Biosocial criminology—and biosocial criminologists—focuses on both the environmental and biological factors that contribute to antisocial behavior. Importantly, these two domains are not separate parts of an equation but pieces of the same puzzle that fit together for a complete picture of the causes of crime/antisocial behavior.Fitting the Facts of Crime applies a biopsychosocial lens to the “13 facts of crime” identified by John Braithwaite in his classic book, Crime...

This book explores the role of theory and research in criminology. Adopting a unique and refreshing approach to criminological theory, it focuses on the great debates in criminology from its inception as a field to the present day. It explores the debates that have motivated criminological thought, that have represented turning points in theoretical and empirical trajectories, that have offered mini-paradigm shifts, and that have moved the field forward. Coverage includes:Cla...

A lively, up-to-date overview of the newest research in biosocial criminologyWhat is the relationship between criminality and biology? Nineteenth-century phrenologists insisted that criminality was innate, inherent in the offender’s brain matter. While they were eventually repudiated as pseudo-scientists, today the pendulum has swung back. Both criminologists and biologists have begun to speak of a tantalizing but disturbing possibility: that criminality may be inh...

This book represents a brief treatise on the theory and research behind the concept of desistance from crime. This ever-growing field has become increasingly relevant as questions of serious issues regarding sentencing, probation and the penal system continue to go unanswered. Rocque covers the history of research on desistance from crime and provides a discussion of research and theories on the topic before looking towards the future of the application of desistance to policy.The ...

This second edition reviews the new research findings and theoretical advances on fathers, families, child development, programs, and policies that have occurred in the past decade. Contributors from a range of disciplines and countries showcase contemporary findings within a new common chapter structure. All of the chapters are either extensively revised or entirely new. Biological, evolutionary, demographic, developmental, cultural, sociological, economic, and legal perspectives of fathe...

'A passionate defence of the enduring power of human nature ... both life-affirming and deeply satisfying' Daily TelegraphRecently many people have assumed that we are blank slates shaped by our environment. But this denies the heart of our being: human nature. Violence is not just a product of society; male and female minds are different; the genes we give our children shape them more than our parenting practices. To acknowledge our inna...

Canada has long been recognized as a leader in the field of psychiatric epidemiology, the study of the factors affecting mental health in populations. However, there has never been a book dedicated to the study of mental disorder at a population level in Canada. This collection of essays by leading scholars in the discipline uses data from the country's first national survey of mental disorder, the Canadian Community Health Survey of 2005, to fill that gap.Mental Disorder in Ca...

Are human beings naturally endowed with a conscience? Or is morality artificially acquired through social pressure and instruction? Most people assume that modern science proves the latter. Further, most of our current social policies are based upon this “scientific” view of the sources of morality. In this book, however, James Q. Wilson seeks to reconcile traditional ideas with a range of important empirical research into the sources of human behavior over the last fifty years. Marshallin...

How the love and labor of parents have changed our understanding of autismAutism has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years, thanks to dramatically increasing rates of diagnosis, extensive organizational mobilization, journalistic coverage, biomedical research, and clinical innovation. Understanding Autism, a social history of the expanding diagnostic category of this contested illness, takes a close look at the role of emotion—specifically, o...

This book provides a sociological analysis of major areas of mental health and illness.

The second edition of A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health provides a comprehensive review of the sociology of mental health. Chapters by leading scholars and researchers present an overview of historical, social and institutional frameworks. Part I examines social factors that shape psychiatric diagnosis and the measurement of mental health and illness, theories that explain the definition and treatment of mental disorders and cultural variability. Part II investigates effects of soc...

This new edition of Prejudice provides a comprehensive treatment of the subject, introducing the major theoretical ideas as well as providing a critical analysis of recent developments.Takes a social psychological perspective, analysing individual behavior as part of a pattern of intergroup processesCovers the major research, including classical personality accounts, developmental approaches, socio-cognitive research focussing on categorization and stereoty...