Olof Dahlbäck's book breaks new ground for the analysis of crime from a rationality perspective by presenting models and methods that go far beyond those with which researchers have hitherto been equipped. The book examines single crimes, individual criminality, and societal crime, and it discusses thoroughly the general decision theoretical presuppositions necessary for analyzing these various types of crime. An expected utility maximization model for a single discrete choice regarding the commission of a crime is the foundation of most of the analyses presented. A version of this model is developed that permits interpersonal comparisons, and this basic model is used when deriving more complex models of crime as well as when analyzing the potential for such derivations. The rigorous, powerful methods suggested provide considerable opportunities for improving research and for seeing old problems in a new light.

Two new criminological approaches are defined and applied to categories of crime in Routine Activity and Rational Choice, now available in paperback. Routine activity analyzes the criminal event, and avoids motivations and psychology as topics for discussion, whereas rational choice approaches crime as purposive behavior designed to meet the offender's commonplace needs, such as money, status, sex, and excitement. These conceptual models are both employed to analyze such crimes as drunk driving, gun use, kidnapping, and political violence. This volume discusses the relationship of these theories to more traditional approaches to crime studies.The Advances in Criminological Theory series encourages theory construction and validation in the articles and themes selected for publication. It also furthers the free exchange of ideas, propositions, and postulates. Following publication of the first volume, Michael J. Lynch of Florida State University asserted that "Advances in Criminological Theory is to be applauded as an attempt to revive criminological theory by providing an accessible outlet." Contributions to this volume include: Pierre Tremblay, "Searching for Suitable Co-offenders"; Raymond Paternoster and Sally Simpson, "A Rational Choice Theory of Corporate Crime"; Richard B. Felson, "Predatory and Dispute-related Violence"; Gordon Trasler, "Conscience, Opportunity, Rational Choice, and Crime"; Ezzat A. Fattah, "The Rational Choice/Opportunity Perspectives as a Vehicle for Integrating Criminological and Victimological Theories"; Patricia L. Brantingham and Paul J. Brantingham, "Environment, Routine, and Situation"; Maurice Cusson, "A Strategic Analysis of Crime"; Richard W. Harding, "Gun Use in Crime, Rational Choice, and Social Learning Theory."

The Oxford Handbook of Offender Decision Making provides high-quality reviews of the main paradigms in offender decision-making, such as rational choice theory and dual-process theory. It contains up-to-date reviews of empirical research on decision-making in a wide range of decision types including not only criminal initiation and desistance, but also choice of locations, times, targets, victims, methods as well as a large variety of crimes. The Handbook also provides comprehensive in-depth treatments of the major methods that can be used to study offender decision-making.

This book examines the methodological foundations of the Big Data-driven world, formulates its concept within the frameworks of modern control methods and theories, and approaches the peculiarities of Control Technologies as a specific sphere of the Big Data-driven world, distinguished in the modern Digital Economy. The book studies the genesis of mathematical and information methods’ transition from data analysis & processing to knowledge discovery and predictive analytics in the 21st century. In addition, it analyzes the conditions of development and implementation of Big Data analysis approaches in investigative activities and determines the role and meaning of global networks as platforms for the establishment of legislation and regulations in the Big Data-driven world. The book examines that world through the prism of Legislation Issues, substantiate the scientific and methodological approaches to studying modern mechanisms of terrorism and extremism counteraction in the conditions of new challenges of dissemination and accessibility of socially dangerous information. Systematization of successful experience of the Big Data solutions implementation in the different countries and analyze causal connections of the Digital Economy formation from the positions of new technological challenges is performed. The book’s target audience includes scientists, students, PhD and Master students who conduct scientific research on the topic of Big Data not only in the field of IT& data science, but also in connection with legislative regulation aspects of the modern information society. It also includes practitioners and experts, as well as state authorities and representatives of international organizations interested in creating mechanisms for implementing Digital Economy projects in the Big Data-driven world.

This groundbreaking book by Olof Dahlbäck analyzes the direct effects of the environment and the indirect effects of geographical differentiation of individuals on the offender rates of different urban areas. In order to do this, relationships between crime and independent factors are analyzed in various ways - by considering cross-sectional and longitudinal aspects, linear and non-linear models, point and change data, different time periods, micro- and macro-level interaction, and data for individuals with different patterns of moves. The offender rates analyzed refer to individuals suspected by the police. The directly crime-influencing processes focused upon imply that individuals are affected by social control and social resources. The study makes use of advanced analytical models, novel methods and comprehensive data, and it solves several problems that have hampered research.

With recent advances in computing power and the widespread availability of preference, perception and choice data, such as public opinion surveys and legislative voting, the empirical estimation of spatial models using scaling and ideal point estimation methods has never been more accessible.The second edition of Analyzing Spatial Models of Choice and Judgment demonstrates how to estimate and interpret spatial models with a variety of methods using the open-source programming language R. Requiring only basic knowledge of R, the book enables social science researchers to apply the methods to their own data. Also suitable for experienced methodologists, it presents the latest methods for modeling the distances between points. The authors explain the basic theory behind empirical spatial models, then illustrate the estimation technique behind implementing each method, exploring the advantages and limitations while providing visualizations to understand the results. This second edition updates and expands the methods and software discussed in the first edition, including new coverage of methods for ordinal data and anchoring vignettes in surveys, as well as an entire chapter dedicated to Bayesian methods. The second edition is made easier to use by the inclusion of an R package, which provides all data and functions used in the book. David A. Armstrong II is Canada Research Chair in Political Methodology and Associate Professor of Political Science at Western University. His research interests include measurement, Democracy and state repressive action. Ryan Bakker is Reader in Comparative Politics at the University of Essex. His research interests include applied Bayesian modeling, measurement, Western European politics, and EU politics. Royce Carroll is Professor in Comparative Politics at the University of Essex. His research focuses on measurement of ideology and the comparative politics of legislatures and political parties. Christopher Hare is Assistant Professor in Political Science at the University of California, Davis. His research focuses on ideology and voting behavior in US politics, political polarization, and measurement. Keith T. Poole is Philip H. Alston Jr. Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of Georgia. His research interests include methodology, US political-economic history, economic growth and entrepreneurship. Howard Rosenthal is Professor of Politics at NYU and Roger Williams Straus Professor of Social Sciences, Emeritus, at Princeton. Rosenthal’s research focuses on political economy, American politics and methodology.

Using real case studies from New York where GIS have been at the centre of a successful programme, the contributors to this study present methods of combining geographic information systems and application software with strategies to reduce crime.