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The paper underscores the place of theories in organizing social science data and experience. It holds that theories are indispensable to social research (The North-South divide notwithstanding), in view of the fact that the framework of knowledge and experience within which theories are established make a meaningful explanation of the world phenomenon reasonably possible. It delineates political philosophy and history of ideas from theory and thus, takes care of common mistake social scientists make differentiating between them. Furthermore, the paper on one hand, takes on the scientific requisites of theory such as assumption, concepts (and their functions), hypothesis (and its characteristics typology), law, models, paradigm and provides lucid conceptual analysis of each with a view to showing their relatedness to theory but not as synonyms to it. On the other hand, we singled out dependency theory in its emanation from knowledge and experience of underdevelopment of Third World countries, as the first and perhaps most relevant theoretic explanation of Africa's underdevelopment. The paper posits that a good theory that will serve as a rudder for formulation of research questions, problem statement, as well as sustain the data analysis, and findings must parade some, if not all of the following qualities: precision and testability, empirical validity, parsimony, stimulation, and practicability.

Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Table of Contents -- Foreword -- List of Tables and Figures -- 1 The Expansion and Reorientation of Economics -- Part I. Comparing Research Methods -- 2 Comparing the Methodologies Used by Statisticians and Economists for Research and Modeling -- 3 Modeling Economic Behavior with System Dynamics: Theory and Practice -- Part II. Comparing Ideas on Economic Development -- 4 Imperialism and Competition in Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, and Economics: A Perspective From Development Economics

Human rights policing -- Connecting human rights to policing -- Police, agency and human rights -- The sociological imagination and human rights policing -- Engaging with the community on human rights -- Policy suggestions, human rights, and the future of policing.

"NYPD "Cop Doc" Dr. Dan Rudofossi delves into what it meant to live as a deep-cover operative through narratives with Joe Pistone, the FBI agent who spent six years living as Donnie Brasco as a member of the Bonanno crime family. When Operation Donnie Brasco abruptly closed, it was the longest and most successful infiltration of a Mafia family. Dr. Rudofossi underscores Pistone's genius to survive daily challenges of infiltration by using innovations in the ecological niches of Mafia violence. Donnie Brasco's "mental toughness," resilience, and ingenuity are understood through Rudofossi's signature eco-ethological existential analysis: Mapping out why and how trauma shaped functional dissociation as unconscious adaptation, the author's experience as a police psychologist-that is, a "cop doc"-helps decode the bigger picture of conflict, resolution, and compromise in the disparate worlds of policing and organized crime. This unique look at the costs and successes of tracking, infiltrating, arresting, and convicting those involved in organized crime is a groundbreaking read for law enforcement personnel, criminal justice, homeland security, law students, police psychologists, as well as anyone fascinated by the world of organized crime"--

An exploration of criminal trajectories, placing them in a developmental contextOver the past several years, notions of developmental trajectories—particularly criminal trajectories—have taken hold as important areas of investigation for researchers interested in the longitudinal study of crime. This accessible volume presents the first full-length overview of criminal trajectories as a concept and methodology and makes the case for a developmental approach to the topic.The volume shows how a developmental perspective is important from a practical standpoint, helping to inform the design of prevention and early intervention programs to forestall the onset of antisocial and criminal activity, particularly when it begins in childhood. Crime in this view does not suit a one-size-fits-all model. There are different types of criminals who develop as the result of different types of developmental factors and experiences. By considering what risk factors may set the stage for later crimes in certain circumstances, the authors argue that we may be able to intervene at any point along the life course and, if addressed early enough, prevent criminal behavior from taking root.Criminal Trajectories offers a comprehensive synthesis of the findings from numerous criminal trajectory studies, presented through a multi-disciplinary lens. It addresses the policy and practice implications of these findings for the criminal justice system—including a critique of current sentencing and incarceration practices—and presents twelve recommendations informed by developmental frameworks for future work

Sentencing Policies and Practices in the 21st Century focuses on the evolution and consequences of sentencing policies and practices, with sentencing broadly defined to include plea bargaining, judicial and juror decision making, and alternatives to incarceration, including participation in problem-solving courts. This collection of essays and reports of original research explores how sentencing policies and practices, both in the United States and internationally, have evolved, explores important issues raised by guideline and non-guideline sentencing, and provides an overview of recent research on plea bargaining in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Other topics include the role of criminal history in sentencing, the past and future of capital punishment, strategies for reducing mass incarceration, problem-solving courts, and restorative justice practices. Each chapter summarizes what is known, identifies the gaps in the research, and discusses the theoretical, empirical, and policy implications of the research findings. The volume is grounded in current knowledge about the specific topics, but also presents new material that reflects the thinking of the leading minds in the field and that outlines a research agenda for the future. This is Volume 4 of the American Society of Criminology's Division on Corrections and Sentencing handbook series. Previous volumes focused on risk assessment, disparities in punishment, and the consequences of punishment decisions. The handbooks provide a comprehensive overview of these topics for scholars, students, practitioners, and policymakers.

Birth of an empire -- Families -- Black swans -- Assassination -- Shergar ascendant -- You need a telescope to see the rest -- Guns and money -- A rough patch for the garda -- The man in the trilby -- Rugby and the captain -- The insurance game -- The usual suspects -- The French connections -- The pathologist and the skull -- The stallion probes