The Place of History in British Criminology: 20th-Century Developments

Catello, Roberto (2024) The Place of History in British Criminology: 20th-Century Developments. Sociology Lens. ISSN 2832-580X (Accepted for Publication)

Text The Place of History in British Criminology - 20th-Century Developments.docx - Accepted Version Restricted to Repository staff only Download (80kB) | Request a copy

Abstract

While the relevance of historical research and analysis for the development of a critical criminology in the United States in the 1970s has recently received some attention by historical criminologists, the place of history in British criminology – and British critical criminology in particular – remains a largely unexplored area of academic inquiry. This article fills this gap in the history of historical criminology by reviewing the uses of history in British criminology before and after the emergence of critical criminology in the 1970s. The article first reviews the pre-critical uses of history found in the writings of the key figures responsible for the establishment of academic criminology in Britain in the mid-20th century, namely, Leon Radzinowicz, Hermann Mannheim, and Max Grünhut. These scholars made a valuable contribution to the historical study of crime but the criminological zeitgeist of their time prevented them from outlining a manifesto for a historical criminology. The article then proceeds to show that the critique of ahistorical criminology instigated by critical criminologists in Britain during the 1970s was born out of attempts to historicise the sociology of deviance. Lastly, the article goes on to argue that the new criminology envisioned by Ian Taylor, Paul Walton, and Jock Young was instrumental in advancing a conception of critical criminology that is indistinguishable from a fully historical criminology.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	critical criminology; historical criminology; historical study of crime; history of criminology; new criminology; sociology of deviance
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Business, Law and Criminology > School of Law and Criminology
Depositing User:	Roberto Catello
Date Deposited:	09 Dec 2024 09:41
Last Modified:	09 Dec 2024 09:41
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4476

Actions (login required)

View Item