Criminology in Canada: Theories, Patterns, and Typologies (Third Edition)

By Larry J. Siegel and Chris McCormick
Scarborough, ON: Thomson Nelson, 2006

Criminology in Canada: Theories, Patterns, and Typologies (Criminology in Canada) is an introductory criminology text, which many readers may be familiar with. The text explores many topics necessary for an introductory criminology course and is divided into three sections. Section 1 covers an introduction to crime and criminology, including: what is criminology, what are the origins and functions of law, what is the nature and extent of crime in Canada, and a chapter on victims and victimization. Section 2 covers theories of crime and criminality, while Section 3 introduces the reader to crime typologies. The text would be more instructive, for an introductory reader, if it were organized with a statistical profile of crime and a discussion of victimization following the chapters on theories of crime and in separate sections. The text has four chapters dedicated to typologies of crime: violent crime, property crime, white-collar, corporate and organized crime, and public order crimes. The chapters on violent and property crime could be combined to create room for chapters that would also cover special topics in criminology (i.e. young offenders, the intersections of gender, race and class and crime, etc) in addition to the important chapters on the nature and extent of crime and victims and victimization.

The text provides a clear and concise overview of the major theories of crime and crime causation, which is the strongpoint of the text. The authors’ cover the basics of each theory and link the discussion of theory to a relevant issue but do not always provide a clear outline of the criticisms or drawbacks of a theory. A clear discussion of the shortcomings of theory is integral to a student’s ability to evaluate the usefulness and applicability of the theory in explaining crime.

While the authors’ do an adequate job of covering the major theories of crime they at times gloss over major current criminological theories. For example, while theories and explanations of female crime have become salient issues in criminology, the text lacks any significant discussion on the offending patterns of girls and women and provides little information on the relationship between gender and crime. While scattered references are made to gender they are more evident in the chapter on the ‘The Nature and Extent of Crime’, which explores crime trends and patterns. Social class, race, gender and age are very briefly discussed within this context but this short-lived discussion fails to provide the reader with enough information to critically assess the importance of these issues as they relate to crime in Canada.

The authors’ incorporate current research into the readings by including research from Statistics Canada, the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics and the General Social Survey as they relate to the topic of discussion. They also include relevant Supreme Court rulings and public policy that allows students to draw connections between crime and larger social issues. These additions improve on the usefulness of the text and are for the most part new to the third addition, which makes this edition much more functional than the first or second editions.

Larry Siegel’s text, Criminology: Theories, Patterns, and Typologies, now in its 8th edition, is written for an American audience and it appears this text was also the framework for the Canadian edition. For example, the ‘Time Line of Criminological Theories’, is a clear and useful reference guide for students but the time line is based on American history. Reference points include: the Cold War, the Vietnam War, Watergate, the Regan Era and the Clinton Administration, which is not practical for Canadian students. 

This text is recommended for first and second year students who will read about core topics in an introductory criminology course, including: what is crime, why we have laws, who typically commits crime, what types of crimes are often committed, and how much crime there really is. Students will also develop an understanding for victimization, will be introduced to the basic tenants of the major theories of crime, and will learn about different types of crime. I would recommend Criminology in Canada but suggest using the text in conjunction with supplementary readings to strengthen areas where the text is lacking.