Nils Christie – författare

Vilka oönskade handlingar vill vi egentligen kriminalisera? När har vi uppnått en lagom mängd kriminalitet? Detta är grundläggande frågor som måste ställas i alla samhällen. Strävar vi efter att skapa ett gott samhälle måste vi också ställa oss frågan om det finns andra lösningar än straff.

Med talrika och tankeväckande exempel från skilda samhällen och tidsepoker påvisar Nils Christie att den enklaste påföljden, straffet, inte automatiskt leder till ett bättre och tryggare samhälle.

Kriminalitet finns inte, menar Christie. Det som finns är handlingar som ges olika betydelse i olika samhällen och situationer. Vissa ses som goda och andra onda. Onda handlingar ses självklart inte alltid som kriminalitet, utan som dåliga, irriterande, förkastliga eller syndiga. Om ett barn tar pengar ur sina föräldrars plånbok, tycker vi inte att barnet är kriminellt. En av anledningarna till detta är att vi känner barnet. Om samma barn skulle polisanmälas och hamna inom socialtjänst eller kriminalvård, så är risken stor att barnet ”stämplas” och i värsta fall blir kriminell, menar Christie. Man kan göra en jämförelse med kung Midas; allt han rör vid blir guld, på samma sätt är det med polis- och rättsväsendet - allt de rör vi blir kriminalitet.

Har kriminaliteten ökat? Christie tycker att frågan är irrelevant eftersom vad som uppfattas som kriminellt är beroende av sociala, kulturella och politiska omständigheter. Han har i stället två andra frågeställningar: Vad ligger bakom ökningen eller minskningen av handlingar som uppfattas som oönskade eller förkastliga, och hur kan förekomsten av dessa handlingar påverkas? Och vad är det som får oönskade handlingar att framstå som kriminalitet, och i vilka sammanhang och samhällen dominerar kriminaliteten och den kriminella över det som andra kallar oönskade handlingar?

Crime and punishment are social and cultural manifestations; they are closely bound up with people''s perceptions of morality, norms and values. In this book, Nils Christie argues that crime is a fluid and shallow concept - acts that could be construed as criminal are unlimited and crime is therefore in endless supply. It should not be forgotten that there are alternatives, both in the definition of crime, and in responses to it. A Suitable Amount of Crime looks at the great variations between countries over what are considered ''unwanted acts'', how many are constructed as criminal and how many are punished. It explains the differences between eastern and western Europe, between the USA and the rest of the world. The author laments the size of prison populations in countries with large penal sectors, and asks whether the international community has a moral obligation to ''shame'' states that are punitive in the extreme.The book is written in an engaging and easily accessible style that will appeal to anyone interested in understanding contemporary problems of crime and punishment.

Crime and punishment are social and cultural manifestations; they are closely bound up with people''s perceptions of morality, norms and values. In this book, Nils Christie argues that crime is a fluid and shallow concept - acts that could be construed as criminal are unlimited and crime is therefore in endless supply. It should not be forgotten that there are alternatives, both in the definition of crime, and in responses to it. A Suitable Amount of Crime looks at the great variations between countries over what are considered ''unwanted acts'', how many are constructed as criminal and how many are punished. It explains the differences between eastern and western Europe, between the USA and the rest of the world. The author laments the size of prison populations in countries with large penal sectors, and asks whether the international community has a moral obligation to ''shame'' states that are punitive in the extreme.The book is written in an engaging and easily accessible style that will appeal to anyone interested in understanding contemporary problems of crime and punishment.

Crime Control As Industry, translated into many languages, is a modern classic of criminology and sociology. Nils Christie, one of the leading criminologists of his era, argues that crime control, rather than crime itself is the real danger for our future. Prison populations, especially in Russia and America, have grown at an increasingly rapid rate and show no signs of slowing. Christie argues that this vast and growing population is the equivalent of a modern gulag, run by a rapacious industry, both public and private, with vested interests in incarceration. Pain and confinement are products, like any other, with a potentially limitless supply of resources.

Widely hailed as a classic account of crime and restorative justice Crime Control As Industry''s prophetic insights and proposed solutions are essential reading for anyone interested in crime and the global penal system.

This Routledge Classics edition includes a new foreword by David Garland.

Crime Control As Industry, translated into many languages, is a modern classic of criminology and sociology. Nils Christie, one of the leading criminologists of his era, argues that crime control, rather than crime itself is the real danger for our future. Prison populations, especially in Russia and America, have grown at an increasingly rapid rate and show no signs of slowing. Christie argues that this vast and growing population is the equivalent of a modern gulag, run by a rapacious industry, both public and private, with vested interests in incarceration. Pain and confinement are products, like any other, with a potentially limitless supply of resources.

Widely hailed as a classic account of crime and restorative justice Crime Control As Industry''s prophetic insights and proposed solutions are essential reading for anyone interested in crime and the global penal system.

This Routledge Classics edition includes a new foreword by David Garland.