Lawrence E. Cohen

Lawrence E. Cohen was an American sociologist and criminologist best known for co-developing the Routine Activity Theory, one of the most influential frameworks in environmental and situational criminology. He held academic positions at the University of California, Irvine, and played a key role in shifting criminological focus from offender motivation to the situational contexts of crime events.

In their seminal 1979 article, Cohen and Marcus Felson introduced the Routine Activity Theory, arguing that crime occurs when three elements converge in time and space: a motivated offender, a suitable target, and the absence of a capable guardian. This marked a paradigm shift away from traditional offender-based explanations, highlighting instead the role of everyday routines, opportunities, and spatial-temporal conditions in shaping crime patterns. Cohen’s work laid the foundation for later developments in situational crime prevention, crime pattern theory, and environmental criminology. His empirical and theoretical contributions continue to influence research and policy in crime prevention and urban security.