Is crime socially constructed

1. Is Crime socially constructed?
Social Construction of Deviance
Interactionism / Labelling theory: "Deviant behaviour is behaviour that people so label"
(Becker): i.e. what is deviant to you is normal to me.
Primary deviance: Norm-breaking that hasn't been publicly-labelled as deviant
Secondary deviance: What happens after someone (e.g. Control Agency such as police) reacts to
the fact of y...
our deviance (the consequences of the social reaction to deviant behaviour)
Social reaction: Seen by Interactionists (and Radical Criminologists) as a crucial variable in the
understanding of deviance. If no-one reacts to your deviant behaviour, the social consequences
are minimal…
Stigma: One possible consequence of being labelled deviant (social disapproval)
Non-culpable deviance: Deviant behaviour for which individual is not held responsible (e.g.
madness, disability, some forms of children's behaviour)
Culpable deviance: Deviance for which individual is seen to have responsibility.
Different basic forms of deviance (Good / Admired behaviour. Bad behaviour. Odd behaviour)
Folk devils (S.Cohen) - how and why some groups / individuals are scapegoated / stigmatised
(symbolic embodiment of social fears). E.g. Youth subcultures
Moral Panics (see: Deviancy Amplification): Role of media (and moral entrepreneurs) in
creation of social concern about deviance.