interactionism and labelling theory of crime Flashcards
What does Becker say about deviance?
there is nothing essentially deviant about any act. it only becomes deviant where it is labelled as such. Deviance is a social construct.
Who did Malinowski study and what did he find out?
Trobriand islanders- youth amongst tribe killed himself due to accusation of incest, whilst incest was actually common, was x talked about enough and accepted if discreet. if became too public, islanders reacted w abuse and culprit was ostracized. Was x the deviant act itself that was significant but the reaction of others.
What was Lemert’s primary deviance?
primary deviance-acts that are not labelled as deviant and don’t affect image of self or others, e.g. speeding on motorway. As not labelled as deviant, individuals master status x affected
What was Lemert’s secondary deviance?
investigated societal attitudes to stuttering amongst Native Americans. People who could speak eloquently was highly valued, those who stuttered brought shame and ridicule to culture. Therefore, was often anxiety is children showed any speech defects like lisp and would lead to child developing stuttering. Lemert conclude that stuttering, seen as deviant, was a societal reaction
What was Becker’s variability?
process of labelling is not straightforward but varies according to age, gender etc. For an act to be defined as deviant it depends on who has committed it, when and where etc.
What was Becker’s negotability?
some people have power to reject negative label, whereas others don’t so must accept it. Those who have to accept a label, usually have certain traits in common, resulting in a typification.
What was Cicourel’s study and how does it support negotiability and variability?
officer typification’s- their common-sense stereotypes of what a typical delinquent is- led them to show a class bias, w/c ppl fitted police typification more than m/c resulting in more arrests conforming the stereotype. m/c delinquent parents could negotiate w justice system better that he was sorry so he was x convicted, therefore justice is negotiable.
What was Becker’s master status?
master status is created when label is successfully applied. Most important in deterring your identity. All other statues u have (wife, son etc) ae insignificant to this, deviant status is most important, e.g. rapist/paedophile.
What was Becker’s deviant career?
once a master status has been successfully applied, then the individual takes om the self image of a deviant. They fully accept their master status. This may be amplified and lead to greater deviance (self-fulfilling propechy)
How can we use Goffman’s study of mental illness to support master status and deviant career?
mortification process- death of the self, mental institutions instigate this.
institutionalised- cant live outside of the institution, internalise labels put on self by institution
master status- term “e-convict” or “ex mental patient” means its harder to re enter society.
deviant career- once term “ex-mental patient” is applied, person accepts this view of self.
How can we use Rosenhan’s study as supporting evidence of Becker’s study?
discovering how hospital staff labelled ppl as mentally ill. Arranged for sane people to fake symptoms of schizo, unknown to staff as fakes. Once admitted to hospital, all behaved normally and diagnosed as schizo. Rosenhan reversed experiment and told staff to expect fakes, all ppl they identified as fake acc had schizo and needed help.
What 2 types of labelling does Braithwaite identify?
disintegrative shaming- act and individual are labelled negatively- “they are a bad person”
reintegrative shaming- where only the act is labelled negatively “they have done a bad thing”
What else does Braithwaite claim?
societies that adopt reintegrative crime policy have lower crime rates. in being labelled as “bad person”, people internalise that label and commit more crimes, rather than them just doing a “bad thing”
What are some positives of the labelling theory?
shows the importance of reaction of others in defining and creating deviance.
highlights importance of those in power in defining acts as deviant and official statistics are a product of bias in law enforcement.
What are some negatives of the labelling theory?
people can reject their labels
too deterministic, doesn’t allow people to choose deviance
What is a moral entrepreneur, a moral crusade and a moral panic?
entrepreneur- somebody that decides what we should be concerned about
crusade- getting involved in a campaign to spread awareness
panic-people scared subsequently of this type of deviance
Who did Cohen study?
studied w/c teenagers “mods” and “rockers”, mods rode scooters and dressed smart, Rockers rode motorbikes and wore leatherjackets
What is meant by the folk devils?
how media portrayed these groups- major threats to order and the social values
How did the media reporting of the mods and rockers lead to more deviance?
media exaggerated numbers involved in riots and extent of violence, sensationalised the acts. Media used symbolisation to connect the deviance of bikers to the “rockers”. Prediction- media predicted more violence would result
What is the deviancy amplification spiral?
deviance occurs and the media uses sensationalism to instigate moral panic. Leads to society demanding a crackdown on deviance which leads to further deviance to occur.
