Abstract
This chapter examines the diversity of sociological explanations of crime by comparing them along a number of different dimensions. While highlighting key differences between these approaches, we try to show how they have shared a common commitment to the ‘modernist project’ — that is, to a belief in the possibility and legitimacy of constructing a valid explanation of the phenomenon of crime and, hence, of developing strategies for doing something about it. Maintaining one of our central themes of the book, the debates about modernity and postmodernity, we also introduce the reader to the postmodernist critique of criminology.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Becker, H. (1963) Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance, Glencoe, Illinois, Free Press.
Campbell A. (1981) Girl Delinquents, Oxford, Blackwell.
Chambliss, W. (1976) The State and the Criminal Law’, in W. Chambliss and M. Mankoff, Whose Law? Whose Order?, New York, Wiley.
Cloward, R. and L. Ohlin (1960) Delinquency and Opportunity, New York, Collier Macmillan.
Cohen, A. (1955) Delinquent Boys, Chicago, Free Press.
Cooley, C. (1909) Social Organisation, New York, Scribner.
Durkheim, E. (1952) Suicide, London, Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Garland, D. (1994) ‘Of Crimes and Criminals’, in M. Maguire et al. (eds) The Oxford Handbook of Criminology, Oxford, Clarendon Press.
Heidensohn, F. (1985) Women and Crime, London, Macmillan.
Heidensohn, F. (1989) Crime and Society, London, Macmillan.
Lea, J. and J. Young (1984) What Is To Be Done About Law and Order?, London, Penguin.
Lemert, E. (1961) Social Pathology, New York, McGraw-Hill.
Matthews, J. and J. Young (eds), (1992) Issues in Realist Criminology, London, Sage.
Matza, D. (1964) Delinquency and Drift, New York, Wiley.
Mead, G. H. (1934) Mind, Self and Society, Chicago, Chicago University Press.
Merton, R. (1949) Social Theory and Social Structure, Glencoe, Illinois, Free Press.
Pearce, F. (1976) Crimes of the Powerful: Marxism, Crime and Deviance, London, Pluto Press.
Quinney, R. (1980) Class, State and Crime, London, Longman.
Smart, C. (1976) Women, Crime and Criminology, London, Routledge.
Smart, C. (1990) ‘Feminist Approaches to Criminology, or Post-Modern Woman Meets Atavistic Man’, in L. Gelsthorpe and A. Morris (eds), Feminist Perspectives in Criminology, Milton Keynes, Open University Press.
Taylor, I. et al. (1975), ‘Critical Criminology in Britain: Review and Prospects’, in I. Taylor et al. (eds), Critical Criminology, London, Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Van Den Haag, E. (1975) Punishing Criminals, New York, Simon & Schuster.
Wilson, J. (1975) Thinking About Crime, New York, Basic Books.
Young, J. (1986) ‘The Failure of Criminology: The Need for Radical Realism’, in R. Matthews and J. Young (eds), Confronting Crime, London, Sage.
Young, J. (1992), ‘Ten Points of Realism’, in J. Young and R. Matthews (eds), Rethinking Criminology: The Realist Debate, London, Sage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1996 Tony Bilton, Kevin Bonnett, Pip Jones, David Skinner, Michelle Stanworth, Andrew Webster
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bilton, T., Bonnett, K., Jones, P., Skinner, D., Stanworth, M., Webster, A. (1996). Understanding Crime. In: Introductory Sociology. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24712-7_14
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24712-7_14
Publisher Name: Palgrave, London
Print ISBN: 978-0-333-66511-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-24712-7
eBook Packages: Palgrave History CollectionHistory (R0)