Theories of Crime

Theories of crime are defined in relation to modernity, spanning their development from the Enlightenment to the present, with the advent of postmodernism. Modernity involved the search for natural and human-based explanations and reasons for behavior and actions. Theories of crime became scientific in principle if not in practice. [Page 1798]Approaching behavior and seeking explanations in the human world using logic and/or experience and the reduced reliance on a shared set of morals as the primary factor distinguished modern approaches from premodern ones. Postmodern views stress language as a ...