This is a list of events that fit the sociological definition of a moral panic.
In sociology, a moral panic is a period of increased and widespread societal concern over some group or issue, in which the public reaction to such group or issue is disproportional to its actual threat. The concern is further fueled by mass media and moral entrepreneurs. Moral panics may result in legislative and/or long-lasting cultural changes in the societies where they occur. The concept was first introduced into the field of sociology by Stanley Cohen in his 1972 book and has since been expanded by other researchers. [1] [2] [3] Moral panics are different from irrational hysterias. [4]
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title | concern | causes | location | time | refs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Blood libel | The false idea that Jews engage in the kidnapping and murder of gentile children | Europe | [5] | ||
Witch-hunts | That some individuals with supernatural powers, "witches", were causing harm to people in their communities | Unsubstantiated rumors and accusations of witchcraft | Europe, North America | Middle ages to the 1700s | [6] [7] |
title | concern | causes | location | time | refs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anti-Catholic panic | That Catholics were conspiring against American interests | Increased immigration of Catholics to the United States, pre-existing anti-Catholic attitudes, political tension between the U.S. and European powers | United States | 1840s, 1850s | [8] [6] |
Garroting panic of the 1860s | Robberies involving the practice of garroting | Media coverage of garroting robberies | United States | 1860s | [9] [10] |
White slavery scare | The prostitution of White women | Allegations regarding the prostitution of White women by private businesses, release of Traffic in Souls | United Kingdom, United States | 1880s (UK), early 1900s (US) | [11] [12] |
title | concern | causes | location | time | refs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Comic book panic | That comic books were negatively influencing young people | Popularization of comic books among the youth, publication of Seduction of the Innocent | United States | 1930s – 1950s | [13] [14] |
Sexual psychopath panic | Child sexual offending by "sexual psychopaths", a contested psychological category of sex offenders [15] | Sensationalistic media coverage of child sex crimes | United States | 1930s – 1950s | [15] [16] |
Homosexual panic | That homosexuals were trying to "promote homosexuality" to society, including children | United States, United Kingdom | 1950s – 1990s | [17] [18] | |
Lavender scare | That homosexuals were conspiring against American interests | Societal tensions during the Cold War, the belief that homosexuals were sympathetic toward the Soviet Union | United States | 1950s | [12] [15] |
Mods and rockers panic | Hooligan activities by the two youth groups | Sensationalistic media coverage of the conflicts between the groups | United Kingdom | 1960s | [19] [2] |
War on drugs | Drug trafficking and consumption | Increase of drug consumption in society, media alarmism | Global | 1970s – present | [4] [20] |
Sex offender panic | Child sex crimes perpetrated by sex offenders and pedophiles | Reoccurrence of high-profile child sexual abuse scandals | United States, United Kingdom | 1970s – present | [21] [22] [16] [23] |
Violent video games panic | That video games were influencing children into committing violent acts | Popularization of violent video games among the youth, discredited psychological theories about games | United States | 1970s – 1990s | [24] [25] |
Mugging panic | Muggings in public streets, especially by young Black males | Media alarmism, 1973 Birmingham mugging attack | United Kingdom | 1970s | [26] |
Satanic panic | That supposed Satanic cults were engaging in child sexual abuse rituals | Unsubstantiated Satanic ritual abuse rumors and allegations, tabloid journalism | United States | 1980s | [27] [28] |
Missing children panic | Child abduction by strangers in public places | Murder of Adam Walsh, media sensationalism | United States | 1980s | [26] [29] [30] |
Dungeons & Dragons panic | That some RPG table-top games, especially D&D, were leading young people into drug use and Satanism | Popularization of mythical-themed role-play games, Christian and BADD activism, [31] other controversies | United States | 1980s | [32] [33] |
Day-care sex-abuse hysteria | That some day-care centers were engaging in Satanic child sexual abuse | Increased usage of day-cares among employed women with young children | United States | 1980s – 1990s | [34] [35] |
AIDS panic | AIDS dissemination, particularly by gay men | AIDS pandemic of the 1980s, Conservative activism | Global | 1980s – 1990s | [36] [37] |
"Wilding" panic | Physical and sexual assaults in public streets by ethnic youth gangs | Rape of Trisha Meili, media sensationalism | United States | 1989 – 1990s | [38] [39] |
