MORALITY,MARKETS, AND THE ASC: 2011 PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS TO THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CRIMINOLOGY*

This Presidential Address explores the possibilities for fruitful multilevel theorizing in criminology by proposing an integration of insights from situational action theory (SAT), a distinctively micro‐level perspective, with insights from institutional anomie theory (IAT), a distinctively macro‐level perspective. These perspectives are strategic candidates for integration because morality plays a central role in both. IAT can enrich SAT by identifying indirect causes of crime that operate at the institutional level and by highlighting the impact of the institutional context on the perception‐choice process that underlies crime. Such multilevel theorizing can also promote the development of IAT by revealing the “micro‐instantiations” of macro‐level processes and by simulating further inquiry into the social preconditions for institutional configurations that are conducive to low levels of crime. Finally, drawing on Durkheim's classic work on occupational associations, I point to the potential role of professional associations such as the American Society of Criminology in promoting and sustaining a viable moral order in the advanced capitalist societies.     

COERCION,SOCIAL SUPPORT,AND CRIME: AN EMERGING THEORETICAL CONSENSUS*

Two themes, coercion and social support, have emerged over the past two decades in criminology that can be used to build a new integrated theory of crime. The authors provide a review of recent theoretical developments in criminology to demonstrate that two interconnected themes provide the basis for a new consensus in theory and crime policy. With some important exceptions, coercion causes crime and social support prevents crime. The authors develop a theory of differential social support and coercion that integrates concepts from a broad range of criminological theories. Implications of this integrated theory for public policy are explored.     

Inequalities and crime

The study of inequalities undergirds much of criminology. At times, however, we may take the impact of inequalities for granted and miss opportunities to problematize the strong link between inequalities and crime. In this address, I maintain that it is important to step back and recognize that economic, race, ethnic, gender, and other inequalities are at the core of criminology. More explicit consensus about the centrality of the link between inequalities and crime will allow for our field to speak to the major social and political issues of our time and will strengthen the field. In this address, I highlight some fruitful avenues of research on inequalities and crime. I then argue that the concept of intersecting inequalities can provide additional connective tissue between research focused on economic, race, ethnic, and gender inequalities. By drawing on recent evaluations of the concept in other fields, I discuss key issues that must be addressed in employing an intersecting inequalities approach and then suggest solutions. I conclude that use of an intersecting inequalities approach has the potential to uncover important insights and span research areas, thereby pushing forward our understanding of the impact of economic, race, ethnic, gender, and other inequalities on crime and victimization.     

犯罪学转型中研究对象的固化———从科尔曼的“系统行为内部分析说”谈起简

犯罪学是一门兼具综合性与交叉性的新兴学科,自其诞生以来,相关理论问题争议不断.其中,犯罪学的研究对象一直以来就是学者们热议的话题,尤其在我国犯罪学的转型时期,该问题更需亟待解决.犯罪学不再局限于以传统的个体行为或个体现象作为其研究对象,而是立足于从宏观的视角认识其研究对象,将其固化为一种特殊的系统现象,同时采用科尔曼的“系统行为内部分析”说作为分析犯罪学研究对象的方法论,把群体现象或群体行为作为犯罪学微观上的研究对象,旨在实现犯罪学研究的宏观与微观、系统与要素的结合,从而全面认识犯罪这一特殊的社会现象、及其本质和规律.     

Comparative Criminological and Criminal Justice Research and the Data that Drive Them

Although all good social science research is by its very nature comparative, criminology and criminal justice have only recently embraced cross‐national research as a mainstream activity. This paper presents a brief history of the development of the subfield of empirical comparative criminology and criminal justice, assesses a typology of comparative studies, and identifies sources of comparative data. In addition, the paper discusses the benefits and drawbacks of using various available data sources which support macro‐, micro‐, or mixed‐ level analyses. Finally, the paper discusses the impediments to and the future of comparative crime and criminal justice research.     

