Beyond Criminology is an innovative, groundbreaking critique of the narrow focus of conventional criminology. The authors argue that crime forms only a small and often insignificant amount of the harm experienced by people. They show that, while custom and tradition play an important role in the perpetuation of some types of harm, many forms of harm are rooted in the inequalities and social divisions systematically produced in -- and by -- contemporary states. Exploring a range of topics including violence, indifference, corporate and state harms, murder, children, asylum and immigration policies, sexuality and poverty, the contributions raise a number of theoretical and methodological issues associated with a social harm approach. Only once we have identified the origins, scale and consequences of social harms, they argue, can we begin to formulate possible responses -- and these are more likely to be located in public and social policy than in the criminal justice system. The book provides an original and challenging new perspective that goes beyond criminology -- one which will be of interest to students, teachers and policy makers.

Beyond Empiricism expands the discourse on theories of criminal behavior. It considers institutional, social, and individual issues related to criminal behavior, while individually each raises questions about the adequacy of current theoretical claims. The topics have significant implications both for policy and research in criminology. Per-Olof Wikstrom introduces a cross-level action theory of crime. He suggests that better understanding of causal mechanisms can lead to a situational theory of action based on perception of alternatives and the process of choice. David Wolcott and Steven Schlossman provide new perspectives on the issues of racial disparity and the incarceration of adolescents in adult prisons. These authors highlight gaps in our understanding of early twentieth-century juvenile justice and negate some popular claims about recent changes in the criminal law. Peter Grabosky spotlights privatization policies in the criminal justice system, suggesting a framework for analyzing the balance of advantage resulting from three basic forms of institutional relationships in policing. Steven Messner and Richard Rosenfeld discuss why institutional analysis has been seriously underdeveloped in etiological analyses of crime. Jordan Pederson and Matthew Shane scrutinize the concept of aggression. Their descriptions of aggressive behavior among non-human animals provide a fascinating backdrop for understanding human actions. Joan McCord emphasizes the intentionality of crimes as she argues that to understand what causes crime, one must have a theory about what it means to act intentionally. After critically appraising prior theories, McCord introduces and defends a new theory of motivation based on a post-empiricist theory of language. This latest volume in the distinguished Advances in Criminological Theory series continues to add to the theoretical underpinnings of the field, and will be important to all collections of social science research on criminology.

Beyond Criminology is an innovative, groundbreaking critique of conventional criminological approaches to social issues. The contributors make a broad analysis of social harm by examining the theoretical issues and then looking at harmful organizations, policies and experiences. Using this approach, the contributors show how social harm relates to social and economic inequalities that are the heart of the liberal state. Only once we have identified the causes of social harm, they argue, can we begin to formulate possible responses, whether criminological or political. Exploring a range of topics, including violence, indifference, corporate and state harms, miscarriages of justice, gender and harm, children, asylum and immigration policies, and sexuality, the contributors offer an innovative new approach that goes beyond criminology, which should be of interest to students, teachers and policymakers.

International criminal justice is challenged to better reflect legitimate victim interest. This book provides a framework for achieving synthesis between restorative and retributive dimensions within international criminal trials in order to achieve the peace-making aspirations of the International Criminal Court.

Car bombing, suicide bombing, abduction, smuggling, homicide, and hijacking are all profoundly criminal acts. In Terrorism as Crime Mark S. Hamm presents an understanding of terrorism from a criminological point of view, arguing that the most successful way to understand, detect, prosecute and deter these acts is to use conventional criminal investigation methods. Whether in Oklahoma City or London, Terrorism as Crime demonstrates that criminal activity is the lifeblood of terrorist groups and that there are simple common denominators at work that can remove the mystery surrounding many of these terrorist groups. Once understood the vulnerabilities of these organizations can be exposed. This important volume focuses in on six case studies of crimes committed by jihad and domestic right wing groups, including biographies of more than two dozen terrorists along with descriptions of their organizations, strategies, and terrorist plots. Terrorism as Crime offers an original and significant framework for explaining international and domestic terrorism, as well as how future acts might be detected or exposed.

In this comprehensive exploration of the core issues surrounding offender reentry, Elaine Gunnison and Jacqueline Helfgott highlight the constant tension between policies meant to ensure smooth reintegration and the social forces¿especially the stigma of a criminal record¿that can prevent it from happening. Gunnison and Helfgott focus on the factors that enhance reentry success as they address challenges related to race, class, and gender. Drawing on accounts from corrections professionals and former inmates to illustrate the real-life consequences of reentry policy, they shed light on one of the key criminal justice issues of our time.

Part of a series which explores contemporary sociological issues, this volume examines criminal justice policy and politics in the UK, looking to their development into the 1990s.