Stan Cohen - Moral Panic and Deviance Amplification

Moral Panic

Stanley Cohen is the author of Folk Devils and Moral Panic. A moral panic is the intensity of feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order. People who threaten the social order are described as 'folk devils' by Stan Cohen.

Deviance Amplification

Deviance amplification is a process, often performed by the mass media, in which the extent and seriousness of deviant behavior is exaggerated. The effect is to create a greater awareness and interest in deviance which results in more deviance being uncovered, giving the impression that the initial exaggeration was actually a true representation.