Beckers social response (15) Exam Prep

  Three segments explaining criminal behaviour with Becker's social response approach (15)  Social response approach is a labelling perspective, which forms part of the/a response strategy.   Becker distinguishes three types of deviants, namely; pure deviant, falsely accused deviant and the secret deviant.   The pure deviant, is of norm breaking behaviour. It is a criminal who is caught red handed, followed by arrest, hearing and conviction. This person gets what he/she deserves.  A falsely accused deviant, is someone who did not commit a crime, thus innocent, but may sometimes be imprisoned. The impact of imprisonment and conviction can lead to a negative self-image, and the life of the falsely accused can change drastically as a result of labelling.   A secret deviant, is a criminal or person who contravenes social norms, but goes undetected, thus no negative reaction follows, leading to no negative consequences to the deviant.