Newsmaking criminology: Reflections of the media,intellectuals, and crime

Although academicians in criminology and criminal justice have come to appreciate the importance of the media in constructing ideological images of crime and punishment, apparently they have not considered how to use mass communications for the purposes of informing, interpreting, and altering those images to reflect more realistically the social, political, and economic conditions of crime and social control. Beginning with an analysis of the relationships among the developing political economy of the mass media, intellectuals, and conceptions of crime and justice, this essay introduces a criminological practice that can take advantage of the available opportunities in the production of crime news. I call this practice “newsmaking criminology.” It refers to the conscious efforts of criminologists and others to participate in the presentation of “newsworthy” items about crime and justice.     

Intersectional Criminology: Interrogating Identity and Power in Criminological Research and Theory

Intersectional criminology is a theoretical approach that necessitates a critical reflection on the impact of interconnected identities and statuses of individuals and groups in relation to their experiences with crime, the social control of crime, and any crime-related issues. This approach is grounded in intersectionality, a concept developed from the tenets of women of color feminist theory and activism. To demonstrate how intersectionality is useful in criminology, this article reviews a sampling of feminist and critical research conducted on Black girls’ and women’s experiences with crime, victimization, and criminal legal system processes. This research demonstrates the interlaced social impacts of race, gender, femininity/masculinity ideals, sexuality, and socioeconomic class. This article also provides a basis for widely deploying an intersectional approach throughout the field of criminology across all social identities and statuses.     

AGE AND ITS RELATION TO CRIME IN TAIWAN AND THE UNITED STATES: INVARIANT,OR DOES CULTURAL CONTEXT MATTER?*

Current empirical and theoretical understanding of the relation between age and crime is based almost entirely on data from the United States and a few prototypical Western societies for which age‐specific crime information across offense types is available. By using Western databases, Hirschi and Gottfredson (1983) projected that the age distribution of crime is always and everywhere robustly right‐skewed (i.e., sharp adolescent peak)—a thesis that is both contested and widely accepted in criminology and social science writings. In the study described here, we tested this age–crime invariance thesis by comparing age–crime patterns in Taiwan (a non‐Western Chinese society) with those in the United States. In light of Taiwan's collectivist culture versus the U.S. individualist gestalt, we anticipated more divergence than homogeneity in their age–crime schedules. Our findings show robust divergence in Taiwan's age–crime patterns compared with U.S. patterns and the reverted J‐shaped norm projected by Hirschi and Gottfredson. Implications for research and theory on the age–crime relation and for studying human development or life‐course topics more broadly are discussed.     

CONSTITUTIVE CRIMINOLOGY: THE MATURATION OF CRITICAL THEORY*

This paper synthesizes recent trends in the development of critical criminology into a new theoretical direction in thinking about crime. It rejects approaches to criminological theory that reduce crime to an outcome of micro causes or macro contexts. It suggests instead that thinking about crime should be reconsidered as the coterminous discursive production by human agents of an ideology of crime that sustains it as a concrete reality. It argues that this coproduction occurs when agents act out criminal patterns, when others seek to control criminal behavior, and when yet others attempt to research, philosophize about, and explain crime. The paper argues that reducing crime will only come about with a reduction of investment by human agents in the ideology of crime production. Such a reflexive re-conceptualization requires the development of a replacement discourse, rather than an oppositional one, a peacemaking discourse rather than a conflicting one. We call this new theoretical direction constitutive criminology.     

The Ecological Distribution of Community Advantage and Disadvantage: Power Structures,Political Economy,Communities, and Green-State Crime and Justice

Certain forms of criminology such as social disorganization theory examine how community characteristics influence crime. That approach, however glosses over the fact that the distribution of community advantages and disadvantages (CAD) has structural origins, and that the distribution of CAD is also an indicator of the kinds of social, economic and ecological injustice communities face. Building on observations recently made by Moloney and Chambliss concerning the integration of state and green criminological research, this article explores the structural origins of CAD, how taking a political economic view of CAD relates to the distribution of crime and injustice in communities, and how a CAD approach promotes the integration of state crime, radical criminological and green criminological research.     

