An Introduction to Life-Course Criminology

Christoffer Carlsson (b. 1986) has a PhD in criminology from The Department of Criminology at Stockholm University. His main field of work is life-course criminology, where he has published extensively. In 2012, he received the European Society of Criminology′s Young Criminologist Award for his work on turning points and desistance processes.Jerzy Sarnecki (b. 1947) came to Sweden from Warzaw, Poland as a refugee in 1969. He has a PhD in sociology from Stockholm University (1978) and is Professor of criminology at Stockholm University and University of Gävle. He has done extensive research on youth crime, criminal networks, and criminal policy, and is the author of several textbooks in criminology. Having worked on The Stockholm Life-Course Project since the late 1970s, Sarnecki has been the project director for the 2nd and 3rd waves of the study. He is also co-chair of the jury for the prestigious Stockholm Prize in Criminology.Contact Information:Email: jerzy.sarnecki@crim.su.sePhone: +46 8 16 20 00

This is an excellent introduction to a topic of central importance for criminologists.  It has the merit of being very clearly written, and the authors cover a wide range of materials – theories and data; European and American research; quantitative and qualitative studies.  Throughout, they provide helpful examples from their work on the Stockholm Life Course Project.  Highly recommended.

• Chapter 1: Life-Course Criminology: An IntroductionChapter 2: Criminological Theories and Criminal CareersChapter 3: Life-Course Theories of Crime and DevianceChapter 4: The Methodologies of Life-Course CriminologyChapter 5: Risk and Prediction of Criminal CareersChapter 6: Onset of CrimeChapter 7: Continuity in Offending: PersistenceChapter 8: Desistance from CrimeChapter 9: Looking Back; Looking Forward