Interactionism and labelling theory Flashcards
What is Becker’s famous quote about deviance?
‘Deviance is the eye of the beholder’
Define Becker’s term moral entrepreneurs
People with power and status who lead a moral campaign to change the laws and re-define behaviours as accpetable
What did Platt say about ‘juvenile delinquency’?
It was created as a result of a campaign by UC moral entrepreneurs aimed at protecting young people at risk- enabled the state to extend its powers beyond criminal offences to ‘status offences’-> behaviour is only an offence because of age
According to Pilliavin and briar, who gets labelled and why?
Police make stereotypical judgements that leads to arrest- e.g. young, black male
What does Cicourel mean by the ‘negotiations of justice’?
Justice is not fixed but negotiable e.g. mc kids less likely to be charged if parents are more likely to negotiate on their behalf and didn’t typically fit typifications
What is Cicourel’s typifications theory?
Officers typifications= their common sense theories or stereotypes that lead to them concentrating on certain types-> leads to class bias- police patrol WC areas more= more arrest and confirming their stereotypes
How do realist sociologists criticise labelling theory?
interactionalists focus on negative effects of labelling-> gives offenders a victim status, ignores real victims of crime
According to interactionalists, how are crime stats socially constructed?
based on decisions of social control agencies and their typifications-> only show us the activities of the police/prosecutors, rather than amount of crime in soci
what is the dark figure of crime?
the difference between official stats and the ‘real rate of crime’
why do some sociologists use alternative stats? what is a problem with this?
victim surveys or self report studies gain a more accurate view of crime/experiences BUT people may exaggerate, conceal or forget when asked about crime
What is Donne’s and Rock’s criticism of the labelling theory?
you cannot predict wether a person will follow a deviant crime just because they were labelled
According to Lemert and Young, how is primary deviance an effect of labelling?
people are not publicly labelled and mostly go uncaught-> those who commit crime do not see themselves as deviant
According to Lemert and Young, how is secondary deviance an effect of labelling?
SD results from societal reaction which causes labelling-> labelling someone as an offender can involve stigmatising and excluding them from normal society as they can be seen just by their label
give a criticism for Lemert’s theory of labelling (primary and secondary deviance)
lemert implies that deviants are unaware that they are deviant until labelled BUT most are well aware they are rejecting social norms
what was young’s study of labelling? (links to deviance amplification s) how is this criticised?
study of marijuana users in Notting Hill, originally part of lifestyle (primary deviance) BUT police and prosecutors labelled, marginalised these groups-> formed a deviant subculture-> SFP
CRIT- labelling theorists e.g. young focus on much less serious crimes
what is the deviance amplification spiral?
the attempt to control deviance leads to a further increase in the level of deviance
What was Cohen’s folk devils and moral panics study?
societal reaction to the ‘mods and rockers’ at British seaside resorts caused press exaggeration, concern from moral entrepreneurs, arresting more youths caused further marginalisation and more deviant behaviour
What are the two types of Negative shaming? Who came up with this theory?
Braithwaite-
1. Disintegrative shaming
2. Redintegrative shaming
Define disintegrative shaming
The crime and criminal are labelled as bad and the offender is excluded from society
Define reintegrative shaming
The labels act but not the actor- ‘he has done a bad thing’ not ‘he is a bad person’ - person is made aware of their actions and encourages others to forgive them and accept them back into society
How does Douglas criticise Durkheim’s study of suicide/official stats?
Official stats= social constructions- tell us about behaviour of police or coroners e.g. a coroner with stronger religious beliefs (view suicide= sin)= more reluctant to label death a suicide
We must understand meanings behind suicide through qualitative methods e.g. suicide notes
How does Atkinson support Douglas’ view/criticism of OS+Durkheim suicide study?
CRITS durkheim- his account is one interpretation based on socially constructed facts
instead-> focus on coroners idea of a ‘typical suicide’/ their assumptions
How is Lemert’s study of Paranoia examples of primary and secndary deviance?
primary deviance occurs when someone doesnt fit in-> label-> marginalised= response
secondary deviance- social audience (f+f) discuss how to help-> individual reacts= psych intervention
= labelled as suffering from paranoia- master status
How does Rosenhan’s pseudo patient experiment support labelling theory?
- researchers admitted themselves to hospital, claiming they had been hearing voices
= diagnosed as schizophrenic - staff treated them as mentally ill even though they acted normally
