According to Downes and Rock, what can we say about predicting deviance based on labels?

Downes and Rock suggest that while labels may have an influence on an individual's behavior and perception, individuals still possess the capacity for free choice, allowing them to decide how they respond to those labels. This perspective highlights the complexity of deviance and emphasizes that labeling does not equate to a deterministic outcome.

In this framework, labels can create societal reactions and expectations that might encourage deviant behavior, but they do not eliminate the individual's agency. This means that even if a person is labeled in a certain way, they can still choose to conform or resist the expectations that come with that label. This understanding aligns with broader sociological theories that acknowledge individual agency within social structures.

The other options suggest a more absolute relationship between labels and deviance, which Downes and Rock would argue against. They would critique the notion that labels can accurately predict deviance or definitively determine an individual's future actions as overly simplistic and not reflective of the complexities of human behavior and social interactions.