Sociology & Criminology for a Changing World
Fritz Sack is a German sociologist and criminologist best known for introducing the labeling approach (Etikettierungsansatz) to the German-speaking world and for his critical engagement with power, law, and social control. He held professorships at several German universities, most notably at the University of Hamburg, where he significantly shaped critical criminology in Germany. Sack played
Stephen Lyng is an American sociologist best known for his development of the concept of edgework, which explores voluntary risk-taking and the emotional thrills associated with transgressive behavior. He has held academic positions at multiple universities and has contributed significantly to the fields of cultural criminology, deviance, and the sociology of risk. Lyng’s work draws
Jack Katz is an American sociologist and criminologist best known for his phenomenological approach to crime and deviance. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he taught sociology and criminology for several decades. Katz’s work stands out for its emphasis on the emotional, moral, and sensual dynamics of criminal
Howard S. Becker (1928–2023) was an American sociologist whose work fundamentally shaped the sociology of deviance and qualitative research methods. A leading figure in the development of labeling theory, Becker emphasized the role of societal reactions in defining deviance. His seminal book Outsiders (1963) examined how deviant identities are socially constructed, challenging essentialist views of
Albert K. Cohen (1918–2014) was an American sociologist and criminologist best known for his work on delinquent subcultures. As a professor at the University of Connecticut, Cohen challenged traditional explanations of juvenile delinquency by emphasizing the role of status frustration and cultural adaptation. His influential theory, outlined in Delinquent Boys (1955), argued that working-class youth
Setha M. Low is an American anthropologist and professor known for her influential work on the social production and social construction of space, urban public culture, and the privatization of public life. A leading figure in urban anthropology, she has combined ethnographic research with critical theory to analyze how built environments shape, and are shaped