ABSTRACT
“A social problem is a condition which is defined by a considerable number of persons as a deviation from some social norm which they cherish.” This definition offered by Richard C. Fuller and Richard R. Myers some 30 years ago characterizes with considerable economy the kinds of issues sociologists typically study under the rubric of “social problems.” As will quickly become apparent below, the “field” of social problems has a very different character from most of the substantive areas of sociology, such as social stratification or interaction processes or the family.
