Becker, Howard S.: Labeling and Deviant Careers

Howard S. Becker, American sociologist and jazz musician, was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1928. His formal education in social science and human behavior came from study under sociologist Everett C. Hughes at the University of Chicago. Becker cites Hughes as his mentor and among his favorite sociologists (Becker, 2009).

Becker's approach to the exploration of labeling, deviance, and deviant careers transcended the symbolic interactionist theoretical landscape and classical criminology in the social sciences. Becker's contribution to sociological and criminological inquiry posed a new objective to researchers and theorists: to no longer accept a definition of crime or a criminal act as an absolute, but rather to explore the criminal justice system processes, the constructions of the definition of deviance, the results of the imposition of sanctions to individual self identification, and the potential lifetime self-image penalty for behavior deemed to be deviant, illegal, or not within the boundaries of socially constructed rules.

The 1960s and 1970s were a period of far-reaching social change in the United States. What emerged during this time of societal transformation and conception of a vision for the Great Society promoting equality under Presidents Kennedy and Johnson was (1) an inquiry regarding the influence of positions of authority or power and (2) a reexamination of society's view of what had been considered to be the status quo. Subsequently, the importance of economic status, race, and social class were among frequent topics of social discussion and debate as evidenced through historical events of the period, such as the movement for civil rights. It was during this era of progress and change that those who were most interested in developing a further understanding of deviance and crime were receptive to a new theoretical perspective that addressed how society defines behaviors and the impact of these definitions on the individual.

Early labeling theorists argued that one of the most important perspectives to examine criminality, or more specifically deviance and acts that disregard social consensus regarding acceptable behaviors, is not solely from the viewpoint of the individual but also through social interactions. Instead of focusing on criminal or deviant behaviors themselves, labeling theorists attempted to explore how behaviors result in being defined by society as deviant and what outcomes social construction of a definition of crime has for those who participate in deviant acts.

Frank Tannenbaum and Edwin Lemert identified the meaning of crime to the individual, often projected through a person's self-image, as a critical perspective from which to explore deviance. Tannenbaum's research findings discussed the interactions, specifically the conflicts, between youths and adults in an urban neighborhood environment. These interactions, according to Tannenbaum, revealed that when adults identified youths according to their “bad” behaviors, the youths themselves began to define themselves in the same way.

Lemert's theoretical viewpoint included the process of deviant labeling in terms of “primary deviance,” or breaking the rules, and “secondary deviance” created by the social reactions to deviance. Lemert argued that the reaction or stigmatization of deviant labeling through identification of an individual as a “deviant” could prevent him or her from pursuing legitimate, non-deviant opportunities. Daniel Curran and Claire Renzetti discuss Lemert's theoretical view by providing the example of the label of “alcoholism.” Once individuals are identified as an alcoholic, they may no longer receive invitations to social gatherings, thereby making them more isolated. Therefore, labeling theory was incorporated into sociological and criminological study.

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