Criminology

Connecting Theory, Research and Practice

Aida Hass, Chris Moloney, William Chambliss

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781317497479
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Criminology
• Index: Social Sciences

Connections among theory, research, and practice are the heart and soul of criminology. This book offers a comprehensive and balanced introduction to criminology, demonstrating the value of understanding the relationships between criminological theory, research, and practice in the study of crime and criminal behavior. Utilising a range of case studies and thought-provoking features, it encourages students to think critically and provides a foundation for understanding criminology as a systematic, theoretically grounded science. It includes:

• 
  
  

• A comprehensive overview of crime in American society, including the nature and meaning of crime and American criminal law as well as the scientific study of crime,

• 
  
  

• A concise, straightforward, and practical approach to the study of the American criminal justice system and its various components, including individual chapters on police, courts, and corrections,

• 
  
  

• An overview of criminological theory, including classical, biological, psychological and sociological approaches,

• 
  
  

• A survey of typologies of criminological behavior including interpersonal violent crimes, property crime, public order crime, organized and white collar crime, state crime, environmental harm and cybercrime,

• 
  
  

• Concluding thoughts exploring challenges facing criminal justice policy and the future of criminological theory.

This new edition has been thoroughly revised and updated and includes brand new chapters on corrections, courts, criminal law, law enforcement, and technology and cybercrime. It is packed with useful and instructive features such as themed boxed case studies in every chapter, critical thinking questions, lists of further reading, and links to e-resources. A companion website includes PowerPoint slides for lecturers, links to useful resources, and lists of further reading.

Part I

Crime, criminal law, and criminology

PART I CRIME, CRIMINAL LAW, AND CRIMINOLOGY

1. Crime, deviance, and criminology: a brief overview

2. Criminal law

3. How much crime is there?

4. Doing criminology: research and theory

1

Crime, deviance, and criminology: a brief overview

Chapter Outline

1. How do we define crime?
   1. The definition of crime from a “legalist perspective”
   2. The definition of crime from a “political perspective”
   3. The definition of crime from a “psychological perspective”
   4. The definition of crime from a “sociological perspective”
2. What does deviance mean?
3. What is criminology?
   1. What is criminal justice?
4. The “popular image” of crime v. the reality of criminal behavior
5. Criminology and theory
6. Criminological research and public policy
7. Criminology and the law
   1. The consensus view
   2. The conflict view
   3. A period of change in criminology and the criminal justice system: 1970s–1990s
8. Summary
9. Critical thinking questions
10. e-Resources
11. Notes

In this chapter we will explore the following questions

• How do we define crime?
• What is deviance?
• When is crime deviant, and deviant behavior criminal?
• What is criminology?
• Does the popular image of crime measure up to reality?
• How does criminology guide our study of crime?
• How does criminology influence social policy?
• How do criminology and criminal justice relate to one another?

Key Terms

legalist perspective
political perspective
sociological perspective
psychological perspective
deviance
social norms
folkways
mores
taboos
laws
crime
criminology
criminologist
criminal justice
law enforcement agencies
courts
correctional system
criminal law
theory
consensus model
conflict model

In 2015, America was shocked to witness the man who once stood second in line to the presidency appear in federal court on charges of improperly with-drawing large amounts of cash from his bank account, violating federal laws, and lying to federal agents about the reason for the withdrawals. What’s even more dismaying are emerging reports that the former U.S. Speaker of the House, Dennis Hastert, had allegedly withdrawn the amounts, totaling over $3 million, in order to compensate and keep quiet a man who, as a high school student, was sexually abused by Hastert.¹ The allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse have expanded to include several other victims as well.

The plethora of stories and events we hear about through various media sources, whether newspaper, radio, internet or television, are many and diverse. Whether in Los Angeles or Little Rock, Harlem or Beverly Hills, they draw our attention and pique our interest. They are stories of thrill-seeking youth and defiant adults entangled in drugs, sex scandals, acts of violence, abuse of power, and corruption motivated by personal gain or as an expression of discontent. While the stories are different, they all have one thing in common: the behaviors they describe are generally condemned by society and prohibited by the law.

