CRIM 104 Chapter Notes - Chapter 16: Jack Abbott (Author), Norman Mailer, Labeling Theory
29 Sep 2016
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Reading 16: round up the usual suspects: crime, deviance, and the limits of constructionism. Stanley cohen is generally recognized as the thinker who first coined the term moral panic. In folk devils and moral panics, cohen described how the mods and rockers, two small disorganized youth gangs, that had been in existence in england, suddenly attracted widespread media and public attention, leading to police crackdowns, stricter sentencing, etc. Round up the usual suspects: crime, deviance, and the limits of constructionism. Behavior can be thought of as being constructed as deviant and criminal and individuals are constructed as deviants and criminals. People were rounded up not because they did anything wrong but because they were convenient or acceptable targets of control. Targets of social control didn"t deserve to become so targeted: others got away with it. It swoops down on people for punishment without regard for whether or not they engaged in poor behavior.
