This clear and concise text sets out the relationship between Criminology and Political Theory. It critically analyzes key theories and debates within... Criminology and addresses the major political ideas that lie beneath them. It is organized around key criminological concepts and issues.

Crime policy ought to be guided by science rather than ideology, argue Hugh Barlow and Scott Decker in this incisive and original collection of essays.... Establishing the value and importance of linking theory and practice, the contributors to "Criminology and Public Policy" provide a comprehensive treatment of the major theories in criminology and their implications for criminal justice, crime control, and the larger realm of justice. In applying theories to real world issues - such as reducing crime and violence, prisoner reentry policies, gang behavior, and treatment courts - the contributors take both a macro and micro level approach. They find, too, that it is often difficult to turn theory into practice. Still, the very attempt pushes the criminal justice system toward workable solutions rather than ideological approaches, an orientation the editors believe will lead to greater progress in combating one of our society's greatest difficulties. Contributors include: Robert Agnew, Ronald L. Akers, Gordon Bazemore, Ronald V. Clarke, J. Heith Copes, Frank Cullen, Marcus Felson, Marie Griffin, Scott Jacques, David Kauzlarich, Jean McGloin, Steven Messner, Alex Piquero, Nicole LeeperPiquero, Nancy Rodriguez, Richard B. Rosenfeld, Dawn Rothe, Andrea Schoepfer, Neal Shover, Cassia Spohn, Katherine Tellis, Charles Tittle, Richard Wright and the editors.

This leading text for courses in Criminology is known for its lucid style, student-oriented approach, and interdisciplinary global perspective. The text... comes in two versions--with or without coverage of the criminal justice system.

This unique text offers an interdisciplinary perspective on crime and criminality by integrating the latest theories, concepts, and research from... sociology, psychology, and biology. Offering a more complete look at the world of criminology than any other existing text, authors Anthony Walsh and Lee Ellis first present criminological theory and concepts in their traditional form and then show how integrating theory and concepts from the more basic sciences can complement, expand, strengthen, and add coherence to them.

This reader provides a comprehensive introduction for students studying criminology at undergraduate level. Not only does the book include 34 essential... readings, but also editorial commentary with section introductions, study questions, and suggestions for further reading. The reader will provide a thorough grounding in issues related to the study of crime, the criminal justice system, and social control. In their selection the editors have sought to indicate crime's varied and conflicting history as well as its current debates. The mixture of historical and more recent readings shows a variety of perspectives. The Reader will be an essential sourcebook for students and teachers in the fields of criminology, criminal justice studies, the sociology of crime and deviance, socio- legal studies, social policy, criminal law and social work.

Ideal for undergraduate courses in criminology--especially those taught from a critical perspective--Criminology: A Sociological Approach, Fifth... Edition, is a comprehensive yet highly accessible introduction to the study of crime and criminological theory. Authors Piers Beirne and James W. Messerschmidt present the topic from a sociological standpoint, emphasizing the social construction of crime and showing how crime relates to gender, class, race, and age. Providing students with a strong theoretical foundation, the book also addresses historical, feminist, and comparative perspectives and highlights the major types of crime and victimization patterns.The text is divided into three Parts:* Part I focuses on three questions: "What is crime?" "How can we measure how much crime there is in the United States?" and finally, "How can we compare rates of crime in different societies?" * Part II is a systematic guide to modern criminological theory and its historical development. * Part III examines specific types of crime, including property crime, interpersonal violence, white-collar crime, and political crime.Written in student-friendly language, Criminology uses abundant illustrations, examples, and case studies to elucidate key points. The text also offers many helpful learning aids, including chapter previews, lists of key terms, chapter reviews, questions for class discussion, and suggestions for further study. NEW TO THE FIFTH EDITION* Moves the theory chapters to earlier in the book, helping to better connect them with one another* Reorganizes the chapters on theory to showcase the self-contained, internally coherent nature of criminology--rather than criminology's place in the historical record* Adds examples throughout* Presents new and up-to-date empirical data in all sections* Discusses many new topics, including cultural criminology and green criminology* Covers numerous types of crime that were not discussed in previous editions (e.g., whiteness and crime, the rape-war connection, Ponzi schemes, domestic right-wing terrorism, and state- sanctioned torture)

Taking a sociological perspective, CRIMINOLOGY: A SOCIOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING, 5/e  offers award-winning coverage of criminology and highlights... issues of race, ethnicity, gender and social class throughout. Designed in a four-color format, this edition includes a new chapter on classical and neoclassical theories, over 160 recent references and unique chapters on political crime and public opinion, crime and the media. Moving beyond simple “get tough” approaches, the book emphasizes the need to understand social causes of criminal behavior in order to significantly reduce it.

Completely updated and revised throughout, and featuring a new full-color design, this book provides a sociological perspective on crime and criminal... justice by treating social structure and social inequality as central themes in the study of crime–and major factors in society's treatment of criminals. It gives explicit attention to key sociological concepts such as poverty, gender, race, and ethnicity, and demonstrates their influence on crime. Covers hot topics such as the death penalty, terrorism, evolutionary biology, stalking, identity theft, computer crime, white collar crime and more. Also features unique coverage of topics not found in other introductory criminology books—including “Public Opinion, the News Media and the Crime Problem,” “Political Crime,” and “How Can We Reduce Crime?” For those with current or future criminology careers.     

Criminology is an empirical science. It involves the testing of claims about crime with data from the real world. CRIMINOLOGY: USING MICROCASE EXPLORIT,... introduces students to this real world of criminological research and data. The goal of this workbook is to provide students with the opportunity to participate in the criminological enterprise. In each chapter, Messner introduces a particular topic of criminology and demonstrates how data are used to support, augment, and test the ideas proposed. He also provides worksheets that include review questions on the material covered; additional data analysis exercises are then provided to further explore the topics under investigation in each chapter. This unique text and software package teaches students how to use data to gain a better understanding of crime, and public opinions about crime.

Well-known researchers and academics, William Chambliss and Aida Hass help students make the vital connections they need to understand and succeed in... criminology. Criminology: Connecting Theory, Research, and Practice demonstrates the value of understanding the relationship between criminological theory, research, and practice in the study of crime and criminal behavior. In doing so, it better equips students to comprehend the role of criminological theory and research in the development of criminal justice policies and practices.

From a look at classics like Psycho and Double Indemnity to recent films like Traffic and Thelma & Louise, Nicole Rafter and Michelle Brown show... that criminological theory is produced not only in the academy, through scholarly research, but also in popular culture, through film. Criminology Goes to the Movies connects with ways in which students are already thinking criminologically through engagements with popular culture, encouraging them to use the everyday world as a vehicle for theorizing and understanding both crime and perceptions of criminality. The first work to bring a systematic and sophisticated criminological perspective to bear on crime films, Rafter and Brown’s book provides a fresh way of looking at cinema, using the concepts and analytical tools of criminology to uncover previously unnoticed meanings in film, ultimately making the study of criminological theory more engaging and effective for students while simultaneously demonstrating how theories of crime circulate in our mass-mediated worlds. The result is an illuminating new way of seeing movies and a delightful way of learning about criminology.