Crimes of Privilege ─ Readings in White-Collar Crime

Crimes of Privilege: Readings in White-Collar Crime examines the current state of knowledge about and debate over white-collar crime. One of the most challenging and controversial topics in sociology, white-collar crime differs fundamentally from street crime because those who commit it typically lead lives of privilege. Written by top scholars in the field, the thirty-one selections in this book include both previously published works as well as original papers. All have been significantly edited for readability and suitability for students. Organized by rational-choice theory, the readings examine the nature and sources of white-collar crime opportunities, the characteristics of white-collar offenders, white-collar criminal decision-making processes, and diverse approaches to controlling white-collar crime. Crimes of Privilege: Readings in White-Collar Crime also includes twenty-one panels chosen or prepared specifically to illustrate issues discussed in the readings. Taken primarily from local and regional newspapers or from exemplary studies of white-collar crime, some panels summarize key research on the topic while others show that a great deal of white-collar crime occurs close to home; white-collar crime is not a problem confined to Washington, D.C., to Wall Street, or to the world's largest corporations. Crimes of Privilege: Readings in White-Collar Crime provides students with a critical overview of issues and problems in white-collar crime. It is an essential text for undergraduate and graduate courses that focus on deviance, social problems, and white-collar crime.