Interactionist perspective of C+D

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  • Created by: rianna
  • Created on: 09-05-13 20:48
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  • Interactionist perspective of C+D
    • Believes that it is mistaken in sociologys fundamental assumption that law breakers are somehow different from the law abiding
    • Derived from  symbolic interactionism, suggesting most people commit deviant and criminal acts but only some people are caught
    • Stress should be upon understanding the reaction to and the definition of deviance rather than on the causes of the initial act
    • Howard Becker- Classic interactionist study
      • no act is inherently deviant , only becomes deviant when people apply a label to it
      • A deviant is someone who has the label has been successfully applied
      • Social groups form deviant groups by living by their own rules, which go against rules of society, and label those who don't follow their rules as outsiders
      • When a person is labeled as deviant , public respond to the individual according to the label, an individual sees themselves as the label
        • Self-fulfilling prophecy, someone is labelled either negatively or positively and live up to that label
      • Becker- the master status Becker argues that the person labelled as deviant will see themselves in terms of the label
    • Mallinowski- A study of traditional culture on a pacific island
      • Highlander killed himself after being publicly accused of incest, even though it was common, just not talked about in public
      • Becker argues just because someone breaks a rule not everyone sees it as deviant
      • People have to enforce rules, if the person is successfully labeled as deviant consequences follow
    • The effects of labeling Lemert
      • Primary deviance- deviant acts that have not been publicly labelled. Secondary deviance- deviant acts which result from being publicly labelled
      • Inuits in Canada. Long problem of stuttering, failure to speak was humiliation, children became over anxious
        • Lemert suggested, chronic stuttering is secondary deviance, parents actions is primary deviance
    • Rejecting labels-Negotiability
      • Reiss' study illustrates, young male  prostitutes showed they only regarded it as work and still considered themselves as straight
    • Cicourel- the negotiation of justice
      • He argued that officers decisions to are arrest are influenced by their stereotypes of offenders
      • Argues justice is not fixed but negotiable, when a middle class youth was arrested he was likely to be charged
    • Creating rules- Becker moral entrepreneurs and moral crusades
      • Laws are the reflection of people actively seeking to create and enforce laws (ME) either because it benefits them or benefits society
      • MC- Cannabis was a growing menace in society, through a press campaign, bureau was successful in outlawing drug,
        • Becker points out that the campaign was only successful because it played into values commonly held in US
    • Criticisms
      • No discussion of the nature and power and who has the power to define certain activities as deviant (marxist)
      • labelling theorists claim to provide a voice for outsiders but tend to concentrate on marginally deviant groups
    • Labelling the media and amplification
      • Eg Stanley Cohen folk devils and moral panics
      • Moral Panics- An outcry including the police, politicians, the media and the public about issue
      • Deviance amplification-making crime or deviance appear worse than it is
      • labelling theory has contributed to our understanding of the relationship between the media and crime
      • McRobbie and Thornton argue moral panics are outdated
  • Mallinowski- A study of traditional culture on a pacific island
    • Highlander killed himself after being publicly accused of incest, even though it was common, just not talked about in public
    • Becker argues just because someone breaks a rule not everyone sees it as deviant
    • People have to enforce rules, if the person is successfully labeled as deviant consequences follow
  • Reiss' study illustrates, young male  prostitutes showed they only regarded it as work and still considered themselves as straight
  • Labelling the media and amplification
    • Eg Stanley Cohen folk devils and moral panics
    • Moral Panics- An outcry including the police, politicians, the media and the public about issue
    • Deviance amplification-making crime or deviance appear worse than it is
    • labelling theory has contributed to our understanding of the relationship between the media and crime
    • McRobbie and Thornton argue moral panics are outdated

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Nadia

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This is great! Helped me with my essay so thanks!

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