Boundary maintenance - the social reaction to crime and deviance by media and courts reaffirms society’s shared values, Deviance brings about social change - new ideas or institutions always initially appear as deviance from existing norms, Minor deviance acts as a safety valve - it diverts potentially dangerous motivations into less harmful channels, It acts as a warning - a high level of deviance indicates an institution is not functioning properly and needs reform, Crime and deviance create employment - their existence provides work for those in the media, the criminal justice system, moral entrepreneurs etc,

Functionalists view on crime

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