The study of crime has two main dimensions: a behavioral dimension that seeks to describe and explain the origins and causes of criminality, and a definitional dimension that explains why certain behaviors come to be defined as crime. When we hear about a crime story or criminal event, we want immediate answers that tell us why: why a mother kills her three children, why a priest molests a child, why a sports hero commits rape, and why a respected public servant engages in fraud. However, in order to study and account for the diversity in crime causation, we must first come to an understanding of why certain behaviors are legally prohibited.

Image 1.1 In 2015, Dennis Hastert was indicted on charges relating to nearly $3 million of bank withdrawals from four different bank accounts. The transactions were never disclosed, a violation of federal law. Hastert was accused of using those funds for payment as “hush money” to an individual who threatened to report past sexual misconduct by the politician. When a public official like Hastert violates the public’s trust by committing criminal acts, we want to know why.

Charles Rex Arbogast/AP/Press Association Images

The reaction to the activities of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert is a testimony to society’s disapproval of his conduct, which constituted a violation of the trust given to a public servant. While acts such as child abuse and political corruption are met with immediate social disapproval, there are far more behaviors that we cannot so easily or arbitrarily define as crime. In a study of the organization and growth of police bureaucracies in U.S. cities, researcher Eric Monkkonen notes that “real crime leaves an injured or dead victim, an outraged community, or inflicts some kind of human suffering.”

Moreover, we can categorize social behavior as either conforming to the established order or contributing to social disorder. Crime control is often a means of maintaining social order. Meanwhile, the need to balance the rights of individuals against the overall protection of society is critical to the way we define certain behaviors as crime and others as non-crimes.²

Individual rights are at the heart of the constitutional protections and civil liberties guaranteed to each and every U.S. citizen. We look upon the government as a sovereign protector of those rights and guarantees. The fact is, however, that we also look to the law and government to protect us from individual behaviors that threaten our sense of security. We desire order, safety, conformity, and enforcement of society’s interests. We feel we have a right to be protected from acts that may threaten the integrity of our society, and we may even, in the face of threat, be willing to give up some of our personal rights in the interest of public safety or order.³ As a society, we do not always agree on where to draw the line between individuality and conformity. We can clearly see such disagreement in the various debates on issues such as abortion, gun control, and freedom of speech (see Figure 1.1). The question this chapter will seek to answer is: where and how do we draw the line of definition in deeming the acts of individuals as criminal?

Figure 1.1 Individual rights or public order … You decide

Scholars, writers, politicians, the media, and the general public have long been fascinated with crime and punishment. This chapter introduces criminology as a systematic science, grounded in theory, whose goal is defining crime, understanding criminal behavior, and offering scientific solutions to help policymakers alleviate the problem of crime in our society. Are there elements common to all crimes? Are all crimes wrong? Are all crimes immoral? Can a mere thought or plan be a crime? Where do we draw the line in defining and limiting peoples’ behavior? We turn now to the science of criminology to answer these questions.

How Do We Define Crime?

The subject of crime has become an integral part of U.S. popular culture. Think of prime-time television shows such as The Detective, Orange is the New Black, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, The District, The Shield, The Wire, and various spin-offs that reflect the public’s fascination with criminal motive, criminal intent, the apprehension of suspects, detective work, and forensics. Media coverage continues to draw our attention to the criminal acts of celebrities, athletes, and other well-known individuals. Unofficial experts try to explain through the eyes of popular culture why pop star Chris Brown was arrested for physically abusing intimate partner Rihanna, Lindsay Lohan’s probation was revoked due to a failed drug test, Winona Ryder was convicted of shoplifting, and Mike Tyson served time for rape. Gossip, headlines, and media commentary become the shaky foundations upon which the meaning of crime and understanding of criminal behavior are built.

Image 1.2 Crime stories often receive an inordinate amount of coverage in the media when they involve the rich and famous, as in the 2001 murder of Bonny Lee Bakley, wife of actor Robert Blake, shot to death while sitting in their car in an alley behind a restaurant in affluent Los Angeles. Blake was charged with one count of murder and two counts of solicitation for murder. The excessive media coverage of such trials often misleads us into thinking that these are the most common types of crimes being committed.

Mona Shafer Edwards/AP/Press Association Images

Considering the real complexity of criminal behavior, it makes sense for us to study it with a more scholarly approach. To arrive at a comprehensive understanding, we turn to four perspectives—legali...