Control Balance by Charles R Tittle

Author:Charles R Tittle [Tittle, Charles R]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, General, Sociology
ISBN: 9780429980954
Google: lzlMDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2018-02-02T03:34:18+00:00

Situational Influences on Deviant Motivation

Having a predisposition toward deviant motivation, however, does not necessarily lead to deviant motivation or to deviant behavior. For deviant motivation to emerge, those predisposed toward it by an imbalanced control ratio must comprehend, or perceive, the possibility that deviance will alter their control ratios in an advantageous way. Since the variables that are likely to create a perception that deviance will advantageously alter control ratios are mainly situational, I call them provocations. Although some degree of provocation is necessary to activate the causes of deviance, the extent and intensity of situational provocation also represent a contingency under which the causal mechanisms of the theory operate with greater or lesser efficiency. They will be recalled in that capacity and will be discussed further later.

Relevant Features of Provocations. Those predisposed toward deviant motivation may not actually become motivated toward deviance, just as those motivated toward deviance will not necessarily engage in deviant behavior. Thus, although "background" variables are necessary for deviant behavior, they are not sufficient to account for its occurrence or form. Other things have to transpire or be present in the situational "foreground" (compare Birbeck and LaFree 1993).

For deviance to ensue, individuals must become fully conscious of their control ratios and of the possibilities for changing them through the use of deviant behavior. People have a general sense of their control ratios, but most of the time they operate with only secondary awareness of their deficits or surpluses. Everyday life is so routinized that most people rarely contemplate their control ratios. Yet everyone, from time to time, experiences circumstances that bring to mind the balance of control. Moreover, though most people are seldom conscious of what alternatives they might have for altering control balances through deviance, almost everyone encounters situations that make those possibilities come to life.

Provocations—contextual features that cause people to become more keenly cognizant of their control ratios and the possibilities of altering them through deviant behavior—can take the form of specific behaviors by others, such as verbal insults, challenges, or displays of weaknesses. Having one's mother insulted, for instance, is often a verbal provocation that calls the control ratio to mind for young males, as is a racial slur and the questioning of masculinity. On the other end of the control continuum, fawning displays by subordinates, as well as outright refusals to obey, often inspire thoughts about control ratios in the minds of those with surplus control. Provocations may manifest themselves as a special convergence of controlling impingements, such as receiving a pile of bills, getting laid off a job, and having the car break down within a short period of time. In addition, provocations may come in the form of sensual stimuli like seeing food when one is hungry, finding oneself alone with a willing sex partner after having been snubbed by a spouse, or seeing someone flaunt money shortly after one has been denied medical care for monetary reasons. Provocations can stem from direct communications reminding the person of subordination,

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