Crim Psych

• biological explanations argue that criminal/anti-social behaviour is the product of an internal state (e.g. brain damage). Suggesting crime is biologically determined.
• perhaps, crime is learned based on a person's social circumstance.
• behaviour is still determined - the source of influence is just social.
• Labels on human beings enable us to make a judgement of what is going on inside.
• if someone is labelled as a 'deviant' that will come to define them and affect how society behaves towards them.
• Becker (1963) are concerned with what makes a particular behaviour criminal or non criminal.
• Becker (1963) argues that powerful groups in society create deviance by 'making up rules' and applying them to people they see as 'outsiders'.
• crime is a social construct
• what counts as a criminal behaviour only becomes so when labelled by others.
• self-fulfilling prophecy takes labelling theory a step further
• research has suggested that describing students as 'lazy', 'clever' or 'disobedient' has an impact on their future achievement.
• Expectations based on the label are internalised (believing their label)
• labels eventually become 'real' and perception of themselves are influenced by label, changing the way they perceive themselves and others behaviour towards them.
• Deviant: labelled by society.
• People labelled as 'deviant' come to see themselves thus way because of the stereotyped response of others towards their behaviour - making this behaviour more likely.
• With labels now stigmatised and isolating them, the offenders seek support from other deviants and subcultures - potentially drawing the offender further into crime. Confirming their label and status.
• JAHOD (1954) studied a group of boys who were named after day they were born.
• Monday boys were seen as 'even-tempered' opposed to Wednesday boys seen as 'volatile' and 'aggressive'.
• Jahoda observed that the Monday boys were 3x more likely to be involved in Crime over a 3 year period than the Monday boys.
• Jahoda suggested that SFP based on cultural expectations had been formed and had influenced the boys behaviour.