THE LAW OF CRIME CONCENTRATION AND THE CRIMINOLOGY OF PLACE*

According to Laub (2004), criminology has a developmental life course with specific turning points that allow for innovations in how we understand and respond to crime. I argue that criminology should take another turn in direction, focusing on microgeographic hot spots. By examining articles published in Criminology, I show that only marginal attention has been paid to this area of study to date—often termed the criminology of place. I illustrate the potential utility of a turning point by examining the law of crime concentration at place, which states that for a defined measure of crime at a specific microgeographic unit, the concentration of crime will fall within a narrow bandwidth of percentages for a defined cumulative proportion of crime. By providing the first cross‐city comparison of crime concentration using a common geographic unit, the same crime type, and examining a general crime measure, I find strong support for a law of crime concentration. I also show that crime concentration stays within a narrow bandwidth across time, despite strong volatility in crime incidents. By drawing from these findings, I identify several key research questions for future study. In conclusion, I argue that a focus on the criminology of place provides significant opportunity for young scholars and has great promise for advancing criminology as a science.     

试析构建“和谐社会”进程中农民工犯罪问题

城市农民工是城市中的特殊群体。一直以来,由于受制度歧视,社会保障机制不完善等原因的影响,加之自身素质低下,造成了城市农民工的犯罪活动频繁发生,危害了安定的社会秩序,侵害了公民的人身和财产权益,激化了社会矛盾,增添了社会不稳定、不和谐的因素。因此,本文从构建和谐社会的视角着笔,重点分析了当前农民工犯罪的现状及产生原因,并就如何在新的形势下解决农民工犯罪问题提出了自己的看法和观点。     

In partial defense of socialist realism

While left realist discourse emerged out of the specific politics of policing in England and Wales, its relative importance for progressive criminology generally has been the subject of much debate. On the one hand, the advocates of left realism have consistently argued that the local crime survey provides an empirical basis for understanding crime patterns and for developing progressive crime control policy. Critics of left realism, on the other hand, have argued that for a variety of reasons, the progressive quality of realist criminology is dubious at best, and reactionary at worst. This paper explores both sides of this debate and argues that while left realism has the potential of making a considerable contribution to the struggle for social justice, that contribution must rest on empirical observation. The paper suggests that while much of the foundation work for left realist literature is grounded in local crime survey data, recent policy recommendations emerging in this literature are not. It is argued that while the local crime survey has potential, there are a number of theoretical and methodological concerns raised by this technology which appear to have remained unexplored within the current debates.The paper begins by challenging Young's conception of the aetiological crisis facing criminology, and argues that the crisis is a definitional one. Ian Taylor's critique of left realism generally, and the Islington Crime Survey (ICS) specifically, is then closely examined in order to assess its validity. It is argued that by imputing his own purposes to the ICS, Taylor's critique is misplaced while the progressive potential that local crime survey technology offers for criminology, both academically and practically, remains unnoticed by him. The section concludes by arguing that a more thoughtful consideration of this line of inquiry leads to the conclusion that while such a technology is of utility, in order for that potential to be realized there are a number of methodological considerations which must be examined.These methodological considerations are then explored. It is argued that if left realism is to distinguish itself from a more conventional approach, local crime surveys must consider the measurement of all moments within the process of crime construction, eliminating the conservative bias inherent in conventional surveys, eliminating the sexist bias inherent in conventional surveys, coping with the sampling error produced by cost effective sampling designs, local versus national surveys, the use of proxy interviews, and the use of in-person interviews as opposed to telephone interviews.The paper concludes by arguing that while modest, the contribution of left realist surveys to the development of progressive criminology and the struggle for social justice is an important one which, if nurtured in a thoughtful way, has the potential for contributing to the demise of the state's monopoly on crime and policing knowledge.     

