among Asian American adolescents. Findings will be discussed in light of intergroup research on those who challenge injustices.

SELF-REPRESENTATION AND SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM IN THE GAY COMMUNITY IN JAKARTA

Indonesia as a country that has a high level of heterogeneity in society, high heterogeneity encourages the emergence of the LGBT phenomenon. Gay belonging to the LGBT group is considered a deviant group by the Indonesian people. This makes the number of verbal and non-verbal rejections that affect the limited interaction of the gay community with the wider community. Based on the above context, the purpose of this study is to find out how the symbolic interactionism of gay community communication on its self-representation. This study uses the phenomenological method on 4 research subjects where 2 of them are gay and the other 2 are communication experts and psychologists. The theory used in this study is the symbolic interactionism theory of George Herbert Mead and Blummer and the representation theory of Stuart Hall. The result of this research is that the symbolic interactionism used by the gay community in the wider community can be used as a tool to represent themselves, non-verbally used by gays is conveyed through slang language, body gestures, accessories, colors and clothing models. sometimes heterosexuals use gay identical symbols unintentionally so that the identical gay symbols become biased.

Differentiating Categories of Violent Adolescent Offending and the Associated Risks in Police and Youth Offending Service Records.

Historical risk assessment forms for a sample of 173 males with a history of violent offending and under supervision by Merseyside Youth Offending Services (YOS) were investigated. Subsequent arrest records were scrutinised in order to obtain a better understanding of the relationship of social and psychological risk factors to offending behavior. The mean age of the sample at the point of contact with YOS was 16.01 (SD = 1.37) with a range between 12 and 18 years. Assault was associated with solo expressive offending, a history of domestic violence, low school attendance and an inability to control impulsivity and aggression. Robbery was associated instrumental and escalated violent offending, psychological disorders, and deviant groups, including family criminal involvement. Risk assessments by professionals and the young people indicated that substance misuse co-occurred with robbery. The findings suggest that solo offenders commit the majority of violent offences and that targeted interventions should distinguish between expressive and instrumental offending.

Can the group disincentivize offending? Considering opt‐out thresholds and decision reversals*

AbstractScholars generally agree that offending decisions occur in social context, with some suggesting that choice models should explicitly integrate the notion that the deviant actions of others can incentivize offending. In this study, we investigate whether group settings can also disincentivize deviant action via reverse bandwagon effects, where individuals reverse their offending decision and express an intention to opt out of the criminal act. Based on survey data from three universities using hypothetical scenarios about theft and fighting, we find evidence of opt‐out thresholds. Our findings indicate that deviant groups can serve as both an incentive and a disincentive, and that the relationship between group size and the perceived utility of crime is more complicated than prior work has suggested. Moreover, we find that these self‐reported opt‐out thresholds vary across scenarios, indicating that socially interdependent decision‐making processes may be situation specific. In the end, the study underscores the importance of acknowledging the social context in offending decisions and highlights that group effects may be more complex and nuanced than previously discussed.

The Social Marginalization of People Living with a Mentally Ill Label–Family, Friends, and Work

This paper is based on qualitative research among people diagnosed with a mental illness who voluntarily attend a mental health center. Such individuals are given a degrading “mentally ill” label, which transforms them into a “new” person. This study showed that—due to their label—research participants are often socially marginalized—not only in the public but also in the private sphere. As members of an “organized deviant group” (the mental health center), they follow a “deviant career” and find a job outside the regular job market. Their marginalization is not only caused by their health problems (by their impairment), but they are also disabled through social reactions to these problems. Psychiatry based on the biological model of the disease cannot, therefore, help them without the cooperation of social science approaches dealing with social marginalization.