Labelling Theory

Labeling theory makes no attempt to understand why an individual initially engaged in primary deviance and committed a crime before they were labeled; this then limits the scope of the theory’s explanations and suggests the theory may not provide a better account for crime. Labeling theory emphasizes the negative effects of labeling, which gives the offender a victim status. Also, the same likelihood exists for developing a criminal career regardless of deviance being primary or secondary. Furthermore, labeling theorists are only interested in understanding the aftermath of an individual getting caught committing crime and society attaching a label to the offender. This differs from the view of social learning theory, which seeks to explain the first and subsequent criminal acts. Many critics also argue that the racial, social, and economic statuses of an individual create labels, as opposed to criminal acts; this theory then fails to acknowledge that those statuses may factor into the labeling process. As a result, the above suggests that labeling theory does not provide a good account for crime and appropriately has little empirical support. Moreover, in terms of policy implications, labeling theory implies a policy of radical non-intervention, where minor offenses

Labelling Theories' Contribution to the Sociological Understanding of Crime and Deviance Becker is the main sociologist studying labelling theory on deviance, he argues that 'social groups create deviance by making the rules whose infraction constitutes deviance.' Meaning acts only become deviant when observers perceive it and define it as deviant. An example of this would be the act of nudity, it is accepted in the bedroom between husband and wife or on a nudist camp, but when a stranger was to enter the bedroom, or someone was to streak across a sporting event, others would usually see this as deviant, and this deviancy would become a label on the individual. Several factors affect what the

Labelling perspectives and its theorists focus on individuals who have been deemed as criminals and labeled by society (Tannenbaum, 1938, p. 20). Frank Tannenbaum (1938) has been widely regarded as the first labelling theorist, believing that criminal behaviour is learnt through individuals interacting within communities where crime was prevalent (Lee, Menard & Bouffard, 2014, p. 4). Tannenbaum believed when an individual had been

Labeling theory helps us understand the social responses and reactions from the community, and as illustrated in the opening comments, the Mercer brothers’ history of criminal behavior and activities. Labeling theory is an approach of explaining that the self-identity and behavior of individuals may be determined or influenced by the terms used when societies describe or classify individuals without further

When an individual become labeled as a criminal it becomes their "master status." "…deviance is not a quality of the act the person commits, but rather a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an 'offender.' The deviant is one to whom that label has successfully been applied; deviant behavior is behavior that people so label" Howard S. Becker, (1963) Outsiders, (p.9). If you are labeled as a criminal, people do not consider all the good things you have done; they just see that you committed some type of a felony and are now a criminal. Once a person is labeled and judged by society it is very hard to get back to what they once had and people often have an identity change. This is a social

The third focus of labeling theory was on the consequences of being labeled and treated as criminal. As noted, in a rejection of offender-based explanations of crime, labeling theorists argued that reacting to people as “criminals” initiated processes that had the self-fulfilling prophecy of making the person become a criminal-someone more deeply entrenched in a criminal career

I have always been curious to know if the labeling theory was a useful theory. I have always considered the labeling theory to be a hard theory to measure. It is hard to measure if a label becomes the cause for a person to become delinquent. Is it the label or some other factors? This paper will go into detail about some of the main contributors to the labeling theory. It will explain how the contributors applied the labeling theory. This paper will also explain how the labeling theory grew into what it is today. And it will summarize two empirical articles of the labeling theory.

Labelling theorists observe the role that society and power play in determining what is a deviant act or behaviour.

Some sociologists believe that the cause of crime and deviance is labelling which is when a label is attached to a person or group of people due to their appearance, sex, ethnicity etc. Labelling theory argues that once this label has been attached it can create a self fulfilling prophecy, which is when the person begins to act according to the label and hence it comes true simply through being made. Labelling is similar to stereotyping but this is when a person assigns certain characteristics to a labelled group. An example to support this would be 9/11. Since this disaster people label Muslims as being terrorists

Becker was influenced by the following: Charles Cooley 's Human Nature and the Social Order (1902) examines the personal perception of oneself through studies of children and their imaginary friends. Cooley develops the theoretical concept of the looking glass self, a type of imaginary sociability (Cooley 1902). People imagine the view of themselves through the eyes of others in their social circles and form judgements of themselves based on these imaginary observations (Cooley 1902). The main idea of the looking glass self is that people define themselves according to society 's perception of them (www.d.umn.edu ). Cooley 's ideas, coupled with the works of Mead, are very important to labeling theory and its approach to a person 's

The labeling theory is society using terms to describe or classify a class or group of people. The people’s self-identify and behavior can be impacted and influenced by the words that are used. This leads to stereotyping and the concept of self-fulfilling prophecy as well, because people will believe that they can only live to be what society has told them they can be. People should not be labelled as criminal or violent before they even portray the behavior. It is not fair to them and the future they may or may not have.

With respect to the labeling theory it is fact a true theory and, while many scholars have accepted the labeling theory as such. The problem is that it has become a major distraction among scholars and as well critics who have concern of the labeling theory’s effectiveness. At the same time, critics caution that while the labeling theory supposed to be diminishing criminal involvement and state intervention and they concern and their anticipation is that they are afraid that it could actually worsen criminals in having the opposite effect as most criminals typically started to accepted the concept of labeling as the norms, which, in turn leading to more crime.

I chose the autobiography topic because the method of reflecting upon my personal thoughts and experiences is more relatable and easier to understand for readers. In addition, when applying the labeling theory into a person, choosing why he or she became a criminal or not; it reinforces the demonstration of the psychological consequences and effects of labeling people. Not becoming a criminal is as important as avoiding suspicion; and the labels that society gives, destroys offenders psychologically and emotionally more than the legal punishment. The human’s basic nature is to label people whether consciously or sometimes unconsciously, based on one simple negative or positive trait; but the complexity of people lies in more than one trait.

Labeling is the process by which society responds to a criminal in a definition of a criminal and they are labeled criminal. This is a form of labeling by society in which to perpetuate crime and delinquency rather than reduce it (Schmalleger, 2012). Negative labels can carry significant liabilities that are visible as well as hidden. After an offender is arrested, convicted, and sentenced, society and the community label the person as delinquent and criminal. The offender is thought of as evil and all their actions are considered evil and are looked upon as suspicions (Schmalleger, 2012). This individual who used to do bad and deviant things had now become bad and unredeemable as a human. Communities cannot deal with people such as this.

Mead’s “theory of self” is based on the perspective that the self emerges from social interactions, such as observing and interacting with others, responding to others' opinions about oneself, and internalizing external opinions and internal feelings about oneself. The social aspect of self is an important distinction. That’s because other sociologists and psychologists of Mead's time felt that the self was based on biological factors and inherited traits. This was the normal and conventional type of mindset from psychologists at the time. According to Mead, the self is not there from birth, but instead it is developed over time from social experiences and activities.