Society as Amplifier of Deviance
Labels and More
Halo Effect
• a cognitive bias in which one trait influences
expectations and evaluations of others in
one's judgment of a person or object.
Cooley and Mead
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C. H. Cooley (1864-1929)
G.H. Mead (1863–1931)
Humans interact via meaningful symbols
Self emerges in interaction
• Provides the ideas that (1) how people react
to you creates “reality,” (2) we play roles
What is a “role”
• Coherent set of behavioral expectations
Social Status
• A social status is a position in society
• Social status is the prestige or honor
associated with a position/role/identity
History of Societal Reaction I
• Tannenbaum "Dramatization Of Evil“ 1930s
– “As a maladjustment that arises out of conflict between a group and
the community at large. The issue involved is not whether an
individual is maladjusted to society, but the fact that his adjustment to
a special group makes him maladjusted to the large society because
the group he fits into is at war with society” (Tannenbaum 1938:8).
• Act as evil  Actor as evil  Other behaviors of actor evil
https://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/tannenbaum.htm
History of Societal Reaction II
• E Lemert (1912-1996)
• Deviance = Reaction + Label
• 1dev (original act)reactionaccept label2dev (act part)
https://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/tannenbaum.htm
History of Societal Reaction III
• Becker, Erikson, Kitsuse (1960s)
https://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/tannenbaum.htm
Becker
Reaction/Response
No Reaction
Rule Abiding
Falsely accused.
Stereotypes. Rebellious
critique.
“Normal” conformity
Rule Breaking
“Pure” Deviance
“Secret” Deviance
Natural History of Labeling
Behavior
mundane
Something he did
Notice
Something I did
Reaction
Something he does
Label act
He’s different
He’ll do it again
Label actor
Status
Institutions
Master Status
Role
Secondary Deviance
Selection
• One behavior comes to define the entire
person
Labels
• Easy to apply
• Hard to lose
Labels
• Can block opportunity and yield more
deviance
Labels
• Can play into techniques of neutralization and
cause more deviance
Labels
• Can generate subcultures and lead to more
deviance
Labels
• Can lead to differential association and more
deviance
Labels
• Can block access to legitimate means for
achieving legitimate goals