International Criminology: A Critical Introduction

This book provides a clear, accessible yet critical introduction to how conventional criminologists in the UK, the US, the USA, and Australia, think about and do research on crime. What do we mean by ideas like a??crimea?? or a??violencea??? And is measuring crime rates actually possible? This book; offers a thoughtful, comparative, historical account of how criminology has evolved into a modern social scientific discipline; provides a simple framework for anyone wanting to understand criminologists, showing how it is possible to think critically about the claims made and evidence used by criminologists; points up the value of checking the assumptions relied on by criminologists; shows how a combination of persistent social myths and preoccupations with scientific rigour have produced simplistic explanations like a??poverty causes crimea??; provides a lively critical counterbalance to various beliefs thatobstruct more practical approaches to crime. Outlining the key ideas, vocabulary, assumptions and findings of the discipline in a highly accessible and clear way, while opening up a set of critical underlying issues and problems, International Criminology will prove to be a valuable introduction for undergraduate students of criminology and sociology world wide, and will serve as a useful refresher for more experienced students.