NCJ Number
93817
Date Published
1983
Length
617 pages
Annotation
This textbook covers the basic concepts of criminology, with emphasis on the role played by social conflict along with presentations of alternative perspectives.
Abstract
The authors assume that some readers will have done little or no previous work in the behavioral sciences. The basic nature of criminal law and the definitions of crime and criminal are explained. Official sources of data on crime, flaws in official measures of crime, and alternatives to official crime statistics are examined. The classical, statistical, and positive schools of criminology are compared. Sociological perspectives on crime, social-psychological perspectives on crime, crimes against the social order, and crimes against the economic order are discussed. The roles of the police, the courts, punishment, and correctional facilities are explained. The problems and consequences of confinement are outlined. Outlines, lists of important terms, and suggested readings are provided for each chapter. A subject index, a name index, a glossary, a list of cases, and a bibliography listing about 8OO references are provided.