Ciminality and Deviant Behavior

Ciminality and Deviant Behavior

As Marshall B. Clinard so astutely points out, in today's American culture, "We are witnessing two extremely dangerous and volatile situations -- a growing incidence of criminal activity in the middle and lower levels of society linked to antisocial behavior and an increasing absence of concern in many Americans based on an attitude of moral apathy" (1992, 46). Clinard also provides some rather startling statistics to support these statements via a number of reports issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) within the last forty years. First of all, in 1963, the year that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas by a lone gunman, there were approximately "2,180 crimes committed per 100,000 American citizens; by 1983, this figure more than doubled to some 5,463 crimes committed per 100,000 American citizens" (1992, 48). Thus, the rapid rise in crime outlined by these figures has much to do with the rise of deviant behavior, also known as Antisocial Personality Disorder, which James W. Coleman sums up as "a personality disorder characterized by ruthlessness and aggression and is undoubtedly an inheritance from our past history as the world's most successful predator" (1998, 75).

In the essay "Cultivating Criminality: The Centrality of Deviance to the Scientific Dictatorship," Phillip D. Collins describes four specific functions of deviancy when it comes to criminality and criminal behavior according to the findings of sociologist Emile Durkheim. First of all, deviance permits "the enhancement of conformity," based on the idea that "abstract concepts of criminal law can only be illustrated by their violation." Thus, by committing crimes against society, the deviant person "tangibly enacts principles that are antithetical to the law" and is then "sacrificed on the altar of conformity for the education of the public," meaning that the deviant person is held up to the light of criticism and thereby tagged as a deviant person. Second, the deviant person serves as the "reinforcement of solidarity among law-abiding individuals," i.e., "social cohesion" which ultimately "unifies the citizenry and facilitates the stability of society;" in other words, "society requires an enemy" in order to maintain its glorified position as good and well-behaved (2006, Internet).

Third, the deviant person provides a type of "safety valve" or catharsis which allows "people to avenge themselves against the dominant social order," an act which also "fractures the social body by promulgating fear and paranoia" among law-abiding citizens which then becomes "an agent of stability." Basically, fear generates social stability, due to the realization that breaking the law may lead to imprisonment or perhaps death. Lastly, the deviant person induces social change, particularly through crime statistics and social experiments which can be tracked by law enforcement officials and agencies like the FBI (Collins, 2006, Internet).

Obviously, all of these functions are very closely related to society as a whole and although deviance itself can be observed and measured in various ways, the most important aspect for our purposes is a psychological entity known as Antisocial Personality Disorder which "has been demonstrated to be the number one reason why criminality in the United States has increased over the years to bring about so much social chaos and dysfunction" (Humphrey, 2005, 145).

Those who have been diagnosed by a psychiatrist as exhibiting Antisocial Personality

Disorder "have a lifelong pattern of irresponsible behavior and show little concern for the rights of others, the norms of society, the dictates of conscience" and especially the law (Gregorian, 2000, 85). Generally, problems linked to Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) begin in childhood or adolescence with disruptive troublemaking, a clear disrespect for authority, violation of rules and laws dictated by society, the destruction of property and usually some type of violent behavior, either toward authority figures (i.e., parents, law enforcement, etc.) or peers, such as friends, family members or even complete strangers. When these individuals attain adulthood, their lives often become tumultuous and filled with risk-taking and their social relationships deteriorate or become completely unmanageable.

Also, those afflicted with APD usually become involved in highly-illegal activities, such as theft, drug dealing, carjacking, armed robbery and even cold-blooded murder. Not surprisingly, there does exist "an appreciable risk that those who suffer from APD will die early by homicide, suicide, drug overdose or by accident" and according to the research currently available, "there is a marked gender difference in APD, for it is more commonly diagnosed in men which reflects the male tendency toward aggressive and impulsive behavior" (Gregorian, 2000, 228).

As maintained in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association in Washington, D.C., there are a number of traits that distinguish the socially "normal" person from one with APD. Overall, such an individual continues to consistently "act in a way that disregards the rights of others and violates the rules of society," a pattern which is expressed by exhibiting at least three of the following maladaptive elements

1). The afflicted individual repeatedly does things that could result in being arrested.

2). The individual repeatedly fabricates, uses aliases and resorts to subterfuge or deceit for profit or for simply because it "feels good or is fun."

3). The individual is impulsive and fails to plan ahead for the future.

4). The individual repeatedly becomes involve in physical confrontations.

5). The individual possesses a reckless disregard for his/her own safety and for the safety of those in his environment.

6). The individual cannot manage to maintain employment or honor any financial obligations or responsibilities.

7). The individual has no remorse concerning the consequences of his/her actions. Often, the individual feels justified or indifferent about having mistreated or harmed another human being (Bryant, 2001, 324).

As previously mentioned, the rise in criminality as it relates to deviant behavior represents a very serious threat to American society and culture and to the very foundations of American democracy. According to Peter J. Loudson, the actual number of rapes, robberies, armed assaults, burglaries and other violent forms of crime experienced by Americans in 1993 totaled 43,622,006; between 1985 and 1993, the murder rate increased by 65% among men eighteen to twenty-four years of age and climbed an astonishing 165% among male children between fourteen and seventeen years of age (2001, 139). In 1992, there were more than 6 million violent crimes committed by these two groups of males, predominantly by those in the former group. However, less than half of these violent crimes were reported to law enforcement officials and only about 170,000 of the perpetrators of these crimes were ever convicted and sent to prison (Loudson, 2001, 140).

In the realms of human psychology, it appears that the most influential element which drives criminality and deviant behavior is the desire for power which is "manifested through violent behavior and provides an illusion of power which in reality does not exist" (Clinard, 1992, 167). This sense of power hold the potential to utterly destroy the very fabric of society and to alter forever the basic structure of American culture and how its citizens live within it.