Labelling Theory in Explaining Crime and Deviance - A2...

Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the usefulness of labelling theory in explaining crime and deviance. (21 marks) Labelling theorists are concerned with how and why certain people and actions come to be labelled as criminal or deviant, and what effects this has on those who are labelled as such. As stated in Item A, labelling theory is focused with how individuals construct society based on their interactions with each other. Becker emphasises the significance of crime being a social construct; an action only becomes criminal or deviant once society has labelled it so, and thus crime can be argued to be a social construction. He introduced the concept of a master label, referring to the label which a person is given which†¦show more content†¦The labelling model in the context of mental illness is concerned with the power of some groups in society to label other less powerful groups in a negative way, and label them negatively accordingly. Szasz and Scheff argue that mental illness is a socially constructed concept which is used to explain strange behaviour. To test this, Rosenhan asked 8 perfectly normal researchers to get admitted into psychiatric hospitals, and once they were admitted, they behaved perfectly normally, but remained treated as if they were mentally ill. This demonstrates the difficulties which people face in attempting to get rid of a label once it has been given by others in so ciety. However, labelling theory also receives many criticisms. It tends to be deterministic, inferring that once someone has been labelled as criminal, a deviant career is inevitable, whilst also shifting blame from the individual who is committing crime. Additionally, whilst it offers a reasonable explanation as to why secondary deviance occurs, it fails to explain why primary deviance is committed in the first place, before they are labelled. An alternative explanation would be the Marxist approach, who argue that the causes of crime are not due to labelling, but due to the oppression which working class people face. They argue that capitalism is criminogenic, as the very nature of capitalism is criminal as it is based on the exploitation of the working classes. By encouraging theShow MoreRelatedSociology A2 Revision 2012 34479 Words   |  18 Pagesï » ¿ Unit 3 exam: Wednesday 13th June, am Unit 4 exam: Tuesday 19th June, pm Easter Revision: tbc A2 Syllabus: AQA Sociology GCE (new specification) Unit 3: Mass Media (SCLY3) Worth 20% of your final A Level Written paper, 1 hour 30 minutes 60 marks available Unit 4: Crime and Deviance with Theory and Methods (SCLY4) Worth 30% of your final A Level Written paper, 2 hours 90 marks available Timetable Use your revision checklists to draw up a timetable for revision leading up to the exam. MakeRead MoreExplain the Strengths and Weaknesses of One or More Criminological Theories for Explaining Crime in Contemporary Britain2651 Words   |  11 Pagesweaknesses of one or more criminological theories for explaining crime in contemporary Britain Word count:1,200 Outline plan * Explain in brief the purpose of this essay. * Define the biological theory. * Evaluate Lombroso’s theory and link it to contemporary Britain. Include statistical data. * Discuss Charles Goring’s critisms of Lombroso’s theory. * Evaluate Sheldon’s somatypes theory. * Describe and evaluate the biological chromosomes theory. * State how Patria Jacobs’ studyRead MoreSociology Essay20437 Words   |  82 PagesAS Sociology Sociology Nik Jorgensen Text  © Nelson Thornes Distance Learning 2010 Illustrations  © Nelson Thornes Distance Learning 2010 All rights reserved. The copyright holders authorise ONLY users of NTDL AS Sociology to make photocopies for their own or their students’ immediate use within the teaching context. No other rights are granted without permission in writing from the publisher or under licence from the Copyright Licensing Agency Limited, of Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street