Interactionism And Crime

Question 1

key things included in interactionism and crime

Answer 1

1. The social construction of crime
2. Who Labels
3. Who gets labeled
4. Justice is negotiable
5. Consequences of Labelling
6. The impact of Labelling

Question 2

what are labeling theorists interested in

Answer 2

Labelling theorists are interested in how and why certain acts come to be defined or labelled as criminal in the first place

Question 3

key theorists for the social construction of crime

Answer 3

Becker

Question 4

what does Becker argue

Answer 4

Becker argues that no act is inherently criminal in the first place, society’s reaction to the act makes it criminal or deviant. An act only becomes criminal when society or others label it as such.

Question 5

who is a deviant

Answer 5

For becker, a deviant is someone who a label has been applied to. This leads labelling theorists to look at how and why rules and laws get made. They are interested in the role of what Becker calls moral entrepreneurs.

Question 6

what creates deviants

Answer 6

Moral entrepreneurs

Question 7

who are moral entrepreneurs

Answer 7

These are people to seek to change the law based on moral arguments. They have two effects - 1. create a new group of outsiders - outlaws or deviants and criminals. 2. Creation or expansion of social control to enforce rules and label offenders.

Question 8

example of moral entrepreneurs

Answer 8

Juvenile delinquency

Question 9

sociologist behind juvenile delinquency

Answer 9

Platt

Question 10

platt and juvenile delinquency - social construction of crime

Answer 10

Platt argues that the idea of juvenile delinquency was originally created as a result of a campaign by upper-class Victorian moral entrepreneurs aimed at protecting young people at risk and regulating their behavior. Becker argues that social control agencies themselves may also campaign for a change in the law to increase their own power. For example, the US Federal Bureau of Narcotics successfully campaigned for the passing of the Marijuana Tax Act, they argued it was to protect the vulnerable. This Act Outlawed marijuana law, becker argues that this was done to extend the Bureaus sphere of influence and power. Therefore, it is not the inherent harmfulness of a particular behavior that leads to new laws being created rather it is the efforts of powerful individuals and groups to define that behavior as unacceptable

Question 11

who labels

Answer 11

Moral entrepreneurs - Becker was interested in whose labels get to dominate. He saw labelling as linked to power with some groups or indivuals having more power than others. A group Becker was interested in was moral crusaders. These are leaders of moral crusades who campaign to change the law with the aim of benefitting everyone to whom it applies. Through campaigning over a moral issue, they fight to have their labels become dominant ones.

Question 12

example of social construction of crime - becker

Answer 12

Becker uses the example of nudity to illustrate labelling
* In our homes nudity is normal and expected socially in the bathroom
* But in public spaces it would be defined as deviant to walk around naked.
* The same act is defined differently dependent on the context
* Definitions of beauty
* Becker argued “Deviancy is in the eye of the beholder”
* The same can be argued with standards of beauty
* Homosexuality as a Crime
* Illegal in the UK until 1967 (21+ in private)
(2001)
* Now normalised

Question 13

juvenile delinquents and the developments of courts

Answer 13

Victorian moral entrepreneurs fought to have children treated differently by the courts. This developed into a label of juvenille offenders which led to the creation of juvenille courts and offences such as truanting. Juvenilles became the outsider group and social control agencies such as child welfare officers and childrens courts emerged to deal with the problem.

Question 14

who gets labelled sociologist

Answer 14

Piliavan and Briar
cicourel

Question 15

who gets labelled?

Answer 15

According to labelling theorists no individual is intrinsically deviant. Their behaviour is labelled deviant by others, but on other occasions, it may be regarded as acceptable and even normal. Some groups are more likely to be negatively labelled by others.

Question 16

piliavan and briar

Answer 16

they found that police decisions to arrest a youth were mainly based on physical cues such as manner and dress from which they make judgments about a youth’s character.

Question 17

what is it called when judgements are based on physical cues

Answer 17

Typifications

Question 18

typifications

Answer 18

These are stereotypes of what a delinquent is like, cicourel argues that this leads law enforcement to concentrate on certain types. This leads to a class and ethnic bias in arrests, as WC and EM areas fit the police typifications most closely, this leads to more arrests in those areas as they become more patrolled by police officers. A stop and search study conducted by GOV.UK found that for every 1000 white people there were 7.5 stops and searchers alone compared to 52.6 for every 1000 black people and a study by the LSE found that stops and searchers were more likely to occur in areas of higher economic inequality.

Question 19

justice is negotiable sociologist

Answer 19

Cicourel

Question 20

justice is negotiable

Answer 20

Cicourel claimed that justice is negotiable, this is because definitions are not fixed. He believed that women, the middle class, the elderly and certain ethnic groups are better able to negotiate or alter labels as they are likely to be perceived as criminal. Negotiating a label involves being able to talk your way out of an arrest or affording to get better legal representation to negotiate on your behalf. Overall, we possess typifications which means certain social groups or individuals are more likely to be labelled deviant than others

Question 21

official stats

Answer 21

For interactionists official crime stats are social constructions. Outcomes such as arrest depend on labels and decisions to prosecute which may be affected by the typifications they hold about them. OCS says more about the police and justice system than criminality.