Dangerous dogs panic | Dog attacks against humans, especially by pit bulls | Sensationalistic media coverage of dog attacks | United Kingdom | late 1980s – 1990s | [40] [41] [42] |
Harry Potter panic | That the book series was leading children into witchcraft and occultism | The novels' themes of magic and witchcraft, anti-occult activism against the series | United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia | 1990s – 2000s | [43] [1] |
Internet moral panic | The dissemination of legal and illegal pornography on the internet, online criminal activities | Popularization of the Internet, media sensationalism | Global | 1990s – 2000s | [44] [45] [46] [47] |
School shooting panic | School shootings | Increased media coverage of school shooting cases [48] | United States | 1990s – present | [49] [50] |
title | concern | causes | location | time | refs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Islamic terrorism panic | Arab and Muslim terrorism | September 11 attacks | United States | Early 2000s | [51] [52] |
Human trafficking panic | Sex trafficking and human trafficking | Reoccurrence of high-profile human- and sex-trafficking scandals | United States, United Kingdom, Australia | 2000s – present | [53] [54] [55] [56] |
Internet predator panic | Sexting between adults and minors on the internet | Popularization of social media among young people, misreadings of forensic statistics by mass media [57] [58] | United States, United Kingdom | 2000s | [57] [59] [58] |
Gender ideology panic | That LGBT activists were introducing children to "gender ideology" in schools | Increase of neo-Conservative activism in Latin America since the 1980s | Latin America | 2000s – 2010s | [60] [61] |
Blue Whale Challenge | 2016 | ||||
QAnon panic | That some politicians and celebrities engaged in Satanic child sexual abuse rituals | Conspiracy theories fueled by social media algorithms | United States | 2010s | [62] [63] |
Anti-LGBT panic | LGBT child grooming and genital mutilation of cisgender children by gender professionals | Increase in the number of children identifying as LGBT, unsubstantiated theories spread by anti-LGBT activists | United States, Argentina, Brazil | 2010s – present | [64] [30] |
A subculture is a group of people within a cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, political, and sexual matters. Subcultures are part of society while keeping their specific characteristics intact. Examples of subcultures include BDSM, hippies, hipsters, goths, steampunks, bikers, punks, skinheads, gopnik, hip-hoppers, metalheads, cosplayers, otaku, otherkin, furries, hackers and more. The concept of subcultures was developed in sociology and cultural studies. Subcultures differ from countercultures.
A moral panic is a widespread feeling of fear that some evil person or thing threatens the values, interests, or well-being of a community or society. It is "the process of arousing social concern over an issue", usually perpetuated by moral entrepreneurs and mass media coverage, and exacerbated by politicians and lawmakers. Moral panic can give rise to new laws aimed at controlling the community.
Body integrity dysphoria (BID), also referred to as body integrity identity disorder (BIID), amputee identity disorder or xenomelia, and formerly called apotemnophilia, is a rare mental disorder characterized by a desire to have a sensory or physical disability or feeling discomfort with being able-bodied, beginning in early adolescence and resulting in harmful consequences. BID appears to be related to somatoparaphrenia. People with this condition may refer to themselves as transabled, but the term is controversial.
A hafada piercing is a surface piercing anywhere on the skin of the scrotum. Piercings on the scrotal raphe or "seam" of the scrotum are common. This piercing does not penetrate deep into the scrotum, and due to the looseness and flexibility of the skin in that area, does not migrate or reject as much as many other surface piercings. The main motives are beautification and individualization. A piercing that passes through the scrotum, from front-to-back, or from side-to-side, is known as a transscrotal piercing. Multiple hafada piercings are not uncommon, often as an extension of a frenum ladder or Jacob's Ladder, which is a series of piercings from the frenulum to the scrotum.
Bugchasing is the rare practice of intentionally seeking human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection through sexual activity.
Labeling theory posits that self-identity and the behavior of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe or classify them. It is associated with the concepts of self-fulfilling prophecy and stereotyping. Labeling theory holds that deviance is not inherent in an act, but instead focuses on the tendency of majorities to negatively label minorities or those seen as deviant from standard cultural norms. The theory was prominent during the 1960s and 1970s, and some modified versions of the theory have developed and are still currently popular. Stigma is defined as a powerfully negative label that changes a person's self-concept and social identity.
