The idea of primary and secondary deviance comes from the interactionist, Lemert. If one acts in an isolated deviant way, this is primary deviance; however, the societal reaction to that action could lead to secondary deviance. In other words, if that person is then labelled as deviant and internalises that label, then subsequent deviant acts are secondary deviance: the result of the societal reaction to primary deviance. It is a similar concept to the idea of the self-fulfilling prophesy.