A General Theory of Crime

By articulating a general theory of crime and related behaviour, the authors present a new and comprehensive statement of what the criminological enterprise should be about. They argue that prevalent academic criminology - whether sociological, psychological, biological, or economic - has been unable to provide believable explanations of criminal behaviour. The authors explore the essential nature of crime, finding that scientific and popular conceptions of crime are misleading, and they assess the truth of disciplinary claims about crime, concluding that such claims are contrary to the nature of crime and, interestingly enough, to the data produced by the disciplines themselves. They then put forward their own theory of crime and apply their theory to the persistent problems of criminology. Why are men, adolescents, and minorities more likely than their counterparts to commit criminal acts? What is the role of the school in the causation of delinquency? To what extent could crime be reduced by providing meaningful work? Why do some societies have much lower crime rates than others? Does white-collar crime require its own theory? Is there such a thing as organized crime? In all cases, the theory forces fundamental reconsideration of the conventional wisdom of academicians and criminal justice practitioners.<

Table of Contents:
Preface; Part I. Crime: 1. Classical theory and the idea of crime; 2. The nature of crime; Part II. Criminality: 3. Biological positivism; 4. Psychological, economic, and sociological positivism; 5. The nature of criminality: low self-control; Part II. Applications of the Theory: 6. Criminal events and individual propensities: age, gender, and race; 7. The social consequences of low self-control; 8. Culture and crime; 9. White-collar crime; 10. Organization and crime; Part IV. Research and Policy: 11. Research design and measurement; 12. Implications for public policy; Index.

Review :
"[The authors] present a tour de force critique of past research and offer nothing less than a theory that 'explains all crime, at all times.' ... The intellectual weight of Gottfredson and Hirschi's efforts is ... a 'must read' ... provocative, brilliantly argued, and always challenging." - Robert J. Sampson, University of Chicago "Most researchers who formulate theories of crime are timid, seeking to explain a small piece of the puzzle (e.g., gangs, female delinquency) at a specific point in time. Not so with Michael Gottfredson and Travis Hirschi. In A General Theory of Crime they present a tour de force critique of the past research and offer nothing less than a theory that "explains all crime, at all times." Normally such a claim would be dimissed by criminologists as wishful thinking, perhaps worse. But the intellectual weight of Gottfredson and Hirschi's efforts is forcing criminologists to take notice and rethink some cherished assumptions. Indeed, this book is a "must read" that is provocative, brilliantly argued, and always challenging." - University of Chicago "This book is well worthy of study and provides a comprehensive and challenging reading of theory and data." - British Journal of Criminology "This book presents powerful arguments, turns many neat phrases, shows that much criminology is confused about its purpose or blind to its inconsistencies, demonstrates the profound implications of its argument for criminology, generally, and for the ways it is studied, specifically, and will almost convince a reader that black is white...This is an excellent book. Nobody interested in crime and deviance can afford to ignore it." - American Journal of Sociology "A General Theory of Crime effectively battles misconceptions about crime, criminals, and appropriate law-enforcement techniques that have all too long dominated thinking in the United States." - Criminal Law Bulletin