Main description:

Epidemiological Criminology: A Public Health Approach to Crime and Violence

Epidemiological Criminology offers an introduction to the sources and methods of epidemiological criminology and shows how to apply these methods to some of the most vexing problems now confronting researchers and practitioners in public health epidemiology, criminology, and criminal justice.

The book describes, explains, and applies the newly formulated practice of epidemiological criminology, an emerging discipline that finds the intersection across theories, methods, and statistical models of public health with their corresponding tools of criminal justice and criminology. The authors show how to apply epidemiological criminology as a practical tool to address population issues of violence and crime nationally and globally. In addition, they look at future directions and the application of this emerging field in corrections, public health and law, gangs and gang violence, victimology, mental health and substance abuse, environmental justice, international human rights, and global terrorism.

For students, the book presents an exciting approach to understanding epidemiology as a means with which to tackle some of the worst problems for vulnerable populations. For researchers and policymakers, the book offers a new methodological perspective that recognizes the significance of social disparities and the built environment as factors in the formulation of public health policy, and provides a tool with which to produce more effective interventions, preventive measures, and policy formulations.

Back cover:

Epidemiological Criminology: A Public Health Approach to Crime and Violence

Epidemiological Criminology offers an introduction to the sources and methods of epidemiological criminology and shows how to apply these methods to some of the most vexing problems now confronting researchers and practitioners in public health epidemiology, criminology, and criminal justice.

The book describes, explains, and applies the newly formulated practice of epidemiological criminology, an emerging discipline that finds the intersection across theories, methods, and statistical models of public health with their corresponding tools of criminal justice and criminology. The authors show how to apply epidemiological criminology as a practical tool to address population issues of violence and crime nationally and globally. In addition, they look at future directions and the application of this emerging field in corrections, public health and law, gangs and gang violence, victimology, mental health and substance abuse, environmental justice, international human rights, and global terrorism.

For students, the book presents an exciting approach to understanding epidemiology as a means with which to tackle some of the worst problems for vulnerable populations. For researchers and policymakers, the book offers a new methodological perspective that recognizes the significance of social disparities and the built environment as factors in the formulation of public health policy, and provides a tool with which to produce more effective interventions, preventive measures, and policy formulations.

Contents:

Figures and Tables xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgments xxiii

The Authors xxix

Introduction: Crime, Criminal Justice, Health, and Victims xxxiii

Levels of Theoretical Analysis xxxiv

Why the Meso Is Important xxxvii

Revising the Epidemiological Trinity xliii

Hosts, Agents, Agency, and Behavior xlviii

Risk, Deviance, Crime, and Health l

Summary lv

PART ONE FOUNDATION FOR AN EMERGING PARADIGM: EPIDEMIOLOGICAL CRIMINOLOGY

Chapter 1 Establishing a Historical Framework for Epidemiological Criminology 3

The War on Poverty 6

The War on Crime 11

The War on Drugs 18

The War on Terror 22

Conclusion 24

Summary 24

Chapter 2 Where Two Worlds Collide: Toward an Integrated Theory of Epidemiological Criminology 27

Roots and Forks in the Road 28

History 29

Determining When or Where to Start an Investigation 31

Defining an Emerging Paradigm 35

Epidemiological Criminology 47

Conclusion 50

Summary 52

Chapter 3 The Lexicon of Terminology: Developing an Emerging Paradigm 57

Scientific and Practice Integration: Building an Emerging Paradigm 59

Theories and Models: An Integrative Paradigm 60

Theories and Models: Framing the Paradigm 64

Units of Analysis 68

Health and Crime: Biomedical and Behavioral Disparities 69

Prevention Interventions 70

Causation: The Epidemiologic Triad 72

Conclusion 73

Summary 73

PART TWO THEORIES, CONCEPTS, AND METHODS

Chapter 4 Criminology, Criminal Justice, and the Social Sciences 79

Criminology 79

Criminal Justice 80

Where Does That Leave Epidemiological Criminology? 81

Public Health 82

Lessons from the Foundation of Sociology 89

Conclusion 92

Summary 92

Chapter 5 Research Methods in Epidemiology and Criminology: A Bridge Between? 95

Surveillance or Monitoring? 96

Monitoring, Surveillance, and Epidemiological Criminology 99

Method, Technique, and Theory 100

The Evidence Base 102

In the Field and on the Streets 103

Conclusion 104

Summary 104

Chapter 6 Integrating the Interdisciplinary Sciences: Theoretical Foundations of the Epidemiological Criminology Framework 107

