ABSTRACT
Most writers have concluded that there is some invariance of values across cultures, but at the same time that there is also a great diversity of values across cultures. While there appears to be a basic invariance in the structure of deviance perception across cultures, and in the classifications of deviant action, there is also a very broad diversity in particular aspects of perception. Since Benedict's famous pronouncement that all cultures are "equally valid", much has been written for and against cultural relativism. Situational relativism is perhaps the most popular form of relativism currently in vogue in sociology and social psychology. Normative relativism ascribes to all groups equal validity in the Tightness of their moral evaluations. The consensus-dissensus debate is germaine to the problems of normative relativism. But, before readers can settle the dispute about consensus or dissensus and deviance, it is necessary to be clear about what we mean by the terms.
