Cognition and Crime

The rational choice perspective developed by Cornish and Clarke in 1986 provides criminologists with a valuable and practical framework for purposes of crime control and prevention. More than twenty-five years later, Cognition and Crime pushes the boundaries of this field of research by bringing together international leading (or emerging) researchers in this area of script analysis into a single volume for the first time. It also presents a series of original contributions on offender decision-making during crime and crime script analysis as well as offering a critical perspective of what could be achieved in the future to further help develop this field of research for prevention purposes. In addition, each empirical chapter treats a specific and important form of crime such as stalking violence, drug dealing, human trafficking for sexual exploitation, child sexual abuse, and transnational illegal market of endangered species.Academics and students from various backgrounds, and interested in investigating and preventing crime, will benefit from this book as it applies crime script analysis and discusses new and future developments in regards to this approach and the rational choice perspective. This volume will be of particular relevance for practitioners such as police officers and crime investigators.

Preface, Derek B. Cornish, 1. The reasoning criminal: Twenty-five years on, Benoit Leclerc and Richard Wortley, 2. What are violent offenders thinking? Richard Felson, 3. How burglars decide on targets: A computer-based scenario approach, Ross Homel, Stuart MacIntyre, and Richard Wortley, 4. The risks and rewards of motor vehicle theft: Implications for criminal persistence, Heith Copes and Michael Cherbonneau, 5. The rational choice perspective and the phenomenon of stalking: An examination of sex differences in behaviours, rationales, situational precipitators and feelings, Carleen Thompson and Benoit Leclerc, 6. Interpersonal scripts and victim reaction in child sexual abuse: A quantitative analysis of the offender-victim interchange Benoit Leclerc, Stephen Smallbone and Richard Wortley, 7. Drug dealing: Amsterdam's Red Light district, Scott Jacques and Wim Bernasco, 8. Human trafficking for sexual exploitation in Italy, Ernesto Savona, Luca Giommoni and Marina Mancuso, 9. Script analysis of corruption in public procurement, Marco Zanella, 10. Cigarette smuggling and terrorism financing: A script approach, Alexandra Hiropoulos, Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak and Graeme Newman, 11. Script analysis of the transnational illegal market in endangered species: Dream and reality, William Moreto and Ronald V. Clarke, 12. New developments in script analysis for situational crime prevention: Moving beyond offender scripts, Benoit Leclerc, 13. Rational choice and offender decision making: Lessons from the cognitive sciences, Richard Wortley.