ABSTRACT
Labelling theories have their foundations in the various concepts and insights provided by interactionism, phenomenology and ethnomethodology and focus on three central concerns. First, there is a consideration of why and how it is that some acts come to be defined as deviant or criminal while others do not. Second, it is recognized that certain people and groups are more likely to attract deviant, criminal and stigmatizing labels than others. Most of the energy of the most active phase of the highly influential earlier labelling theory was nevertheless directed towards the third concern that assesses the experience of being labelled for the recipients of the label. Labelling theorists fundamentally argue that no behaviour is inherently deviant or criminal, but only comes to be considered so when others confer this label upon the act. Richard Quinney argues that society is segmentally organized or pluralistic and, therefore, the criminal law tends to represent the values of politically powerful sections of society.
