Abstract
An important issue in social science is the perspective taken. In criminology, we endeavor to explain criminal conduct from one of two perspectives: micro and macro. The macro-level approach views the world and its problems from above in that broader social context is seen to produce social problems. The micro-level approach views individual-level experience producing many individual outcomes, which might have larger social implications. The perspective taken makes all the difference in knowing where to begin looking for causation: to the individual or to the larger social context? The contributions of Ernesto Savona in assessing organized crime is examined through these two perspectives.
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Notes
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Ernesto Savona used the bird-frog analogy at a meeting on organized crime in Nairobi, Kenya in 2010. It was the first time I had heard him use this analogy.
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Albanese, J.S. (2014). Choosing a Micro or Macro Perspective for Understanding Organized Crime: The Contributions of Ernesto Savona. In: Caneppele, S., Calderoni, F. (eds) Organized Crime, Corruption and Crime Prevention. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01839-3_29
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