Criminal : the truth about why people do bad things

**How our views of crime and its causes are wrong -- and how we can begin to understand and tackle it properly.** The way we see and understand crime falls into two types of story that, in essence, have been told and retold many times throughout human history -- in fiction, as in fact. Criminality is either a selfish choice, an aberration; or a forced choice, the product of social factors. These two stories continue to dominate both our views of and responses to crime. And, says Tom Gash, they are completely wrong. In seeking to dispel the myths that surround and inform our views of crime,__Crime Fictions__argues that our obsession with 'big arguments' about crime's causes can lead us to mistake individual cases as proof of universal rules. How, he asks, can we suspend our knee-jerk reactions, and begin to understand crime for what it is: as a risk that can be managed and reduced. There Are Two Myths About Crime. In One, The Criminal Act Is A Selfish Choice, And Tough Punishment The Only Solution. In The Other, The System Is At Fault, And Perpetrators Will Change Only When Society Reforms. Both These Narratives Are Wrong. Interweaving Conversations And Stories Of Crime With Findings From The Latest Research, Tom Gash Dispels The Myths That Inform Our Views Of Crime, From The Widespread Misconception That Poverty Causes Crime, To The Belief That Tough Sentencing Reduces It. He Examines The Origins Of Criminal Behaviour, The Ebb And Flow Of Crime Across The Last Century, And The Effectiveness Of Various Government Crack-downs And In Doing So Reveals That Crime Is Both Less Rational And Much Easier To Reduce Than Many Believe. Can We Suspend Our Knee-jerk Reactions, Let Go Of Cherished Myths And Embrace The Truth About Crime? Mahine Generated Contents Note: Cop Shows, Dramatic Commentary And The Two Eternal Viewpoints -- Myth 1 Crime Is Rising -- Tides Of Crime, Shark Attacks And Reasons For Optimism -- Myth 2 Taking Up A Life Of Crime -- Little Angels, Little Devils And Crime's Rat Race -- Myth 3 Criminals Will Stop At Nothing -- Life's Marshmallows And The Routine Of Crime -- Myth 4 Organized Crime Is Big, Bad And Booming -- Joe Valachi, American Gangster And The Peculiarities Of Crime's Economic Laws -- Myth 5 Biology Determines Criminality -- Brain Scans, Genetic Testing And What Terrible Twins Tell Us About Biological Influences On Our Behaviour -- Myth 6 Poverty Is The Real Cause Of Crime -- Noisy Neighbours, Disappearing Cities And The Odd Effects Of Money -- Myth 7 Immigration Increases Crime Rates -- Little Poland, New El Paso And The Unpredictable Effects Of Porous Borders -- Myth 8 We Need More Bobbies On The Beat -- Wartime Denmark, Experimental Police Chiefs And The Side Effects Of Terrorism -- Myth 9 Tough Sentences Are A Sure-fire Way To Deter Crime -- Crime And Punishment From Finland To Los Angeles -- Myth 10 Leopards Can't Change Their Spots -- Gangsters Who Bake And The Curse Of Premature Policymaking -- Myth 11 We Need Radical Reforms To Reduce Crime -- Metal Theft, Old-school Bouncers And Why Little Things Can Make A Big Difference. Tom Gash. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 269-317) And Index. How our views of crime and its causes are wrong -- and how we can begin to understand and tackle it properly. The way we see and understand crime falls into two types of story that, in essence, have been told and retold many times throughout human history -- in fiction, as in fact. Criminality is either a selfish choice, an aberration; or a forced choice, the product of social factors. These two stories continue to dominate both our views of and responses to crime. And, says Tom Gash, they are completely wrong. In seeking to dispel the myths that surround and inform our views of crime, Crime Fictions argues that our obsession with 'big arguments' about crime's causes can lead us to mistake individual cases as proof of universal rules. How, he asks, can we suspend our knee-jerk reactions, and begin to understand crime for what it is: as a risk that can be managed and reduced. The way we see and understand crime falls into two types of story that, in essence, have been told and retold many times throughout human history - in fiction, as in fact. Criminality is either a selfish choice, an aberration; or a forced choice, the product of social factors. These two stories continue to dominate both our views of and responses to crime. And, says Tom Gash, they are completely wrong. In seeking to dispel the myths that surround and inform our views of crime, Criminal argues that our obsession with 'big arguments' about crime's causes can lead us to mistake individual cases as proof of universal rules. How, he asks, can we suspend our knee-jerk reactions, and begin to understand crime for what it is: as a risk that can be managed and reduced.