Toward disentangling the multiple meanings of crime control

Conclusion

In this review we have tried to formulate explicitly several important concepts presented inCrime Control Strategies: An Introduction to the Study of Crime by Harold E. Pepinsky. This primarily involved discussion of the definitions of “crime” and “criminality” and the meaning of the “systems approach.” Specifically, we pointed out the behavioral and sociopolitical components of the definitions of “crime” and “criminality” and, by implication, their various measures. The “systems approach” has been proposed as a rigorous method for decomposing these measures. We have argued that empirical models or systems can be developed to disaggregate measures of “crime” and “criminality” into their causal components toward the end of rationally devising, administering and evaluating social control strategies.