The feminist school of criminology is a school of criminology developed in the late 1960s and into the 1970s as a reaction to the general disregard and discrimination of women in the traditional study of crime. It is the view of the feminist school of criminology that a majority of criminological theories were developed through studies on male subjects and focused on male criminality, and that criminologists often would "add women and stir" rather than develop separate theories on female criminality.
Sociology of terrorism is a field of sociology that seeks to understand terrorism as a social phenomenon. The field defines terrorism, studies why it occurs and evaluates its impacts on society. The sociology of terrorism draws from the fields of political science, history, economics and psychology. The sociology of terrorism differs from critical terrorism studies, emphasizing the social conditions that enable terrorism. It also studies how individuals as well as states respond to such events.
Serial crimes are crimes of a repetitive nature. Serial murder, serial rape and serial arson are crimes regarded as serial crimes.
Techniques of neutralization are a theoretical series of methods by which those who commit illegitimate acts temporarily neutralize certain values within themselves which would normally prohibit them from carrying out such acts, such as morality, obligation to abide by the law, and so on. In simpler terms, it is a psychological method for people to turn off "inner protests" when they do, or are about to do something they themselves perceive as wrong.
A birthday card is a greeting card given or sent to a person to celebrate their birthday. Similar to a birthday cake, birthday card traditions vary by culture but the origin of birthday cards is unclear. The advent of computing and introduction of the internet and social media has led to the use of electronic birthday cards or even Facebook posts to send birthday messages.
Party and play (PnP), also known as chemsex or wired play, refers to the practice of consuming drugs to enhance sexual activity. This sexual subculture involves recreational drug users engaging in high-risk sexual behaviors under the influence of drugs, often within specific sub-groups. Activities may include unprotected sex with multiple partners during sessions over extended periods, sometimes lasting days. The drug of choice is typically methamphetamine, commonly referred to as crystal meth, tina, or T. Other substances like mephedrone, GHB, GBL, ketamine, and alkyl nitrites are also used. The term slamsex is used for injection drug users.
Anti-pedophile activism encompasses social actions against pedophiles. It also includes acts of anti-pedophile citizen vigilantism conducted by vigilante groups, some of which have operated alongside government agencies in countries such as the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Ronald Weitzer is an American sociologist specializing in criminology and a professor at George Washington University, known for his publications on police-minority relations and on the sex industry.
Jock Young was a British sociologist and an influential criminologist.
Pedophile advocacy groups are organizations that advocate for the abolishment or lowering of the age of consent and the normalization of adult sexual relations with children. Such groups have existed dating back to 1962 in multiple countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Germany and the Netherlands.
Auto-trolling, self-cyberbullying, digital Munchausen or digital self-harm is a form of self-abuse on the Internet. It is usually done by teenagers posting fake insults on social media, attacking themselves to elicit attention and sympathy. A study in 2012 found that about 35 per cent of those who did this felt better. Studies in 2016 and 2019 found an increase in prevalence in American adolescents rising from 6 to 9 per cent. In a 2011 study, boys were more likely than girls to admit to digital self-bullying. In a 2022 study published by researchers Justin Patchin, Sameer Hinduja, and Ryan Meldrum, US youth who engaged in digital self-harm were between five and seven times more likely to have considered suicide and between nine and fifteen times more likely to have attempted suicide.
Throw ups, or throwies, are a form of graffiti that fall between tags and pieces in complexity. The name comes from the way they are designed to be "thrown" onto a surface as quickly as possible. They are almost always done with aerosol paint.
James E. Hawdon is an American sociologist, academic, and author. He is a professor of sociology and a director for the Center for Peace Studies and Violence Prevention at Virginia Tech.
Sexual psychopath was a category of criminals roughly defined as male sex offenders who had little to no control over their sexual impulses. The typology was built upon 19th-century Canadian psychiatrist Joseph Workman's five main categories of insanity. It was popularized in the United States during a moral panic regarding sex crimes that lasted from the late 1930s to the 1940s. The popularization of the sexual psychopath category in North America led to the creation of sexual psychopath laws in the United States and Canada.
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