Criminogenics: The Evidence Base of Individual Criminal Behavior 108

Propensity Versus Typology: How Changeable Are Criminogenics? 109

Dynamic Risks 110

Implications for Public Health Interventions 113

Social Learning and Social Structure: Moving Evidence to the Next Social Levels 113

Epidemiological Criminology Implications for Public Health Interventions 118

Conclusion 121

Summary 122

PART THREE APPLYING EPIDEMIOLOGICAL CRIMINOLOGY IN PRACTICE AND POLICY

Chapter 7 Health Disparities and Epidemiological Criminology 129

Health Disparities 132

Conceptualizing Criminogenic Health Disparities 137

Conceptualizing Epidemiological Criminology and Disparities 141

Conclusion 143

Summary 144

Chapter 8 Incarceration and Epidemiological Criminology 147

The Organizational Ecology of Incarceration 149

Incarceration by Police 152

Juvenile Detention: A Snapshot 155

The Process of Incarceration 156

The Epidemiology of Incarceration: The Importance of Process 162

Criminal Records 164

Conclusion 166

Summary 166

Chapter 9 The Health of Correctional Populations 169

Competing Images: Magic Castles and Houses of Horror 169

Juvenile Detention 171

Jail 172

Health of Jail Inmates 173

Health of Prisoners 176

HIV: An Exemplar of Where One Looks and How 178

Reentry to the Community 190

Implications for Epidemiological Criminology 192

Conclusion 193

Summary 193

Chapter 10 Recidivism and Epidemiological Criminology 197

Why Measure Recidivism? 198

Defining and Measuring Recidivism 199

How Much Recidivism? 201

Who Returns to Prison? 204

Jails and Recidivism 205

Health Recidivism 206

Conclusion 208

Summary 209

Chapter 11 Gang Violence and Adolescent Membership 213

Biopsychosocial and Environmental Determinants 214

Micro–, Meso–, and Macroinfluences 218

Epidemiology of Gangs and Gang Violence 221

An Integrated Approach 226

Health Behavior and Criminal Behavior 228

Biomedical Disparities and Behavioral Disparities 230

Conclusion 232

Summary 232

Chapter 12 Criminality, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health: An Epidemiological Criminology Framework 237

Criminalization 237

Mental Illness, Crime, and Criminal Justice 239

Mental Illness and Epidemiological Criminology 243

Substance Abuse 244

Substance Abuse and Epidemiological Criminology 246

Conclusion 249

Summary 250

Chapter 13 Victims and Victimization 255

Victims and Victimology 256

The Academy Discovers Victims 258

The Role of Place: Geography and Victimization 259

Routine Activities 259

The Health Industrial Complex Discovers Victims 260

Measuring Victims 262

Violence and Epidemiological Criminology 264

Conclusion 265

Summary 266

PART FOUR FUTURE DIRECTION AND TRENDS

Chapter 14 Environmental Justice and the Epidemiology of Crime 271

What Is Environment? What Is Justice? 273

The Traditional Epidemiological Approach: What Is Missing? 275

Segregation and Health 277

Residential Segregation and Criminal Behavior 281

Environmental Justice and Epidemiological Criminology 283

Conclusion 285

Summary 285

Chapter 15 Global and Domestic Terrorism 289

Epidemiology of Terrorism 291

Epidemiological Criminology as an Integrated Paradigm 294

Biopsychosocial and Environmental Makeup of Terrorism and Terrorists 297

Micro–, Meso–, and Macroinfluences 300

Health Behavior and Criminal Behavior 302

Biomedical Disparities and Behavioral Disparities 304

Conclusion 306

Summary 306

Chapter 16 Criminal Law, Public Health Law, and the Epidemiological Criminology Framework 311

Criminal Law, Public Health Law, and Social Control 314

Whose Interests? 321

Law and Epidemiological Criminology 325

Values 326

Conclusion 330

Summary 331

Chapter 17 International Human Rights and Human Trafficking 335

What Is a Right? 335

Does the Epidemiological Criminology Framework Fit Human Rights? 338

A General Model of Trafficking 340

Trafficking Networks 343

Individual Traffickers and Individual Victims 344

Responding to Human Trafficking from an

Epidemiological Criminology Framework 347

Conclusion 348

Summary 349

References 353

Further Reading 387

Index 391