Labeling Theory

Labeling theory is a sociological and criminological approach to study deviance that focuses on the process of social construction of crime. Labeling theorists attribute a major role to the social definition of the crime, to the process of labelling and stigmatization affecting deviant behavior: by assigning the label of criminal to an offender, a process is engaged that transforms the author of a single offense – or an occasional transgression – into a chronic offender. The core of deviant processes is clearly traceable to the rules that define a given conduct as right or wrong. No behavior is deviant in itself, it becomes so as soon as it is defined as such. The labeling approach therefore calls for serious thought on the power of groups within a company to define a certain behavior as deviant.