Robert Merton advanced the idea that labeling can bring about self-fulfilling prophecies or inaccurate beliefs that, if repeated loudly and frequently enough, can become true. Compare the ideas of Merton and those of sociologist Elijah Anderson, who believed that a self-fulfilling prophecy has contributed to racial conflict in the United States.

Deviant labels are powerful and can override other aspects of individual identity. Labels can affect how we see ourselves, how others see us, and even how social and institutional policies are formed. A good answer should mention Anderson's Streetwise, which demonstrated how the belief that young black men from the inner city commit more crimes made itself true. This self-fulfilling prophecy worked, according to Anderson, because it cast a cloud of suspicion over young, black city dwellers so that police became more likely to arrest them and citizens became more likely to report them for committing crimes.