The Origins of American Criminology

The essays contained in this book capture the stories behind the invention of criminology's major theoretical perspectives and preserves information from the generation that defined the field for the past decades that otherwise would have been lost. This history shows criminology to be a human enterprise. Its ideas were not driven primarily by data, nor were the theories invented solely as part of the scientific process. To the contrary, American criminology's great theories most often preceded the collection of data; they guided and produced empirical inquiry, not vice versa. This volume demonstrates that humanity is what makes theory possible in that diverse experiences allow individual scholars to see the world differently, and thus shape theoretical paradigms based on their own unique life stories.