Deviant behavior Deviance, romanticized in the story of Bonnie and Clyde, or slandered by individuals creating chaos and anarchy, is present in all societies. Deviant behaviors in contemporary American society range widely: from harmless behaviors, such as having one's face pierced, to deviant behaviors such as assaulting an individual. Deviance is a violation of a social norm. A deviant act is neither good nor bad in itself; what is deviant in one society may not be the same in another. Social norms are guidelines for acceptable behavior and rules put in place to establish order in society. Deviance can lead to delinquency if the violated norm had been transcribed into law. Sociologists have questioned what encourages or causes deviant behavior. They believe that the different groups we associate with influence whether or not deviant behavior spreads. These groups send us messages of conformity or deviance. The messages add up and push us to conform to society or rebel against it. The groups that influence us the most are: family, friends, neighborhoods and subcultures. Family is very important in guiding social behavior. For example, “of all prisoners in the United States, approximately half have a parent who has served a prison sentence (Henslin, 2013). » This surprising statistic shows that if members of your family express deviant and criminal behavior, you are more likely to follow in their footsteps. Indeed, your sociological perspective may be altered due to the company you keep and what is considered deviant for society may be a way of life for you. There is a popular saying that goes, “It takes a village to raise a child,” family alone is not enough to guide behavior. The neighborhood you reside in also plays a role in shaping your moral character. If a child lives in a bad neighborhood where children bond over shoplifting; it is more likely that the child will also shoplift in an attempt to assimilate and make friends. In the community of delinquent children, it may be considered deviant to report children. Labeling theory states that society helps lead us to deviant behavior or pressure us to conform. The labels that society gives us have an impact on whether we behave deviantly or not. The labels or reputation one has in society has a big impact on how an individual may perceive themselves and how society perceives them as well. A positive label, such as being known as an "honest" person, will give individual prestige in society. They may avoid dishonest behavior in order to maintain their good reputation and receive praise and respect from others. A negative label, such as "lazy," can prevent a person from conforming to society. They may begin to express deviant behaviors such as procrastination. Becker stated that: “It is not the act itself, but the reactions to the act that make something deviant (Becker 1996; Sutherland 2013). » A negative label can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. A person labeled as lazy may not be seen as working as hard because of this label. The power of the negative label will cause people to focus on the individual's actions that match the label and ignore actions that do not match. If a man described as lazy spends all day working under a