Lecture 7 - Labeling Theory Flashcards
Labelling Theory
This is a micro-level, relativist perspective that is focused on individuals and the meanings they attach to objects, people,
and interactions around them.
Charles Horton Cooley (1902) Looking Glass Self
In defining deviance, the reaction to the behaviour or the person is key.
3 principal elements:
* The imagination of our appearance to the other person
* The imagination of his judgement of that appearance
* Some sort of self-feeling, such as pride or mortification
Franklin Tannebaum (1938)
suggested that police contact may turn relatively common acts of juvenile delinquency into a “dramatization of evil”
that labels the individuals involved in a negative light. This societal reaction may lead
to further deviant acts.
Edwin Lemert (1951)
made the important distinction between primary and secondary deviance.
Primary deviance: refers to common instances where individuals violate norms without viewing themselves as being involved in a deviant social role.
* Incidental deviant acts
Ex. teen shoplifting
- Individuals can be caught as they engage in deviant acts, and they may then be labeled delinquent, criminal, or men-
tally ill. Once labeled, they may move into secondary deviance.
Secondary deviance: occurs when a person begins to engage in deviant behavior as a means of defense, attack, or adjustment to the problems created by reactions to him or her. In defense to the reaction, the individual may commit subsequent deviant acts and begin a more serious deviant career.
Self-fulfilling Prophecy
when a belief or expectation about someone or something causes behavior that makes that belief come true, even if it wasn’t true at first.
Symbolic interactionalism
focuses on how people create and interpret meanings through social interactions using symbols, like language, gestures, and behaviors.
How labelling works
- Deviance
- Reaction
- role engulfment
- Secondary Deviance
Scheff (1966)
Residual rule breaking: deviance for which there exists
no clear category—it is not a crime, but it may be behavior that draws attention and makes the societal audience uncomfortable.
Ex. Inappropriate dress
- suggests that the symptoms and stereotypes of mental illness are inadvertently reaffirmed in ordinary social interactions.
- While most residual rule breaking can be deemed insignificant, it can be beginning of labeling process.
John Braithwaite (1989) C rime, Shame, and reintegration
Braithwaite (1989) argues that societies will generally have lower crime rates if they can effectively communicate shame about crime.
reintegrative shaming (forgiving) vs. stigmatization (unforgiving)
Reintegration shaming: the offender can be viewed as a good person who has done a bad deed
Stigmatization: labels the offender a bad person
- while labeling makes things worse when it is stigmatizing, when done respectfully and focused on the act rather than the individ-
ual, labeling may actually reduce crime
Rosenfield (1997)
Life satisfaction is highest for those who experience little stigma and gain access to high quality services.
Life satisfaction is lowest among those perceiving high levels of stigma and lacking
such services
Davies & Tanner: The Long Arm of the Law: Effects of labelling on employment (2003)
Study on formal labelling by schools and justice system suggests labeling has long-term impacts on opportunities and employment.
* found that severe forms of labelling (school-based sanctioning), such as being suspended or expelled, had a negative impact on later job outcomes for females but not for males (strong negative effects).
Matsueda’s theory of the self and delinquency
based on symbolic interactionism.
* argued that delinquency is influenced by how individuals think others see them especially important people like parents or teachers.
NCRMD
NCRMD: Not Criminally Responsible on account of Mental Disorder.
A person found NCRMD is not held legally responsible for a crime because, at the time of the offence, they were suffering from a mental disorder that made them.
Lagoon and Marina (2018)
Argue that a great deal of
labeling may now be done outside of the criminal justice system, and the associated stigma and labels have become more difficult to escape than ever.
Critiques of labelling Theory
This perspective focuses on how and under what circumstances the individual is judged as deviant.
