Labelling Theory

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Labelling Theory

• Aim To learn about reaction and cause

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Study the pictures on p.234 and answer the
questions at the top of the page. Then do the
same for the following slides
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Understanding Deviance Reaction not cause

• Most approaches to understanding crime deviance
  accept there is a difference between those who
  offend and those who dont
• However, labelling theory says that most people
  commit deviant criminal acts, but only some are
  caught and labelled criminals.
• If everyone commits crime, people cant look for
  differences between deviants non-deviants so
  instead the focus should be on understanding the
  reaction to definition of deviance rather than
  on the causes of the crime.

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Howard Becker said in 1963 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.
What?? Explain.
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Basically he was saying that deviant acts are a
result of other people. They happen when other
people impose rules and sanctions which lead to
deviant acts
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Example Malinowski 1982

• A youth killed himself on a pacific island
  because hed been publicly accused of incest.
• When Malinowski investigated this, initially he
  found the islanders were disgusted by incestbut
  further investigation revealed incest was quite
  common in fact it wasnt even frowned upon if
  those involved were discreet. However, if it
  became too obvious, the islanders would react
  with abuse and the offender driven to suicide.

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What does this mean Becker looked at
Malinowksis study and said that

• 1) Just because someone breaks a rule, it doesnt
  mean others will define it as deviance
• 2) Someone has to enforce the rules or draw
  attention to them, for an act to become deviant
  (eg- the rejected ex lover of the girl involved
  in the incest)
• If the person is labelled successfully then
  consequences follow once the offender had been
  labelled deviant, he had limited choices left
  hence the suicide.