Marcus, a 17-year-old IT apprentice at a software development firm, was recently caught bypass-coding a restricted company server to access games. He was suspended for a week and had to attend a formal disciplinary panel with his department manager and his father. His father is deeply concerned that Marcus will now be permanently stigmatised as a 'security threat' by his colleagues, and that this reputation might influence his self-concept and drive him towards joining illicit online cybercrime forums.
To what extent can labelling theory explain whether Marcus would engage in further, more serious acts of cybercrime in the future?
You must make reference to the context in your answer.
Practise Edexcel A Level Psychology Content with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 1,059 questions covering Biological explanations of crime, Social explanations of crime, Cognitive and ethical interview techniques, Psychological formulation of offending, Cognitive-behavioural treatment for offenders, Biological treatment for offenders, Factors influencing eye-witness testimony, Factors influencing jury decision-making, Individual differences, and Developmental psychology, matched to the Edexcel A Level Psychology (9PS0) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.
