NCJ Number
175204
Date Published
1996
Length
436 pages
Annotation
This textbook takes a close look at why people commit crimes, considering a variety of theories and policy implications of these theories and examining such issues as biological and psychological dimensions of crime and the future of crime theory.
Abstract
The first chapter provides the basic terms and ideas for subsequent consideration of crime theories, with emphasis on research and scientific methods, philosophical origins of crime theories, classical theories, and positivism and scientific determinism. Subsequent chapters cover biological and psychological influences on crime, theories related to crime and society (ecological, differential association, and social learning theories), theories related to crime and cultural (subcultural, structural functionalism, and social control theories), and theories related to crime and power (labeling theory, conflict and crime, Marxism, and feminist criminology). The future of crime theory is also discussed, and questions are raised about whether new theories and research designs are needed. References, tables, and figures