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Deviance: Social Constructions and Blurred Boundaries is designed for for courses on social deviance that take a strong sociological perspective. The book draws on up-to-date scholarship across a wide spectrum of deviance categories, providing a symbolic interactionist analysis of the deviance process. The book addresses positivistic theories of deviant behavior within a description of the deviance process that encompasses the work of deviance claims-makers, rule-breakers, and social control agents.
List of contents
Section 1: Theories and Methods in Deviance Studies
Chapter 1: Views of Deviance
Chapter 2: Getting Close to Deviance
Chapter 3: Positivistic Theories of Deviant Behavior
Chapter 4: Symbolic Interactionist/Social Constructionist Perspective
Section 2: High Consensus Criminal Deviance
Chapter 5: Murder
Chapter 6: Rape
Chapter 7: Financially Motivated Crime in the Streets
Chapter 8: White-Collar Crime
Section 3: Lifestyle Deviance
Chapter 9: Alcohol Abuse
Chapter 10: Drug Abuse
Chapter 11: Sex Work
Section 4: Status Deviance
Chapter 12: Mental Illness
Chapter 13: Obesity and Eating Disorders
Chapter 14: LGBTQ Identities
About the author
Leon Anderson received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Texas in 1983. He has been on the sociology faculty at Ohio University and Utah State University, and served as Chair at both institutions. Leon regularly teaches courses on deviance, social activism, and qualitative research methods. He is the co-author of a qualitative methods text (
Analyzing Social Settings 4E, with John Lofland, Lyn Lofland, and David Snow), and co-author of scholarly book on homelessness (
Down on Their Luck, with David Snow).