EDWIN H. SUTHERLAND AND THE MICHAEL‐ADLER REPORT: SEARCHING FOR THE SOUL OF CRIMINOLOGY SEVENTY YEARS LATER*

In response to a devastating critique of the state of criminology known as the Michael‐Adler Report, Edwin H. Sutherland created differential association theory as a paradigm for the field of criminology. I contend that Sutherland's strategy was flawed because he embraced a sociological model of crime and in doing so adopted a form of sociological positivism. Furthermore, Sutherland ignored key facts about crime that were contrary to his theoretical predilections. Recognizing that facts must come first and that criminology is an interdisciplinary field of study, I offer life‐course criminology as a paradigm for understanding the causes and dynamics of crime. In addition, I identify three warning signs that I believe inhibit the advancement of criminology as a science and a serious intellectual enterprise.     

Social harm future(s): exploring the potential of the social harm approach

The notion of social harm has sporadically interested critical criminologists as an alternative to the concept of crime. In particular, it has been viewed as a means to widen the rather narrow approach to harm that criminology offers. More recently, the publication of Beyond Criminology: Taking Harm Seriously has renewed interest in the notion of social harm. The book asserted a number of very valid reasons for a social harm approach that provoked a number of interesting critical responses. The article seeks to respond to five recurring questions: Should the social harm perspective move beyond criminology? If so, where should the perspective locate itself? From this position, how will the perspective continue to engage within ‘law and order’ debates and address the concerns of those affected by crime? If the notion of crime is problematic, how will the perspective form an alternative definition of harm? Moreover, without a notion of crime and the accompanying concept of criminal intent, how would the perspective allocate responsibility for harm? The article is not offering definitive answers to these questions, but possible directions for the perspective’s future development.     

Intersectionality,Rural Criminology,and Re-imaging the Boundaries of Critical Criminology

One of the significant shortcomings of the criminological canon, including its critical strands—feminist, cultural and green—has been its urbancentric bias. In this theoretical model, rural communities are idealised as conforming to the typical small-scale traditional societies based on cohesive organic forms of solidarity and close density acquaintance networks. This article challenges the myth that rural communities are relatively crime free places of ‘moral virtue’ with no need for a closer scrutiny of rural context, rural places, and rural peoples about crime and other social problems. This challenge is likewise woven into the conceptual and empirical narratives of the other articles in this Special Edition, which we argue constitute an important body of innovative work, not just for reinvigorating debates in rural criminology, but also critical criminology. For without a critical perspective of place, the realities of context are too easily overlooked. A new criminology of crime and place will help keep both critical criminology and rural criminology firmly anchored in both the sociological and the criminological imagination. We argue that intersectionality, a framework that resists privileging any particular social structural category of analysis, but is cognisant of the power effects of colonialism, class, race and gender, can provide the theoretical scaffolding to further develop such a project.     

From ‘crime’ to social harm?

Debates around the relationships between criminology and social harm are long-standing. This article sets out some of the key features of current debates between, on the one hand, those who would retain a commitment to ‘crime’ and criminology and those, on the other hand who would abandon criminology for a social harm perspective. To this end, the article begins by highlighting several criticisms of criminology, criticisms raised in particular by a diverse group of critical criminologists over the past 30 to 40 years. While these are hardly new, the rehearsal of these is an important starting point for a discussion of the potential of the development of an alternative discipline. The paper then proposes a number of reasons why a disciplinary approach organised around a notion of social harm may prove to be more productive than has criminology hitherto: that is, may have the potential for greater theoretical coherence and imagination, and for more political progress.     

EXPANDING CRIMINOLOGY'S DOMAIN: THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CRIMINOLOGY 2006 PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS*

Democracy is directly linked to the two main components of criminology: crime and justice. Moreover, the scientific study of crime and justice has been limited in large part to researchers working in democratic regimes. In this article, I address the question of how criminologists through research and education can better nurture democratic, nonauthoritarian societies. I argue that our field would be strengthened by expanding the domain of criminology in five directions: 1) by providing more emphasis on historical data and analysis, 2) by broadening the scope of emotions we test for among offenders, 3) by doing more cross‐national comparative analysis, 4) by bringing situational variables into our research, and 5) by making criminology more interdisciplinary. Although the most recent wave of democratization produced a record number of democratic regimes, we are observing ominous challenges to fundamental democratic rights from around the world. As criminologists, we have a vested interest in supporting the democratic, nonauthoritarian societies in which our craft has thrived.