interactionism and the media

becker

stages of labelling process

1) young person/group commits an act of deviancy

2) get caught by the police or another moral entrepreneur

3) labelled as deviant by the police, parents or the media

4) if label is successfully applied it will become known as the label ‘criminal’

5) self fulfilling prophecy will occur if the person accepts the label attached to them and begins to act accordingly

6) the individual may have the power to reject the label and can negotiate his/her identity

s. cohen

looked at societal reaction to disturbances involving mods and rockers which took place in clacton

mass media represented these disturbances as a confrontation between rival gangs

serious violence and vandalism was greatly exaggerated and most young people who were there were not identifying with mods or rockers.

deviancy amplification spiral - moral oanicn

phillips and bowling

use concepts from labelling theory to understand the high crime rates among young black people

negative treatment by the criminal justice system may lead black communities to feel hostile towards the police

police labelling produces a self fulfilling prophecy

cicourel

done this