When crime waves / Vincent F. Sacco.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sacco, Vincent.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Crime.

Criminology.

Criminal statistics.

Mass media and crime.

Criminal justice, Administration of.

Physical Description:

xiv, 210 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Thousand Oaks, Calif. : Sage Publications, [2005]

Summary:

Despite its wide usage, the concept of the "crime wave" has rarely been given explicit and detailed attention by criminologists. It is important that we understand where crime waves come from, how they develop and what their consequences are. When Crime Waves offers an in-depth exploration of a large number of social issues involved in the study of crime waves. Issues such as how and why crime rates change over time, why some types of crime and not others come in waves, and the role played by the mass media, politicians, and interest group leaders in the promotion of crime waves are discussed to help students develop analytical skills and apply them to real-world situations.

When Crime Waves is intended to be a supplementary text for undergraduate criminology and sociology courses including Introduction to Criminology and Criminal Justice, Crime & Media, Crime & Society, Crime & Punishment, Sociology of Crime, Sociology of Deviance, Social Problems, and Criminal Behavior.

Contents:

1 What Are Crime Waves? 1

Defining Crime Waves 6

Social Constructionism 7

The Criminal Content of Crime Waves 10

Victims 11

Offenders 12

Criminal Events 13

Places 14

The Nature of Waves 15

Some Uses of Crime Waves 18

Politicians 19

Media Personnel 20

Experts 21

Policing Agencies 22

Offenders 23

Victims 23

Security Industry 24

2 Why Do Crime Rates Go Up and Down? Dislocation, Diffusion, and Innovation 27

The Demography of Offending 29

Maleness 29

Youthfulness 31

Social Dislocations 32

War 32

How the West Became Wild 34

Economic Dislocations 36

Institutional Breakdown 39

Diffusion 40

Copycat Copycat 42

Innovation 45

Social Innovations: Shifts in Routine Activities 46

Market Innovations 48

Technological Innovations 51

3 Crime Waves by the Numbers 57

Numerate and Innumerate Consumers 58

The Statistics of Crime Waves 59

Statistics in the Raw 60

Emergent Problems 64

Statistical Record Keeping as a Social Process 67

Redefinition 68

Tolerance 69

Bookkeeping Quality 70

The Manipulation of Statistical Records 71

Statistics in the Media 72

Where Does Statistical News Come From? 73

Statistics and the News Flow 74

Statistical News and News Values 75

Statistical News Can Be Entertaining 75

Statistical News Is Important 75

Statistical News Is Objective News 76

4 Mass Media and Crime Waves 79

Importance of Crime to Mass Media 80

The Increase in Crime Coverage 81

An Increase in Carrying Capacity 81

Diffusion of Newsgathering Technology 82

Changes in Journalistic Mores 82

Politicization of Crime 83

Programmatic Changes 83

How Do the News Media Cover Crime? 84

Atypicality 84

Simplicity 85

Personification 87

Status Quo Orientation 91

Why Do Media Cover Crime as They Do? 92

Making News 92

Crime Sources 93

How Do Media Generate Crime Waves? 97

5 That's the Rumor 101

Talking About Crime 104

Rumors and Legends 106

The Rumor Process 108

Rumors and Networks 111

Interpersonal and Mass Communications 112

Technological Innovation and Rumor Transmission 115

Rumors of War 116

The Social Implications of Talk 119

6 Being Afraid 123

The Meaning of Fear 124

Cognitive Dimensions 125

Affective Dimensions 126

Behavioral Dimensions 127

What Are We Afraid Of? 128

Who Is Afraid? 129

Gender 129

Age 130

Race and Income 130

Community of Residence 131

Victim Status 132

Access to Crime News 132

Do Rising Crime Levels Cause Fear? 133

Does Fear Cause Rising Crime Levels? 135

The (Ir) Rationality of Fear 137

When Fear Goes Wild 140

7 Crime Waves and Public Policy 147

The Political Context 148

We're Going to War 152

Policy and Problem Image 155

Searching for the Panacea 159

Cost-Effectiveness 160

Immediate Gains 161

Clear Logic 161

Good Intentions 162

Evidence of Success 163

Hungry for a Solution 164

When Social Control Becomes the Problem 167

8 Crime Waves: A Skeptic's Guide 171

Are Crime Rates Really Going Up? 172

What Causes the Sudden Shifts in Crime Levels? 173

Can We Really Trust Crime Statistics? 174

Are My Own Experiences (and Those of My Friends) a Useful Guide to Whether Crime Levels Are Increasing? 175

What Are We to Make of the Media Obsession With Crime? 176

These Stories I Have Been Hearing From so Many People Have to Be True, Don't They? 176

The Fear of Crime Is Irrational, Right? 177

It's Fear That Drives the Justice System Response, Isn't It? 178

A Rising Crime Level Is a Simple Problem With a Simple Solution, Right? 179

When Interventions Are Followed by Falling Crime Levels, Can We Assume Cause and Effect? 179.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 181-199) and index.

ISBN:

0761927832

OCLC:

56921843