Labelling theory and Talcott Parson Sick role

1. Group 1 presentation
Areas to cover The labelling theory
Talcott Parsons Sick Role

2. Objectives
By the end of this presentation you should be able to answer the
following objectives
1.Defining the labelling theory
2.Origin of the labelling theory
3.Concepts of labelling theory-The primary deviant
The secondary deviant
4.How the theory relates to health

3. Definition of key terms
• Deviance-This is when actions or behaviors violate formal or informal cultural
norms and this is usually disapproved from the majority of society
• Deviant behavior can be defined as behavior that differs from the normal, behavior
that incurs public disapproval and behavior that is usually subject to some form of
sanction.
• a negative social label that changes a person's self-concept and social identity. We
call this negative label a stigma

4. What is the Labelling theory
• In sociology ,labeling theory is the view of deviance according to which
being labeled as a "deviant" leads a person to engage in deviant behavior.
• The theory shows how the self identity and the behavior of individuals may
be determined or influenced by the terms used to describe or classify them

5. Origin of the Labelling theory
• Originating in Howard Becker's work in the 1960s, labeling theory explains
why people's behavior clashes with social norms.
• For example, a teenager who lives in an urban area frequented by gangs
might be labeled as a gang member. Accordingly, the teenager might begin to
behave like a gang member or become one.
• Sometimes the person labeled incorporates the label into that person's self-
concept (as when a teenager labeled as a gang member begins to think of
himself or herself as a gang member).

6. Labelling theory types of deviants
• Labeling theory stresses the idea that deviance is a relative term. Under this
perspective, people become deviant not because of the act itself, but how people
react to that act. As part of this theory, there are two types of deviance,retroactive
and prospective labeling
• Primary deviance refers to episodes of deviant behavior that many people
participate in.
• Secondary deviance is when someone makes something out of that deviant
behavior, which creates a negative social label that changes a person's self-concept
and social identity. We call this negative label a stigma.

7. Scenario to illustrate the theory
• To illustrate this theory, imagine the scenario of two married men away on business
trips. Both men have an affair while on this trip, but in only one of the scenarios does
the married man get caught, and word gets back to his wife and family back home.
• He certainly isn't the only married man to have an affair - the fact that he got caught is
when secondary deviance sets in - when people start to 'make something' out of his
behavior.
• It is quite possible that the man who got caught will be labeled and will develop a
stigma as the result of his behavior. The man who did not get caught (while the act is
the same) will not develop the same stigma because his action will go unnoticed. The
consequences are not because of the act itself, but because of someone finding out
about his behavior and labeling him

8. Retrospective and projective labelling
• Stigmas are deepened by retrospective labeling, which is the interpretation of someone’s
past consistent with present deviance.
• People may also engage in projective labeling, which uses the person’s present deviant
identity to predict future actions.
• Let’s go back to the scenario of the cheating husbands. One of the first things a wife is
going to wonder is whether or not this is the first time. Did he cheat every time he went out
of town? How many times has he lied to me in the past? When the wife tries to interpret the
past because of present deviance, she is portraying retrospective labeling. Imagine if he has
another out-of-town business trip – the wife will surely wonder if he is going to cheat again.
She is using his present deviant identity to predict future actions (projective labeling).

9. Labelling theory relation to health

10. How the labelling theory relates to health
• Summarizing, labeling appears to have both negative and positive
consequences
• leads to a sense of “groupness” and “differentness”. It creates a sense of
“us,” normal people, and “them,” the mentally ill for the society holds
negative stereotypes of people with mental disorders

11. cont
• However, one could imagine that labeling also has positive effects in that
• (1) it can provide relief and self-justification when one acts in ways that are socially
unacceptable,
• (2) it helps one get access to the right treatment and support programs,
• (3) it engenders understanding and
• (4) it has practical advantages for policy. As we have seen, the first three effects
might have positive consequences through their impact on self-esteem.

12. cont
• Also, diagnosis its intended effect: it creates a common language among
professionals and lay people. When people know someone’s label, they
understand him better and might be more forgiving toward socially
unacceptable behavior. In this way, a label might prevent rejection instead of
causing it.
• As has long been known, being accepted by others is a very important
determinant of self-esteem (Cooper Smith, 1967 in: Crouch & Straub, 1983).
Insofar as a label is associated with greater understanding and acceptance, it
could thus be beneficial for self-esteem

13. Talcott Parsons Sick Role
• Sick role is a term used in medical sociology regarding sickness and the
rights and obligations of the affected. It is a concept created
by sociologist Talcott Parsons in 1951.
• Parsons argued that being sick means that the sufferer enters a role of
'sanctioned deviance' because a sick individual is not a productive member of
society. Genuinely, Parsons argued that the best way to understand illness
sociologically is to view it as a form of deviance which disturbs the social
function of the society.

14. Cont..
• The general idea is that the individual who has fallen ill is not only physically
sick, but now adheres to the specifically patterned social role of being sick.
• ‘Being Sick’ is not simply a ‘state of fact’ or ‘condition’, it contains within
itself customary rights and obligations based on the social norms that
surround it.

15. Cont…
Rights:
• The sick person is exempt from normal social roles
• The sick person is not responsible for their condition
Obligations:
• The sick person should try to get well
• The sick person should seek technically competent help and cooperate with the medical
professional
• Conditional
• Unconditionally legitimate
• Illegitimate role: condition that is stigmatized by others