NCJ Number
238928
Journal
.SIAK - International Edition Volume: 2 Dated: 2012 Pages: 41-50
Date Published
2012
Length
10 pages
Annotation
The proposed perspective of transnational organized crime (TOC) applies a "constructivist" view that incorporates the varied dimensions of TOC and improves the explanatory power and flexibility for understanding TOC.
Abstract
The "constructivist" approach to TOC focuses on the overall system. TOC is a dynamic process that is produced and reproduced by human social behavior manifested in various elements of its operation. Seven elements of TOC are identified and discussed: overall strategy (ends-ways-means), actors, fields of activity, spatial dimension, effects on society, present and future development, and responses. The overall strategy consists of profit (ends); trade in/transfer of goods/services (ways); and violence, money laundering, corruption (means). The central actors in TOC are not individuals, but rather organizational units and networks that conduct criminal activities across international borders. The fields of activity consist of providing a wide range of illegal products and services to "customers" living throughout the world. Regarding the spatial dimension of TOC, several factors are in play, such as proximity to major target markets, geographic location, infrastructure types of TOC groups, and migration processes that involve key criminals or TOC groups. Regarding direct and indirect effects of TOC operations, violence is one of the most visible side effects of TOC operations, but the most devastating and widespread consequences involve public corruption that undermines the goals of good government, and the victimization produced for those exploited by TOC goods and services. The future may lead to a blurring of the line between legal and illegal enterprises as laws are weakened and/or not enforced in lucrative domains of public demand. Responses to TOC must address both the demand and supply side of illegal products and services. This involves international cooperation and public education about the harms caused by TOC's goods and services. 3 figures, 1 table, 18 notes, and 24 references