Howard S. Becker

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Howard Saul Becker (born April 18, 1928) is an American sociologist. Becker was born in Chicago, Illinois. As an undergraduate and later a graduate student at the University of Chicago, he worked as a professional jazz pianist, and plays still. He earned his Ph.B., A.M., and Ph.D., all at the University of Chicago, 1946, 1949 and 1951, respectively. His professor, Everett C. Hughes, whose primary interest was the sociology of work and professions, was an important influence on Becker. It was Hughes, Becker reports, who first encouraged him to undertake the study of jazz musicians as a professional group. This research led Becker to write extensively about drug use, and he put off publishing it for over a decade until 1963, when the political climate in the United States had improved. The resulting book, "Outsiders" was a critical work in the sociology of deviance and laid the foundation of labeling theory. In that book he "said everything I have to say about labeling theory.."