Sociology of deviance and interactionism

This is essentially a theoretical article and it aims to present a non-exhaustive analysis of the sociology of deviance, emphasizing interactionist theories. A brief account of the emergence of the sociology of deviance in Chicago is followed by a discussion on three tendencies that are involved in analyzing the causes of deviance: functionalism, anomie and culturalism. Next, interactionism arises as a means to break up with the causal approach. The specificity of the interactionist theory, especially H. Becker's Labelling Theory, can be seen in collective action and in the emphasis on the social process through which an individual or a group is considered deviant by the others. Finally, a few of the more recent tendencies are mentioned, such as phenomenology and ethnomethodology, and the criticism directed at these theories, mainly by Pierre Bourdieu, are discussed.