Interactionist And Crime Flashcards
What perspective do interactionist theories of crime and deviance belong to?
Social action or interpretivist perspective
Which approaches do interactionist theories critique?
Structural approaches of functionalism, Marxism, and feminism
argue people have free will and choice to control their own destiny
What are the 4 key points of interactionism and crime?
- crime as a social construct: act which harms an individual/society only becomes criminal if those in power label that act as criminal
- not everyone who is deviant gets labelled as such: negative labels are generaly given to the powerless by the powerful
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Labelling has real consequences: can lead to deviance amplification, self fullfilling prophecy and deviant careers
* Labelling theory has a clear ‘value position’: should aim to promote policies that prevent labelling minor acts as deviant
What do interactionists focus on regarding criminality?
Social interactions between potential deviants and agents of social control
Interested in how people interpret and socially construct the world around them
What do interactions focus on regarding the definitons?
How crime and deviance are defined and how the label of ‘deviant’ or ‘criminal’ can lead to further problems for the individual or society
What do interactionists believe about ‘normality’ and ‘deviance’?
‘Normality’ and ‘deviance’ are relative concepts
No universal or fixed agreement on how to define them
- whats normal for one social group might be deviant for another
What do interactionists believe about social context?
Definitons of right or wrong behaviour often differ according to social context
How do historical periods affect definitions of deviance?
Definitions change according to historical period
EG: homosexuality were defined as illegal activities until the 1960s
How does culture or sub-context affect definitons?
Definitions of normality and deviance are relative to culture or subcultural context
What do interactionists believe about interpretations?
Deviance is a matter of interpretation
Society has a number of interpretations of killing: murder, manslaughter, self defence etc
- some of these acts of killing are more justified and/or serious than others
What does Becker argue about deviant acts?
There’s no such thing as a deviant act; it is defined by society’s reaction
No act is intrinsically criminal or deviant in all situations at all times
- Webb notes that deviance is in the eye of the beholder
According to Becker, what two activities are required for the social construction of deviance?
- A less powerful group acts in a particular way
- A more powerful group responds negatively and defines it as criminal
What is a deviant for Becker?
Someone to whom a negative label has been successfully applied
deviant behaviour is simply behaviourthat people with more power label
What does Becker note about the creation of rules?
Powerful groups create rules and label non-conformists as criminals
Social controls create the potential for deviance
What is the role of power in society according to interactionists?
- Influenced by marxism: capitalist class sets rules for working class for ideological reasons
- Influenced by feminism: men make rules for women to retain patriarchal control
What does Becker note about deviance in western societies?
Those with power to label others as deviant are often ‘moral entrepreneurs’ who lead campaigns to change the law and label particular types of behaviour as criminal or deviant
(like religious leaders etc)
What role do agents of social control play according to Becker?
Agents of social control work on behalf of powerrful groups therefore they label and define the behaviour of less powerful groups as problematic
Thru paying these groups disproportionate negative attention (like arrests and stop and searches)
