Cross-National Crime

by

Janet Stamatel

Introduction

The terms “cross-national criminology,” “international criminology,” and “comparative criminology” are often used interchangeably to describe criminological research that concerns a nation other than the researchers’ native country. However, cross-national criminology has a more specific meaning. It emphasizes explicit comparisons of amounts and types of crime across two or more countries; therefore, most single-country criminological studies are excluded from this bibliography. The goals of cross-national research are typically to provide an understanding of crime patterns and trends around the world, to seek explanations for the uneven distribution of crime across countries, to test existing criminological theories in diverse settings, and to inform further theoretical development by considering a wide array of social, political, and cultural contexts. Cross-national criminology emphasizes macro-level conditions that influence criminal behavior. Many cross-national crime studies tend to be quantitative and usually include as many countries as there are available data, leading to cautions about geographic representation and generalizability of results.

General Overviews

There are few contemporary books or textbooks specifically on the subject of cross-national criminology, although there are some on cross-national criminal justice systems and transnational crimes. The selections here highlight the value of cross-national criminology and are good places for the uninitiated to familiarize themselves with the main issues of this subfield and what it has to offer the broader field of criminology. Shoham, et al. 2010 is the most recent and perhaps most comprehensive overview of criminology through an international lens. Neapolitan 1997 is somewhat dated but still valuable as a guide on the state of the cross-national research until that time. Van Dijk and Kangaspunta 2000; Howard, et al. 2000; and Stamatel 2009 provide briefer overviews of the state of the field, with somewhat different emphases. Beirne and Nelken 1997 is a compilation of key articles in the area through the 1990s. LaFree 2007 and Zimring 2006 are treatises by leaders in criminology encouraging the field to pay more attention to cross-national research.

• Beirne, Piers, and David Nelken. 1997. Issues in comparative criminology. International Library of Criminology, Criminal Justice, and Penology. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate.

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  This is a compilation of previously published articles in comparative criminology, covering the purpose of comparative work, measuring crime comparative, and varieties of comparative criminology. A convenient way to read about the important ideas of the field at that time.

• Howard, Gregory J., Graeme Newman, and William A. Pridemore. 2000. Theory, method, and data in comparative criminology. In Criminal justice 2000: Measurement and analysis of crime. Vol. 4. Edited by David Duffee, 139–211. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.

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  A nicely written review of the history of comparative criminology and the goals of the comparative perspective, as well as a thorough treatment of current theories and methods. Also argues for the need to broaden the scope of the field to include crimes such as genocide, domestic violence, and transnational crimes.

• LaFree, Gary. 2007. Expanding criminology’s domain: The American Society of Criminology 2006 presidential address. Criminology 45.1: 1–31.

  DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-9125.2007.00070.xE-mail Citation »

  A past president of the American Society of Criminology argues that the field of criminology should expand in five directions, one of which is cross-national analysis. Discusses four ways in which the entire discipline of criminology can benefit from comparative research.

• Neapolitan, Jerome L. 1997. Cross-national crime: A research review and sourcebook. Westport, CT: Greenwood.

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  Although this sourcebook is dated, it is still a thorough overview of the main issues of cross-national criminology and a summary of the existing literature at that time. It is a good place to begin to study the field.

• Shoham, Shlomo Giora, Paul Knepper, and Martin Kett, eds. 2010. International handbook of criminology. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.

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  This handbook is composed of entries from international scholars on five main areas of international criminology: theoretical and historical frameworks, methods, special topics, responses to crime, and the relationships among crime, victims, and social divisions.

• Stamatel, Janet P. 2009. Contributions of cross-national research at the beginning of the 21st century. In Handbook on crime and deviance. Edited by Marvin Krohn, Alan Lizotte, and Gina Penly-Hall, 3–22. New York: Springer.

  DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4419-0245-0_1E-mail Citation »

  This chapter highlights the value of cross-national research for the larger field of criminology and discusses methodological and theoretical challenges and future directions for research.

• Van Dijk, Jan, and Kristiina Kangaspunta. 2000. Piecing together the cross-national crime puzzle. National Institute of Justice Journal (January): 35–41.

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  A brief summary of the challenges of comparing crime across countries and the common behavioral explanations for cross-national crime variations, with examples from North America and Europe.

• Zimring, Frank E. 2006. The necessity and value of transnational comparative study: Some preaching from a recent convert. Criminology and Public Policy 5.4: 615–622.

  DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-9133.2006.00407.xE-mail Citation »

  Argues that comparative research is necessary to understand whether the United States is unique with respect to crime and social control. Uses the difficulties of explaining the American crime drop as one of his examples.