Question

Instead of solely examining background factors, what does the sociologist jack katz think sociologists should study when trying to understand deviance?

Answer 1

What distinguishes Jack Katz from other sociologists is that most of the focus on the background of the individual as the maybe most important factor that predisposes them to committing deviant acts. Instead Katz argues that what the perpetrators experience while committing those acts can help researchers better understand their actions. He shows this with the example of a young shoplifter who shoplifts not  because he needs the thing he steels but because he likes the rush of the act itself.