essay

The elastic rule: conformity and deviance in Kelantan village life

Cultural identity in northern peninsular Malaysia (63)Published In 1986 • Pages: 55-74

By: Raybeck, Douglas.

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This document examines the process by which Malayan villagers in Kelantan state label acts and actors deviant. Based on closer analysis of villagers attitudes to selected acts such as cross border contraband trading, prostitution, and gambling, the author notes marked disparity between definitions of deviance employed by the state and those which exist at the village level. The document also shows that villagers display considerable reluctance to label fellow villagers as deviant even where there is no ambiguity concerning the deviance of a particular act. These findings suggest the need for taking account of both villagers self-concepts of deviance and processes through they employ such labels.
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Social personality
Personality disorders
Family relationships
Community structure
Social control
Informal in-group justice
Behavior toward non-relatives
Legal norms
Crime
Offenses against the state
Property offenses
Social offenses
Homosexuality
Sex and marital offenses
Trial procedure
Crime
cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Malays
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2010
RegionThe area the document pertains to
Asia
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Southeast Asia
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
essay
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Anthropologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
5: Excellent Primary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
Teferi Abate Adem; 2009
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
1968-1969
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
1968-1986
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Wakaf Bharu, Kelantan State, Malaysia
NotesAdditional notes
Douglas Raybeck
Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-74)
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
83011421
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Kelantan--Civilization