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Social Construction of Reality Through Labeling and Self-fulfilling Prophecy

Chloe Boynton

SOC 101 W02

Labeling

One Particular aspect of reality that has and continues to be socially constructed is how individuals percieve themselves and others as a result of a process known as labeling. Labeling involves a person being classified or labeled under a specific category by others, such as popular or unintelligent. These labels can hold positive or negative values, and may differ in opinion from person to person.

The effects of Labeling can be specifically connected to self-fulfilling Prophecy, a concept generated by Robert K. Merton. Self-fulfilling Prophecy Occurs when the belief in an idea, whether true or not, influences behavior and causes the idea to become true or truer. This concept can be correlated to labeling because if an individual is given a label, even if untrue, overtime, they may start to believe it and conciously or subconciously behave in ways that align with their given label, reinforcing the label put upon them.

Labeling and Self-fulfilling prophecy

Impact

People who engage in self-fulfilling prophecy as a result of labeling can impact social instituations in an abundance of ways due to individuals changing themselves to fit the label(s) put upon them and correspondingly influencing how other people view them. For instance, in the governmental system, if an official is labeled as being irrational— characterized by negative views and pressure— the official may subconciously start acting more irrational. This could lead to stronger and more numerous negative views, and the official may lose his or her position or even choose to resign as a result of feeling inadequate. This example truly shows the significant impact of labeling and self-fulfilling prophecy on social institutions.

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