Delinquency Research: An Appraisal of Analytic Methods / Edition 1

by Travis Hirschi, Hanan C. Selvin

Overview

This remarkable guide to delinquency studies was co-winner of the 1968 C. Wright Mills Award for the best book in the field of social problems. The work is in effect three books in one: a forthright account of how to analyze survey data, a penetrating critique of delinquency research, and a set of original essays on methodology. It is a landmark work that continues to serve as an essential tool for those who both study and want to learn about deviance. In the new introduction, Travis Hirschi describes the setting in which 'Delinquency Research' was written, noting that it exudes a confident optimism that well-conducted research and analysis will quickly lead to important advances in the field. Hirschi maintains that twenty-eight years after 'Delinquency Research' was first published the validity of its optimistic view has been confirmed by the fact that the field of criminology is among the leading producers of high quality research. As a result, we know more about crime and delinquency than ever before. 'Delinquency Research' forms the basis for present and future studies of criminology and is a necessary addition to the libraries of sociologists, criminologists, scholars in the area of delinquency, and students interested in research methods.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781560008439
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/30/1995
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	312
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Travis Hirschi, Hanan C. Selvin

Table of Contents

i: The Nature of Methodological Criticism; On Approaching Methodology; 2: Critiques of Delinquency Research; ii: Causal Analysis; 3: Principles of Causal Analysis; 4: Causal Order; 5: Genuine and Spurious Relations; 6: Links in the Causal Chain; 7: Interaction of Variables; 8: False Criteria of Causality *; iii: Multivariate Analysis; 9: Some Problems of Multivariate Statistical Analysis; 10: The Shortcomings of Tabular Analysis 1; iv: Conceptualization and Inference; 11: Concepts, Indicators, and Indices; 12: Reliability and Scaling; 13: Statistical Inference; 14: Description and Prediction; 15: Individual and Group Variables; A Final Word

Editorial Reviews

An important work in methodology… Social scientists, regardless of their metaphysical convictions or substantive specializations, will find time spent with this book a profitable investment.” — American Sociological Review “For those engaged in digesting existing research literature or for those setting out to add onto that body of research, the book is essential… contains many valuable guidelines for analysis.” — The Journal of Criminal Law, Criminology, and Police Science “This book has crucial lessons to teach the researcher about what the answers he obtains really mean.” —S. Cohen, The British Journal of Sociology “Recommended as required reading in any course in research methods in sociology that considers quantitative data… ably fills in the gab between statistics and research methods.” — Social Forces

From the Publisher

A reissue of a guide to delinquency studies, first published by The Free Press in 1967. The volume contains three sections: an account of how to analyze survey data, a critique of delinquency research, and a set of original essays on methodology. Includes a new introduction by Hirschi (sociology, U. of Arizona). Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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