NCJ Number
124615
Editor(s)
G Wiklund
Date Published
1990
Length
80 pages
Annotation
This collection of papers on Swedish women and crime examines the phenomenon in a historical perspective, highlights the statistics on female criminality and studies the difference in criminality among boys and girls. Also reviewed are the experience of women in prison and the female perspective in criminal justice research.
Abstract
The papers show that in Sweden, as in the rest of the world, female criminality is infrequent compared to male criminality, and that, as a result, little emphasis is put on the female criminal in research and in programs. In Sweden approximately 14 percent of the persons convicted and 4 percent of those incarcerated are female. Statistics show that females tend to commit crimes of opportunity, especially petty larceny. As juveniles, females who do commit crime tend to be involved in more carefully planned and executed crimes than males, who often commit meaningless crimes as part of a group. Female juveniles are most likely to act alone or with a boyfriend when committing crime. Interviews with 91 female inmates indicate that they committed crimes as a way to resolve family situations, usually financial crises. The inmates considered themselves morally upright and responsible and forced to act criminally when the social service system could not meet their needs. Another paper looks at the data collection process from a feminist perspective. Chapter references, 5 tables.