Labelling Theory Flashcards
What is differential enforcement?
Labelling theorists argue that social control agencies such as police tend to label certain groups as criminal. Pilivavin and Briar found police tend to arrest on stereotypical ideas about gender class and ethnicity.
What do labelling theorists argue?
No act is deviant in itself.
Deviance is simply a social construct.
Therefore a person only become deviant when labelled so by others.
What does Cicourel suggest about typifications?
He argues that police use typifications of the typical delinquent. Therefore those individuals fitting the typification are more likely to be stopped and arrested. Working class and ethnic minorities more likely to be arrested unlike middle class who can get there parents to negotiate successfully on there behalf. P
Why do crime statistics give an invalid picture of crime patterns?
Because working class people fit typifications so police patrol working class areas resulting in more working class arrest thus meaning crime statistics recorded by the police are invalid. Therefore Cicourel argues we cannot use criminal statistics as a source of fact.
What are the effects of labelling?
Lemert argues that by labelling certain people as deviant society encourages them to become more so’
What is primary deviance?
Deviant acts that have not been publicly labelled and mostly go uncaught.
Those who usually commit them do not see themselves as deviant.
What is secondary deviance?
Is a result from societal reaction.
Labelling somebody an offender can involve excluding them from society.
Which in turn can then become the individuals master status.
What is the self fulfilling prophecy?
Being labelled may provide a crisis for the individuals self concept and lead to a SFP. Whereby they live up to there label resulting in secondary deviance.
Societal reaction may reinforce an individuals outsider status and lead them to joining a deviant subculture.
What is Young’s study of hippy marijuana users?
His study of marijuana users illustrates these processes:
Drug use was hippy’s lifestyle (PD) but police persecution of them being junkies (societal reaction) led them to retreat into closed groups developing a deviant subculture where drug use was the central activity. (SD)
What happens in a deviance amplification spiral?
The attempt to control deviance leads to it increasing rather then decreasing resulting in greater attempts to control it which in turn leads to yet mor deviance in an escalating spiral.
How does cohens study of mods and rockers use the concept of the deviance amplification spiral?
Media exaggeration caused a moral panic with public concern.
Moral entrepreneurs called for a crack din. Police responded by arresting more youths which provoked more concern.
Naming mods and rockers folk Devils resulted in more deviance.
What is the key difference with functionalism and the labelling theory?
Functionalists see deviance producing social control.
Labelling theorists see control producing further deviance.
