Interactionist Perspective C&D Flashcards
who is the main theorist for the labelling theory
Becker
what does Becker believe about labelling and deviance and give two examples
-deviance is labelled depending on the audience and situation
-eg streaker at a football match vs at a playground
-eg teenagers brawling in a low income vs high income neighbourhood
how does Becker explain labelling leading to crime
-when someone is labelled as deviant it becomes their master status and may develop a self fulfilling prophecy
-this process in relation to crime has 5 stages (The Career of a Deviant)
what are the five stages Becker identifies in The Career of a Deviant
-labelled as deviant and rejected from social groups
-this may encourage further deviance
-ex convicts find it hard to get jobs and be forced into crime
-deviant career complete when individuals join organised deviant group
-deviant subculture develops
who is the theorist for labelling who is not Becker
Young
what did Youngs study show
-studied hippies at Notting Hill
-police negatively labelled hippies as dirty lazy drug addicts
-community of deviants grew from police action
-they retreated into small closed groups where deviant norms and values developed
-SFP created and police action became stronger against the deviance they helped create
which theorist theorises about societal reactions being the cause of deviance
Lemert
what does Lemert distinguish between
primary deviance - deviant acts before they are publicly labelled
secondary deviance - the response of the individual to that reaction
describe Lemerts theory in societal reaction causing deviance (not the study)
-samples of deviants are unrepresentative as it only shows secondary deviance
-secondary deviance leads to discrimination and an SFP forming a community of similarly labelled ppl
what was Lemerts study
-stuttering across north pacific coastal indians
-NPCI showed signs of stuttering before and after contact with whites while other tribes had no signs of stuttering
-this is bc NPCI penalised stutterers which made them more anxious and stuttered more
-THEREFORE societal reactions to small deviances can produce more deviances
who else besides Lemert theorises on secondary deviance
Goffman
what does Goffman theorise
-secondary deviance demonstrated by treatment of mental patients “mortification process”
-mental patients stripped of identity and maintain strict routines
-they either accept the institutions definition of them as helpless deviants and believe they cannot function in outside world
-label ‘ex mental patient’ makes re entry into society very difficult
who studied labelling theory and social policy
Jones
what two main policy implications of labelling theory identified by Jones
-deviant behaviours should be decriminalised eg Portugal and small drug possessions
-when law intervene it should avoid labelling and SFP so they do not fall back into deviance ; although naming and shaming has become more popular
who is the main theorist for labelling and law enforcement
Cicourel
what does Cicourel argue
the meanings held by police officers explain why most delinquents come from lower class backgrounds
what are the two stages Cicourel identifies in labelling someone a delinquent
-police decide whether deviant or suspicious behaviour takes place depending on the location and demeanour of a ‘typical delinquent’
-juvenile officers identify ‘typical delinquents’ from appearances and language which is associated with w/c backgrounds
what does Cicourel argue about m/c delinquents
-they are less likely to be arrested or charged bc they don’t fit the picture of a typical delinquent
-more likely to be defined as ill than criminal
who is the main theorist for the positive role of labelling
Braithwaite
what are the two types of shaming identified by Braithwaite
disintegrative shaming
reintegrative shaming
what is disintegrative shaming
the crime AND the criminal are labelled bad and the offender is excluded from society
what is reintegrative shaming and give an example
-crime labelled but not the criminal so the criminal can avoid secondary deviance
-eg Danish reintegrative programme for returning Jihadis from Syria offered social services and counselling
what do Taylor,Walton and Young criticise about the interactionist approach
some acts eg killing for personal gain will always be regarded as deviant
what does Ackers criticise about the interactionist approach
individuals might choose to be deviant regardless of label
give two general criticisms of the interactionist approach
-fails to explain primary deviance
-fails to explain why some are labelled deviant and some are not and why some activities are against the law
who studied the mods and rockers
Cohen
what did Cohens study show
-moral panics and folk devils created from mods and rockers
-media exaggerated the defiance as only 24/97 arrests were actually charged and very few were violent (Brighton beach)
