Emile Durkheim's Labeling Theory

Calling each other names since middle school is not out of the norm. But, what happens when those labels negatively impact your life? Labeling someone in a negative way can dramatically change that person’s mindset. Labeling someone can lead to having those terms become true through the change of behavior and social groups. The book Labeling Theory: A Critical Examination explains the effects of labeling theory as “essentially, two effects come from labeling. On the one hand, an individual’s social situation is changed; on the other, his self-image” (Knutsson, 1977). Labeling theory focuses on the reactions and labels of society. Those labels and reactions result in criminal behavior. Labeling theory has been proven that there is a correlation

Durkheim’s work “shifted attention from how society generated nonconforming behavior to how and why society created criminals through societal reaction” (Berk, 2015). However, the societal perspective did not gain attention till the late 1960’s. During this time the direction changed towards “a focus on societal interaction” (Berk, 2015). Like stated previously, in labeling theory, there are two components: the societal reaction and the person’s self-image. An intense form of societal reaction is for example a prison. Many early criminologists noted that a prison was a “breeding ground for crime” (Lilly, Cullen, & Ball, 2015). Lombroso supported this concept by explaining “the degrading influences of prison life and contact with vulgar criminals…cause criminals who have committed their initial offenses with repugnance and hesitation to develop later into habitual criminals” (Lilly, Cullen, & Ball, 2015). For Lombroso those negative labels have influenced individuals to adapt those labels into criminal behaviors. Williem Bonger also pointed out that young individuals who have in the past, committed petty crimes are being brought up to be elaborate criminals later out in