Labeling and Conflict Theories
The labeling and conflict theories are the attempts of the theorists to explain why the deviances are occurring within the society. Though both theories address the same issue, they use different foundations to support
their arguments. The paper under consideration will contrast these to theories and examine their relevance in nowadays terms. The conflict theory provides that the deviances occur due to the imperfection of the laws. The latter is primarily attributed to the regulations that are made in the interests of the particular groups of
interests that usually hold the powers within the society. Therefore, those who have not participated in decision and law making choose to break the laws, which are not in their favor (Henslin, 2009). The theorists explain
that while being left out of the social protection and guarantees, the children that have been raised in poverty and who have no means to grow in terms of education or income have to turn to the drugs and crimes which
provide them with income and which gives them certain opportunities. The stratification among the groups, in other words, is considered the primary reason for committing the crimes. It could also be unequal distribution of
power between different social groups as well as a rigid stratification inside the community (Henslin, 2009). Indeed, it is rather hard in some countries, for example, to get the highest official positions without bribery or close personal relations with the influential and powerful people. In addition, rich and poor people do differ from birth. The rich get everything as granted: excellent education, wonderful and promising job perspectives (Lilly et al, 2015). They even marry those who are of the same rank and social position; then, the capitals are doubled. On the other hand, poor children should focus upon survival. Frequently, the choice is made for them by others. At first, they go to public school having no other alternative. Then having no specific education, they choose low-paid jobs and marry people as poor as they are. They start bearing children, and the circle repeats. Therefore, unequal opportunities of the poor and rich and the wide gap between them are the very first reasons for committing the crimes and engaging in criminal activities.
The labeling theory provides that some groups of people are more marginalized then others and that they learn to accept their weak and disadvantageous positions (Trevino, 2011). The supporters of this theory assert that it leads to the creation of the 'culture of poverty' which provides that the poor people learn certain dysfunctional values that prevent them from escaping from the nets of poverty and which actually cause them to engage into criminal activities and commit crimes. For example, the children raised in the families the members of which did not have stable employment relations are less likely to have a stable employment status (ETC Center, 2013). A strong employment history allows the …
