NCJ Number
71017
Date Published
1980
Length
495 pages
Annotation
This British volume is a combination of annotated bibliographic reference listings together with an essay and research assessment on the subject of the effectiveness of general deterrents against crime.
Abstract
The general aims of the bibliography are to display, summarize, and assess empirical research which attempts to elaborate or test deterrence theory, evaluate the deterrent effectiveness of crime control measures, or provide a rational basis for crime control policies. The material consists of an original report listing items published between 1946 and 1975 and a supplement updating the list to 1978, including some readily available literature issued in 1979 as well. Unpublished material is included whenever available, and dissertations are cited. Entries to an international body of literature consist of the annotator's abstracts and bibliographic data. A monograph on the methodology of deterrence research, interwoven with a review of research literature, is presented. While the bibliography is intended for use as a reference work, it is also intended to be a work which can be read in its entirety. The introduction, section summaries, commentaries, and the conclusion can be read without attention to the abstracts. The bibliography is divided into five sections, with the first of these devoted to theoretical and methodological items and part of the second to capital and corporal punishment. Subdivisions of section two comprise items which correlate crime and sanction variables, studies using economic utility theory, and studies utilizing time changes. The third section consists of field experiments; the fourth, of studies using subjective variables or self-report data on crime. The fifth section contains laboratory experiments. Each section is prefaced by reading notes which outline the contents. The bibliographic items total 568. A study index and an author index are provided.