1. Labeling Theories and the Meaning of Crime

2. Meaning of crime to the self: Lemert’s general theory of deviance
Symbolic interactionism
Our self-image – how we think of ourselves – is shaped by interacting socially, with others
Labeling theory
We think of ourselves as others define us
As children age and becoming increasingly adventurous, their labels may go from “just being a kid,” to “a good kid acting badly”, to, perhaps, “a bad kid”
Lemert- general theory of deviance
Criminal behavior starts due to other factors (biological, sociological, etc.)
Outsiders may label someone as “delinquent” and attach its social meanings
Those who continue behaving poorly adopt the self-image of a delinquent
This “redefinition of self” persists independently of the behavior’s original causes
Many who commit crime don’t consider themselves “criminals”
Maintaining a non-criminal self-image is important
Justifications and neutralizers used to excuse conduct
“Just borrowing the money” “They can afford it” “They had it coming”
2 mis.

3. Meaning of crime to oneself; labeling process
To make labels stick society applies threats and sanctions
Criminal law is the ultimate threat to one’s identity
Criminal processing is a “degradation ceremony”
Sticky labels – such as convictions and imprisonment – can make it difficult for those so labeled to reform
Justifications no longer work, so persons may redefine themselves as being criminals
Violators may be ostracized from conventional society
Cannot obtain legitimate employment
Turn to deviance to satisfy social and material needs

4. Katz – What crime “means” to criminals
Katz – “Seductions of Crime”
Crime can’t be explained by “background” variables (race, class, etc.)
Crime best explained by examining “foreground” variables:
What does it feel like to commit a crime?
What are criminals trying to accomplish?
Crime motivated by the need to transcend “moral challenges”
Passion killers: escape humiliating situation
Delinquents: demonstrate personal competence
Gang members: response to “humbling” by conventional society
Crime reinforced by the “thrill” of its commission
“Lived meanings” of organized and white collar crime
Satisfaction of “getting it over” on “marks”
Joys of thumbing one’s nose at conventional society
8 mis.

5. Zimbardo: Why good people turn evil
Evil means to intentionally harm or degrade others
“Following orders” not an excuse
Moral imperatives to “defend the homeland” give acts legitimacy
Stereotyping and dehumanizing others removes them from actor’s “moral sphere”
Heavy situational pressures on people’s behavior blurs line between criminals and non-criminals
In 2010 the Feds convicted former Chicago police commander Jon Burge, 62, of perjury for falsely denying in an earlier civil suit that in the 1980s he and his officers extracted confessions through beatings, electric shocks and suffocation.
One of the wrongfully convicted, Michael Tillman, was freed in January after spending 23 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. Police Issues
Individual traits (differences between people) might make little difference
Still, some persons, even if pressured to act badly, do resist
3 mis.

6. Another point of view: Meaning of crime to society
Societies “create” crime by passing laws
Campaigns against crime are in everyone’s name, but may only benefit select groups
Provide economic benefits
Law against vagrancy used to create pool of cheap labor
Defining drug users as criminals creates a demand for police, prosecutors, etc.
Provide a symbolic benefit
Temperance movement reasserted Protestant values
Groups must gain power to define who’s deviant
“Controlology”
Criminal justice a mechanism used by State to control “problem” populations
Others include education, mental health, mass media
Purpose is more than just control -- it’s “to manifest state power”
Over time rationale has shifted from crude to sophisticated
Public executions  rehabilitation
Iron fist remains hidden in the “velvet glove”
Much in common with Marxist and critical criminology
3 ½ mis.

7. Arguments against the usefulness of labeling theory
Labeling theorists overemphasize its explanatory power
Labeling does not automatically lead to deviancy
Some deviants may actually seek out the label
If law-abiding persons are law-abiding because they want to avoid being labeled…
Reducing a label’s stigma may INCREASE criminal behavior
Juveniles may not be highly affected by what society or the authorities think of them
More affected by what their parents and friends think of them
If society labels them as “rule violators” they may choose to live up to these expectations