Criminological Theory in Context: An Introduction

This book provides a lively, concise and definitive introduction to the study of the causes of crime. Authoritative yet accessible, it offers a guide to the historical development of criminology as an academic discipline and in doing so:   presents an overview of a range of different theories of crime, including classical, biological, psychological and sociological approaches analyses the strengths and weaknesses of each theory discussed provides chapter overview boxes and key summary points helps you to take your studies further with self-study tasks and suggestions for further reading. In covering key theoretical positions and placing them in their historical context, Criminological Theory in Context is perfect for students taking introductory courses in criminological theory.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: Studying Criminal Life Crime and society: an introduction Researching criminal life: the place of theories of crime Chapter 2: Classical Criminology and Contemporary Rational Choice Theory Introduction: the reasoning criminal and the social contract Society, crime and punishment Classical criminology and crime deterrence Neoclassical criminology Critiquing Classical/Neoclassical criminology: does deterrence work? Contemporary rational choice theory Situational crime prevention, opportunity theory and routine activity Chapter 3: Biological Criminology Introduction: Classicism, positivism and the development of Biological forms of criminology Physiognomy and phrenology Lombroso and atavism Lombroso’s heritage: in search of the criminal type Genes and crime Brain development, injuries and mapping Biochemistry, hormones, diet and crime Chapter 4: Psychological Criminology Introduction: the Classical school and Psychological and Biological theories of crime Freud and personality development Eysenck, dimensions of personality and criminal behaviour Sutherland, differential association theory and social learning Psychological criminology and mentally disordered offenders Chapter 5: Strain Theory, Social Disorganisation Theory and Labelling Theory Introducing the sociological study of criminal life Durkheim: social facts, social solidarity and anomie Merton and Agnew: anomie and Strain Theory Park and Burgess: Social Disorganisation Theory and the Broken Windows hypothesis Mead and Blumer: symbolic interactionism and Labelling Theory Lemert, Becker and Erikson: towards the sociology of deviance Restorative justice and Braithwaite’s Reintegrative Shaming Theory Chapter 6: Critical Criminology, Part 1: Marxist, Peacemaking and Realist Theories of Crime Determinism and free will in sociological forms of criminology Critical criminology: a conflict theory of society Critical criminology and the duality of structure Karl Marx and Willem Bonger: towards a Marxist theory of crime Marxist criminology: crime as a rational response to the conditions of capitalism Peacemaking criminology Left and Right Realist criminology Chapter 7: Critical Criminology, Part 2: Feminist and Cultural Criminology Critical criminology and Feminist and Cultural theories of crime The feminist critique of ‘malestream’ criminology Marxism and Feminist criminology The growth of female offending: power/control theory, the liberation opportunity thesis and the economic marginalisation thesis Feminism, masculinity studies and contemporary Critical criminology: highlighting the importance of gender, race and class Cultural criminology Chapter 8: Postmodern Critical Standpoints and the Criminal Life Course Introduction: Critical criminology revisited Positivism and realism, postmodernism and anti-realism Life Course criminology Chapter 9: Reflecting on Theories of Crime, Theories of Human Nature: Crime in the Age of the Enterprising Risky Citizen-subject From modernity to high modernity The neoliberal enterprise form and the criminal justice system Conclusion: reflecting on theories of crime and theories of human nature

About the Author :
Dr John Martyn Chamberlain is a Medical Criminologist at Southampton University. His academic background covers criminology, law, bioethics and medical sociology. His primary research interests include the study of medical malpractice, negligence and criminality, as well as the role played by specialist forms of medical and health-care expertise in the identification and governance of ′troublesome′ social groups, including the unwell, the deviant, and the criminally insane. Drawing on this background, he has written widely on medical-legal developments in the regulation and discipline of doctors, as well as contemporary developments in criminological theory and research, publishing two well-received introductory textbooks Understanding Criminological Research (Sage 2012) and Criminological Theory in Context (Sage 2015).

Review :
This book makes the task of studying criminological theory a little less daunting…it would be a great companion for your degree This book would have been very useful as it is very simple to understand and breaks down the theories in an order which is straightforward to understand. A number of criminological theory books are difficult to understand, however this book is simple and reads well…I would really recommend this to current students A clear and thought provoking read. The author has summarised detailed historical and burgeoning literature into a book that is well structured and written, allowing criminology students to become excited over theory and to question taken for granted assumptions in the field.