Crime, Deviance, and Social Control in the 21st Century seeks to go beyond traditional criminology texts and handle the subject through a perspective focusing on power interest and social justice. Timely and accessibly written, the text provides a comprehensive overview of social and criminological theory, as well as recent trends in theorizing power and deviance. It also delves into the significant implications the committal and control of crime have for human rights. This text aims to answer the questions: “Who has the power to decide which acts are deviant?”; “Whose interests are being served by a given law?”; and “Which social groups are being disadvantaged when society has been constructed along such legally demarcated lines?” The contributors dissect the criminalization of dissent, the changing nature of what constitutes deviance, internet hate, self-harming, transgender identities, the growing rise of transnational criminal enterprises, internet fraud, and the increased public attention on police practices. With a Canadian focus placed in a global context, the text challenges readers to consider crime and deviance as socially structured phenomena, while recognizing that crime is a worldwide issue. Crime, Deviance, and Social Control in the 21st Century is a critical resource for undergraduate students in criminology, police services, and sociology. FEATURES: - Offers an accessible and comprehensive introductory overview of criminology theory - Employs a social justice approach to the fundamentals of criminology, deviance, law, and social control - Includes bolded key terms, a glossary, real-world case studies, and questions for critical thinking

Criminology has experienced tremendous growth over the last few decades, evident, in part, by the widespread popularity and increased enrollment in criminology and criminal justice departments at the undergraduate and graduate levels across the U.S. and internationally. Evolutionary paradigmatic shift has accompanied this surge in definitional, disciplinary and pragmatic terms. Though long identified as a leading sociological specialty area, criminology has emerged as a stand-alone discipline in its own right, one that continues to grow and is clearly here to stay. Criminology, today, remains inherently theoretical but is also far more applied in focus and thus more connected to the academic and practitioner concerns of criminal justice and related professional service fields. Contemporary criminology is also increasingly interdisciplinary and thus features a broad variety of ideological orientations to and perspectives on the causes, effects and responses to crime. 21st Century Criminology: A Reference Handbook provides straightforward and definitive overviews of 100 key topics comprising traditional criminology and its modern outgrowths. The individual chapters have been designed to serve as a "first-look" reference source for most criminological inquires. Both connected to the sociological origins of criminology (i.e., theory and research methods) and the justice systems′ response to crime and related social problems, as well as coverage of major crime types, this two-volume set offers a comprehensive overview of the current state of criminology. From student term papers and masters theses to researchers commencing literature reviews, 21st Century Criminology is a ready source from which to quickly access authoritative knowledge on a range of key issues and topics central to contemporary criminology. This two-volume set in the SAGE 21st Century Reference Series is intended to provide undergraduate majors with an authoritative reference source that will serve their research needs with more detailed information than encyclopedia entries but not so much jargon, detail, or density as a journal article or research handbook chapter. 100 entries or "mini-chapters" highlight the most important topics, issues, questions, and debates any student obtaining a degree in this field ought to have mastered for effectiveness in the 21st century. Curricular-driven, chapters provide students with initial footholds on topics of interest in researching term papers, in preparing for GREs, in consulting to determine directions to take in pursuing a senior thesis, graduate degree, career, etc. Comprehensive in coverage, major sections include The Discipline of Criminology, Correlates of Crime, Theories of Crime & Justice, Measurement & Research, Types of Crime, and Crime & the Justice System. The contributor group is comprised of well-known figures and emerging young scholars who provide authoritative overviews coupled with insightful discussion that will quickly familiarize researchers, students, and general readers alike with fundamental and detailed information for each topic. Uniform chapter structure makes it easy for students to locate key information, with most chapters following a format of Introduction, Theory, Methods, Applications, Comparison, Future Directions, Summary, Bibliography & Suggestions for Further Reading, and Cross References. Availability in print and electronic formats provides students with convenient, easy access wherever they may be.

Originally published in 1974, Deviance and Social Control represents a collection of original papers first heard at the annual meeting of the British Sociological Association in 1971. They reveal how the American approach to deviance has been taken up by British sociologists, and revised and modified, and they explore possibilities of extending and strengthening the subject, for instance through comparative analysis or by examining issues which bear on deviant behaviour.

This is the new edition of the textbook, 'Understanding Deviance', that guides the new student through the major sociological theories of crime, deviance and control. It offers an in-depth discussion of all the prominent theories of deviance.

"Anything that takes away from the terminally off key karaoke of so much that passes for theory in criminology is to be welcomed, and this is a fine effort to connect the study of crime and control to an innovative set of theoretical possibilities. A rip-roaring read that slaughters some sacred cows while throwing the odd baby out with the bath water." - Richard Hobbs, University of Essex "Boldly tackles big questions that the discipline has lately been unable or unwilling to confront. Steve Hall′s compelling and original book should help to restart a crucial discussion about the connections between crime and an increasingly volatile and predatory global social order." - Elliott Currie, University of California, Irvine "This erudite and original book synthesizes a dazzling array of thought and evidence to interrogate criminological theory′s dominant conservative and liberal perspectives... This reviewer is left with a sense of criminological theory′s tiredness of intellectual ambition and scope, while Hall′s book leaves a sense of rejuvenation and excitement." - Colin Webster, British Journal of Criminology "A beautifully written, accessible and yet theoretically rigorous piece of writing that should be read by everyone interested in crime, law and social order. The book should be read with an open mind and as a genuine response to the suffocating inability of criminology to free itself from the century old slanging-match between its liberal and conservative wings." - Simon Winlow, University of York Steve Hall uses cutting-edge philosophy and social theory to analyse patterns of crime and harm and illuminate contemporary criminological issues. He provides a fresh, relevant critique of the philosophical and political underpinnings of criminological theory and the theoretical canon′s development during the twentieth century, and applies new Continental philosophy to the criminological problem. Unmatched in its sophistication yet written in a clear, accessible style, this dynamic and highly engaging book is essential reading for all students, researchers and academics working in criminology, sociology, social policy, politics and the social sciences in general.

Contains contributions on the theme of popular culture, crime, and social control. This title includes chapters that tease out various criminologically relevant issues, pertaining to crime/deviance and/or the control thereof, on the basis of an analysis of various aspects and manifestations of popular culture, including music, and movies.

Publisher Description

Does religion have the power to regulate human behavior? If so, under what conditions can it prevent crime, delinquency, suicide, alcoholism, drug abuse, or joining cults? Despite the fact that ordinary citizens assume religion deters deviant behavior, there has been little systematic scientific research on these crucial questions. This book is the first comprehensive analysis, drawing on a wide range of historical and contemporary data, and written in a style that will appeal to readers from many intellectual backgrounds.