NCJ Number
186218
Date Published
1999
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This chapter considers the role of cultural and subcultural theories in expanding the understanding of homicide.
Abstract
The authors' position is that a consideration of social-structural variables is necessary but not sufficient to explain homicide and that theories that include cultural differences among groups offer a promising avenue for advancing an understanding of killing. The authors' previous research supports cultural as well as social-structural interpretations of high homicide rates in the American South. They rely heavily on the literature that links regional homicide to a southern subculture of violence. The sections of this chapter review theoretical positions that link culture and violence, including homicide; introduce Swidler's (1986) idea of culture as a "tool kit" as the most useful conceptualization of how culture affects action; present a model that integrates cultural and structural variables in explaining variations in rates of lethal violence; discuss recent studies that provide advances in understanding the influence of regional culture on homicide in the United States; and suggest avenues for future research. 3 notes and 102 references