Journal #6

Deviance or the sociology of deviance explores the actions and/or behaviors that violate social norms across formally enacted rules as well as informal violations of social norms. Workplace deviance refers to deliberate, malicious attempts to sabotage an organization by causing problems in the workplace. Cyber technology can create opportunities for workplace deviance. Oftentimes, there is always a “bad seed” in a workplace. There are people who take advantage of working in these cyber environments and tend to abuse their position. An example of abusing their position could be lying about hours they worked. If it is on the internet, then someone who has a position in the company could change their hours and lie about how long they worked and no one would be able to do anything about it. Another example is that they could misuse and take advantage of the equipment. They may sabotage it in exchange for money from another sector or company for information or the equipment. This would also tie into stealing from the company itself. Some companies lend their equipment to their employees so that they can work virtually. If people have jobs that are virtual, they are most likely given breaks or a time where they can eat because it would still be considered a full time job and they are required to have breaks. They could intentionally take longer breaks or move at a slower pace throughout their workday. They could also potentially steal from their co- workers, or compete with them non beneficially. There could also be deviance being taken place with the higher positions. They could have favoritism between the workers and manipulate the workload and hours worked. Employees could also share private or confidential information with other employees or businesses in exchange for money. Another example would be employees shutting down their security systems leaving the company open to potential attacks. 

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