Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994)

• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) created their own system of Moral Panics
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda created their own system of Moral Panics in 1994
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) rejected Cohen's (1978) view that a moral panic goes through a series of stages that have a beginning, middle and end
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic:

  1. Concern
  2. Hostility
  3. Consensus
  4. Disproportionality
  5. Volatility
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic, the 1st Stage was 'Concern':

  • This is heightened public concern that the behaviour of a particular group is seen as a threat to social order
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic, the 2nd Stage was 'Hostility':

  • This is where an increased Hostility in the media towards a particular group leads to its members becoming 'Folk Devils'
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic, the 3rd Stage was 'Consensus':

  • Influential people, known as 'Moral Entrepreneurs', lead the campaign against the particular group that leads to general agreement about their behaviour
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic, the 4th Stage was 'Disproportionality':

  • The reaction is out of proportion to the harm caused by the particular group
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) described 5 Elements present in a Moral Panic, the 5th Stage was 'Volatility':

  • This is where the Moral Panic of the particular group come and go quickly as interest moves to another issue
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) can be applied to the War on Drugs in the 1980's of America:

  1. Concern = There was growing public anxiety about the perceived increase in drug use, particularly crack cocaine
  2. Hostility = Drug users, dealers, and particularly minority communities were cast as the 'Folk Devils', with the media and politicians depicting them as the primary cause of crime and social decay
  3. Consensus = A widespread agreement developed among media outlets & politicians ('Moral Entrepreneurs') that drug use was an urgent social problem
• Goode and Ben-Yehuda (1994) can be applied to the War on Drugs in the 1980's of America:

  1. Concern
  2. Hostility
  3. Consensus
  4. Disproportionality = The scale of the drug problem was often exaggerated in the media, leading to Ronald Reagan increasing incarceration for non-violent drug offences
  5. Volatility = The moral panic flared up quickly, resulting in swift changes to law enforcement and drug policy - However, the panic subsided, and there has been a gradual shift towards viewing drug use as a public health issue rather than a purely criminal one