A General Theory of Crime

By articulating a general theory of crime and related behaviour, this book presents a comprehensive statement of what the criminological enterprise should be about. It argues that prevalent academic criminology has been unable to provide believable explanations of criminal behaviour.

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.