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What is social control? How do social controls become part of everyday life? What role does the criminal justice system play in exerting control? Is the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness a form of social control? Do we need more social controls to prevent terrorist atrocities?
In this third edition of his popular introduction, James J. Chriss carefully guides readers through the debates about social control. The book provides a comprehensive guide to historical debates and more recent controversies, examining in detail the criminal justice system, medicine, national security, and everyday life. Chriss blends theoretical discussion with a rich range of contemporary examples to illustrate the ways in which social control is exerted and maintained. The updated edition includes new or expanded material on autism, trauma and PTSD, sports participation, the murder of George Floyd and the ensuing protests, domestic terrorism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the growing importance of social media in surveillance and informal control, among other topics.
Social Control is essential reading for students taking courses in deviance and social control, and will also appeal to those studying criminology, the sociology of law, and medical sociology.
List of contents
PART I UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL CONTROL
1 What Is Social Control?
2 A Typology of Social Control
3 Informal Control
4 Medical Control
5 Legal Control
PART II CASE STUDIES IN SOCIAL CONTROL
6 Informal Control: Housing Segregation, the Code of the Street, and Emerging Adulthood and Morality
7 Medical Control: Selective Mutism, Autism, and Violence as a Disease
8 Legal Control: Racial Profiling, Hate Crimes, and the Imprisonment Binge
9 Terrorism and Social Control
10 Conclusion: The Future of Social Control
Notes
References
About the author
James J. Chriss is Professor of Sociology at Cleveland State University.
Summary
What is social control? How do social controls become part of everyday life? What role does the criminal justice system play in exerting control? Is the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness a form of social control? Do we need more social controls to prevent terrorist atrocities?
In this third edition of his popular introduction, James J. Chriss carefully guides readers through the debates about social control. The book provides a comprehensive guide to historical debates and more recent controversies, examining in detail the criminal justice system, medicine, national security, and everyday life. Chriss blends theoretical discussion with a rich range of contemporary examples to illustrate the ways in which social control is exerted and maintained. The updated edition includes new or expanded material on autism, trauma and PTSD, sports participation, the murder of George Floyd and the ensuing protests, domestic terrorism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the growing importance of social media in surveillance and informal control, among other topics.
Social Control is essential reading for students taking courses in deviance and social control, and will also appeal to those studying criminology, the sociology of law, and medical sociology.
Report
"Professor Chriss has written a theoretically informed and far-ranging account of the origins, types, and functions of social control in human society. Key concepts are reinforced by relevant present-day case studies. Highly recommended."
William C. Cockerham, Emeritus, University of Alabama, and College of William and Mary
"Chriss reminds us that social control, the flip side of deviance, is central to social life; all societies practice it, from the pinnacle of the power structure to all of us at the grassroots, in our interactions with others on a one-to-one basis."
Erich Goode, Emeritus, Stony Brook University
