Sociological approaches to deviance are reviewed and various forms of social deviance are examined as is the process involved in changing the status of a behavior from deviant to not and vice-versa.

All societies have formal and informal rules that guide behavior. These rules are socially constructed in historical contexts and infused with power. The study of social deviance focuses on individuals and groups who are at the margins of these rules. In this class, we investigate some of the individuals and groups who have been defined as deviant. We investigate why some people are deviant, how people react to the deviance, and how our society is organized to facilitate and prevent deviant behavior.