Sociology & Criminology for a Changing World
Criminology is the interdisciplinary study of crime, its causes, manifestations, and the societal reactions to deviant behavior. It combines insights from sociology, law, psychology, political science, and philosophy to analyze both individual acts of deviance and the broader structures of social control. This section offers an overview of key criminological theories, foundational texts, and ongoing debates that shape the discipline.
Criminology is not only concerned with understanding why people commit crimes, but also with the social construction of deviance, the role of power in defining crime, and the impact of criminal justice systems on individuals and communities.
Explore the key works of influential criminologists such as Edwin Sutherland, David Garland, and Erving Goffman, and discover how contemporary criminology critically engages with issues of social inequality, neoliberalism, and governmentality.
Ten Blind Spots in Criminological Theory The quest for the “best” theory of crime is as old as the discipline itself. For more than 200 years, scholars have tried to explain why people break the law. But the more theories emerged, the clearer it became: no single theory fully explains crime. Many fall short, focus
Sanctions are central to criminology as they represent society’s formal response to crime and deviance. They include a broad range of measures, from fines and community service to imprisonment and the death penalty. Sanctions not only aim to prevent and punish offending but also reflect deeper questions of justice, legitimacy, and social control. This article
Prisons are among the most visible and contested institutions of modern societies. They represent the state’s ultimate power to deprive individuals of liberty, justified in the name of justice, order, and security. Yet the prison is not a timeless or natural institution: it emerged historically under specific social, political, and cultural conditions. In criminology and
Policing does not simply mean the police. While the police are the most visible and influential agents of policing, the term refers more broadly to the diverse practices and institutions through which authority is exercised to maintain security, enforce laws, and regulate everyday life. Social order, in turn, describes the stability of social interactions, guided
Émile Durkheim’s The Rules of Sociological Method (1895) marks a milestone in establishing sociology as an autonomous, empirical discipline. While earlier approaches were often philosophical or speculative, Durkheim formulated the foundations for systematic research based on observable, verifiable data. The work remains central for understanding the scientific core of sociology and the role of objective
Crime is a highly emotional topic. Media reports, political debates, and everyday conversations create images of crime that are often distorted or exaggerated. Criminology, however, shows that many of these perceptions are myths. The following section presents twelve widespread myths about crime and critically discusses them.