Today’s 40 Day challenge question is on Interactionism. This is a broad theory that really lacks coherence compared to our structural theories, Marxism, Functionalism and Feminism. There are numerous occasions when we come across Interactionism on the specification, yet students appear to struggle to place it when it does occur. Labelling Theory in both Education and Crime are the two most prominent examples of Interactionist Theory, alongside what some believe is the most confusing approach to the family – the Personal Life Perspective.

On the specimen papers, there has been a 20 mark question on Interactionism and it not only features the contributions of labelling, but also the Interactionist contribution to methodology (aka Interpretivism). This is what makes this such a tricky question for students, and yet one with so much scope for evaluation. Today’s question is…

Previous responses can be found in the model answers page of this site.