In the criminal justice system, perhaps one of the most well-known are deterrence and labeling theory. It is clear that these theories contradict the positions of effects on formal punishment in the US justice system. Which one most accurately represents the effect of legal punishment? I would argue that the constant shift of politics and legislation change the effects of legal punishment from these theories. Deterrence works better in some neighborhoods rather than others based on what people actually view is deviant. However, in most western countries, policy implications and the goals of punishment augment a deterrence effect.
To begin with, what is deterrence theory? In sociology, deterrence theory, a classical theory, focuses on rational choice framework. There are three key
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This theory is associated with social reaction where a criminal act occurs and the offender is caught, so the police pick a label. When the new label is created, the delinquent accepts this negative label, and then the delinquent behavior worsens. To break it down, labeling theory is a theory of self-identity, stereotypes. Labeling theory states that deviance is not an inherent to an act, but focuses on the tendencies of a group of people, typically minorities to negatively label them as deviants. So, there is this idea of cultural norms. Primary deviance leads to a label and that leads to secondary deviance. We will use the example of a doctor. If the doctor commits a crime, then the doctor is no longer a doctor; he is a criminal and there tends to be a stigma. It is this stigma that has a lasting effect in which it sticks around. The issue here is the scope. Labeling does not explain deviance in the first place. In regards to policy, we may have to revisit some philosophies as well as