Pdf labeling theory provides a distinctively sociological approach that focuses on the. Crime and deviance are social constructs that vary according to the definitions of crime, the forms and effectiveness of policing, the social characteristics of criminals, and the relations of. There are a number of different reasons as to why crime can be viewed as a social construction. An important theory that can be used to explain criminal behavior is labeling theory. Aug 08, 2012 labeling theory social construction of crime deviance refers to the act, ideas, or other attributes such as the way people look that some people in society find offensive, evil, immoral, or sinful. Labelling theory overview the labelling perspective emerged as a distinctive approach to criminology during the 1960s and was a major seedbed of the radical and critical perspectives that became prominent in the 1970s.
Social constructionism or the social construction of reality is a theory of knowledge of sociology and communication that examines the development jointly constructed understanding of the world. So deviance is a socially disapproved behavior or violation of agreed norms in communities or society at large. Pdf on oct 7, 2019, jon gunnar bernburg and others published labeling theory find, read and cite. Social constructionlabelling theory by jess cooper on prezi. Becker, labeling theory reconsidered in the outsiders 2d ed. Deviance, crime, and social control introduction to. Jan 12 assess the usefulness of labelling theory in. Labelling theory outlines the sociological approach towards labelling within societies and in the development of crime and deviance gunnar bernburg, and d. Labeling theory and personal construct theory core. Instead of looking at why some social groups commit more crime, the labelling theory asks why some people committing some actions come to be defined as deviant, while others do not. The process of classifying kinds of people is a social process that hacking calls making up people and howard becker calls labelling 1963. Labeling theory, sometimes called the societal reaction perspec tive, was lauded as a new. It holds that deviance is not an inherent tendency of an individual, but instead focuses on the tendency of majorities to negatively label minorities or those seen as deviant from standard cultural norms. Labelling theory in crime using material from item a and elsewhere assess the view that crime and deviance are the product of the labelling process.
Social disorganization theory, strain theory, and cultural deviance theory. It is argued deviance is a social construction because social groups create deviance by making up rules and selectively enforcing those rules to particular peoplegroups. Labeling theory was developed by sociologists during the 1960s. The legal status of a behaviorwhether it is defined as a crimelies not in the content of the behavior itself but in the social. This theory assumes that it is likely that every person can commit criminal acts. It is a social construction as it varies across culture, time and law. My goal is to examine the grounds on which labelling theory calls itself critical. The work can also build on measures that have been. This paper discusses how social constructionists construct knowledge and argues that social constructionism is.
Labeling theory in a previous lesson, we discussed deviance. Conditions of successful degradation ceremonies, harold. Oct 01, 20 crime and deviance are social constructions to the criminologists we have looked at so far merton and others crime is mainly the result of wider external social forces such as blocked opportunity structures labelling theorists take a different or social constructionist approach interactionism and phenomenology crime and deviance is the. The deviant or criminal is someone to whom a label has successfully been page 22applied, marking them as socially problematic. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Labelling theory is a result of the work of howard becker. Interactionism and crime social constructionists believe that the social world is best understood as something constructed by people themselves through their. Deviant behaviour is therefore socially constructed. In attempting to make sense of the social world, social constructionists view knowledge as constructed as opposed to created.
The same behavior may be considered criminal in one society and an act of honor in another society or in the same society at a different time. Social construction of crime the obvious definition of crime is the legal definition of an act which breaks the law. Tom andrews university college cork abstract social constructionism has been instrumental in remodeling grounded theory. Labelling, deviance and media city research online. Behaviors become crimes through a process of social construction. To suggest that crime is socially constructed does not mean there is a singular view of the ways in which this social construction takes place. Some argue that crime and deviance is caused by labelling, as after an offender is labelled by society this often leads to a spiral of repeat offences, as heshe is not given a chance by society so. Social constructionist ideas, theory and practice duration. The social construction of crime criminology oxford bibliographies. Social construction theory criminology theories iresearchnet. The social construction of crime criminology oxford. Paradigm changes in criminology and the sociology of. Email citation this article is a succinct overview of social constructionism in the broad fields of criminology and criminal justice studies. A whole lesson which introduces the concept of crime as a social construction.
Labeling theory, in criminology, a theory stemming out of a sociological perspective known as symbolic interactionism, a school of thought based on the ideas of george herbert mead, john dewey, w. The labelling theory of crime is associated with interactionism the key ideas are that crime is socially constructed, agents of social control label the powerless as deviant and criminal based on stereotypical assumptions and this creates effects such as the selffulfilling prophecy, the criminal career and deviancy amplification interactionists argue that people do not become criminals. Scholars frank tannenbaum, edwin lemert, albert memmi, erving goffman, and david matza played roles in the development and research of labeling theory as well. Crime is defined by a societys own rules, norms and beliefs at any given time in history. The approach examines how deviant labels emerge, how some social groups develop the power to impose deviant labels onto selected others, and the consequences of being labeled deviant. Labeling theory implies a policy of nonintervention.
Labeling theory provides a distinctively sociological approach that focuses on the role of social labeling in the development of crime and deviance. Crime and deviance are situated within the context and conflicts of capitalist societies as opposed to behavioural explanations. Start studying labelling theory the social construction of crime. American sociologist george herbert meads theory framing social construction of the self as a process involving interactions with others also influenced its development. The idea of labeling theory flourished in american sociology during the 1960s, thanks in large part to sociologist howard becker.