Question 22

what is it called when stats are constructed

Answer 22

Dark Figure of Crime

Question 23

dark figure of crime

Answer 23

The dark figure of crime - the difference between OCS and the real rate of crime is called the dark figure as we do not know when crimes go undetected, unreported, or unrecorded.
Alternative stats - victim surveys and self-report studies give a more accurate view but they have certain limitations as people may forget, conceal or exaggerate when asked about crime

Question 24

the consequences of labelling

Answer 24

Labelling theorists claim that by labelling people as criminal or deviant society encourages them to become more so

Question 25

types of deviance

Answer 25

Primary and Secondary Deviance

Question 26

sociologist behind types of deviance

Answer 26

Lement

Question 27

primary deviance

Answer 27

This refers to deviant acts that have not been publicly labelled. These acts are not part of an organized deviant way of life so offenders can easily rationalize them away. For example, as a moment of madness. They have little significance for the individuals status or self-concept as primary deviants don’t generally see themselves as deviant

Question 28

secondary deviance

Answer 28

Deviance that is a result of societal reaction - labelling - SD can be so significant that it leads to a master status - label that overrides others

Question 29

master status

Answer 29

Once a label has been applied to someone all the actions that person performs is interpreted in the light of the label. This becomes their master status which controls the persons identity overrding others - from friend to outsider. This can create an identity crisis, where the individual adopts the label and acts out or lives up to their deviant label - SFP. Lement refers to the further deviance that results from acting out the label as secondary deviance - examples - pedophile, junkie, murderers

Question 30

what does secondary deviance create

Answer 30

a deviant career

Question 31

deviant career

Answer 31

Secondary deviance is likely to provoke further hostile reactions from society and reinforce the deviants outsider status and may lead to a deviant career, this is when a person is trapped on a path of deviancy. They are labeled as criminal and arrested which causes them to lose their jobs, families and friends, they go to prison where they associate with other deviants. Once they leave prison, they find it difficult to reintegrate into mainstream society and so their main contact will be with other outsiders. This leads to even more deviancy and criminality. A study by GOV>UK found that the re-offending rate for Jan-March 2021 alone was 24.3%

Question 32

deviant career sociologist

Answer 32

Jock Young

Question 33

jock young

Answer 33

Jock Young used the concept of secondary deviance and deviant career in his study of the hippy drug users in Notting Hill. Initially, Hippy Residents of Notting Hill saw drug use as fairly common - a way of life, Young saw this as primary deviance - hippies did not see themselves as druggies. The media started to show interest in hippy lifestyles and this behavior was labelled as deviant. The police started to make drug arrests and the hippies started to see themselves as outsiders and developed a deviant subculture. Secondary deviance began as the hippies retreated into a deviant subculture becoming more extreme in their dress and habits. Drug use became more central to them - SFP leading to further attention from the police and arrests as a consequence they found it difficult to find employment resulting in more crime to pay for their lifestyles, A deviant career was now emerging.

Question 34

sociologist behind impact of labelling

Answer 34

Cohen

Question 35

the impact of labelling

Answer 35

Deviance amplification spiral is a term labelling theorists use to describe a process in which attempts to control deviance leads to an increase in the level of deviance. This leads to greater attempts to control it and in turn, this produces yet higher levels of deviance. Cohen applied this concept in his study of folk devils and moral panics. A study of the societal reaction to the ‘mods and rockers’ disturbances involving groups of youths in England and their fight in Claction in 1964. Press exaggeration and distorted reporting of the events began a moral panic, with growing public concern and with moral entrepreneurs calling for a crackdown. The police responded by arresting more youths, while the courts imposed harsher penalties. This caused further marginalization of mods and rockers as outsiders, resulting in more deviant behavior on their parts.

Question 36

sociologist behind consequences on the CJS

Answer 36

Triplett

Question 37

consequences of labelling on the CJS

Answer 37

Studies show that attempts to control and punish young offenders are having the opposite effects. For example, Triplett notes an increasing tendency to see relatively minor offenses as more than they are and crackdowns have led to higher rates of offending, offenses like truancy have been re-labeled as a serious crime. This increases the alienation of the young and amplifies deviance as levels of violence amongst the young are actually increasing. Triplett claims that this is a consequence of labelling

Question 38

sociologist behind shaming

Answer 38

Braithwaite

Question 39

shaming

Answer 39

Braithwaite argues against the claim made by realists that a strong societal reaction such as increased punishments always decreases crime. He argues that it is important that the offender feels society’s disapproval in order to feel remorse and thereby discouraging them to re-offend

Question 40

types of shaming

Answer 40

Disintegrative/stigmatized shaming
Reintegrative shaming

Question 41

Disintegrative/stigmatized shaming

Answer 41

When the crime and criminal are labeled as bad and so are excluded from society

Question 42

reintegrative shaming

Answer 42

Where only the act and not the actor is labelled. This avoids stigmatizing the offender whilst still making the actor aware of the potential negative impact of labelling. This makes it easier to re-admit the offender back into mainstream society and limits secondary deviance and a master status forming

Question 43

eval of shaming

Answer 43

Right realists would disagree with interactionists’ solution to crime. They argue that crime and fear of crime are real problems in society, which need to be taken seriously. Being tough on criminals by having harsh sentencing - stigmatized shaming reduces the chances of people committing a crime as it enables them to make the rational choice not to commit crime because the costs are too high

Question 44

strengths of labelling

Answer 44

It recognized that labeling can cause increased deviancy
It questions the validity, objectively, and reliability of crime stats are merely social constructs and so not useful in analyzing crime

Question 45

weaknesses

Answer 45

1. It does not explain why the deviant commits the act in the first place, it places far more emphasis on consequences rather than causes. Structuralists think there should be more emphasis on causes
2. Does not explain behaviour that is not labelled
3. Marxists also argue that the reason why certain groups are labelled is not placed into the context of capitalism. The RSAs and ISAs create scapegoats in order to distract from the inequalities and divide and conquer the working class
4. Deterministic - assumes that once labelled a person will follow a deviant career
5. Offenders are seen as victims of the labelling process but this ignores the real victims - realists
6. Ignores power in society - conflict theorists say that interactionists focus too much on the agents of capitalism, not capitalism itself. Feminists claim it overlooks the different ways labels are applied to the genders. Fails to analyse the source of this power