Social construction and social constructionism openlearn. Social constructionist theories of crime 1st edition ross. Also, this work can build on some of the measures that have been developed to. The purpose of this essay is to allow a better understanding of labelling theory and its implication on creating criminal categories. Indeed, there are multiple and often competing models as hahn rafter 1990 has noted. This free course, social construction and social constructionism, will enable you to achieve a greater definition and understanding of these terms.
First, is the view that people tend to behave the way they are labelled. Through social interaction, individuals are labelled deviant or come to recognize themselves as deviant. Social constructionlabelling theory the basis of society according to social constructionism what is deviant behaviour. When a good theory is adopted it offers favorable opportunities for.
Pdf the social construction of crime ealyna misman. Social construction of crime sociology oxford bibliographies. Deviancy is not a quality of the act a person commits, but rather a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an offender. Their major casestudy of social constructionism was religion see berger s the social reality of religion, 1969, but at the same time the labelling theory of deviance was being developed and popularized, suggesting in parallel fashion that deviance is socially constructed. Labelling theory is also interested in the effects of labelling on individuals. Labelling theory claims that deviance and conformity results not so much from what people do but from how others respond to those actions, it highlights social responses to crime and deviance macionis and plummer, 2005. Social constructionlabelling theory by jess cooper on. Labeling theory is closely related to social construction and symbolicinteraction analysis. Thomas, charles horton cooley, and herbert blumer, among others.
Social causation social construction social control this division not only helps to clarify some of the diversity in the area, it also reflects some general traditions of sociological thought, the implications of which go well beyond crime and deviance. Ron hinch labeling theory proposes that it is not the actor alone, but the reactors, or agents of social control who detemine whether or not a youth will progress down a delinquent path. The implications of labelling theory and how it affects. However, its core ideas can be traced back to the work of founding french sociologist emile durkheim. There are a number of fundamental issues that the labelling theory attempts to explain. Labeling theory is a theory that laid emphasis on the social process through the special attention devoted to the interaction between individuals and society.
These vary from positivistic models of social construction where crime is seen to be a functional product of the type of society and culture in which it takes place see durkheim 1982 and merton 1957 in classic works, to social constructivist accounts which understand crime as a social process see cohen 1972 in labeling and constructionism. Social construction of crime and deviance free essays. Actual construction of the self takes place in child. Robbing a store and driving faster than the speed limit. The labelling theory of crime is associated with interactionism the key ideas are that crime is socially constructed, agents of social control label the powerless as deviant and criminal based on stereotypical assumptions and this creates effects such as the selffulfilling prophecy, the criminal career and deviancy amplification.
Definition and significance from the social constructionist perspective, crime is a classification of behavior defined by individuals with the power and authority to make laws that identify some behavior as offensive and render its perpetrators subject to punishment. The social construction of crime and crime control. Journal of research in crime and delinquency 27 november. Labeling theory is also connected to other fields besides crime. These vary from positivistic models of social construction where crime is seen to be a functional product of the type of society and culture in. Pultfng the labeling theory 10 the emplrlcal test tara leigh henderson university of guelph, 1997 advisor dr. From a social constructionist perspective, a given act or behavior abortion, drunk driving, domestic violence, race or ethnic bias becomes a social problem through a process of successful claimsmaking by social movements or groups that advance a. Labeling theory and symbolic interaction theory criminology. Mead 1934 believed that the self arose through social processes, or social experiences, which involved play, game, and the generalized other. Describing someone as a criminal, for example, can cause others to treat the person more negatively, and, in turn, the individual acts out. Jun 23, 2016 the labelling theory becker argues that most people commit deviant criminal acts but only some get caught and stigmatised for it. Spector and kitsuse 1973 introduced social constructionism into the lexicon of social problems theory in the early 1970s see also schneider 1985. Social construction of crime labelling theory teaching.
The labelling perspective forty years on, ken plummer. Outline labelling theory and consider its usefulness in understanding youth crime and anti social behaviour in britain today. There cannot be social problems that are not the product of social construction naming, labelling, defining and mapping them into place through which we can make sense of them clarke, 2001. Crime and deviance are social constructs that vary according to the. The labeling perspective has its origins in the work of mead and cooley in the sociological theory of symbolic interactionism. Deviant behaviour is behaviour that people so label. Labelling theory crime as a social construct youtube. Howard saul beckers book outsiders was extremely influential in the development of this theory and its rise to popularity. The roots of labeling theory lie in symbolic interactionism and function as an explanation of criminal and other deviant behaviour. Social construction of crime and deviance sage books. Labeling theory states that people come to identify and behave in ways that reflect how others label them.
Within the field of social sciences the terms social construction and social constructionism are frequently used, particularly in relation to social policy. Social construction of deviance flashcards quizlet. The legal status of a behaviorwhether it is defined as a crime lies not in the content of the behavior itself but in the social. This theory is most commonly associated with the sociology of crime since labeling someone unlawfully deviant can lead to poor conduct. White collar crime occurs and goes unpunished because its a large part of capitalism critiques that labelling perspective lacks an adequate theory of power to explain the links between the state, law and crime. Labeling theory also referred to as societal reaction theory analyzes how social groups create and apply definitions for deviant behavior.