Stephen Farrall

Bio: Stephen Farrall is an academic researcher from University of Sheffield. The author has contributed to research in topics: Fear of crime & Poison control. The author has an hindex of 43, co-authored 154 publications receiving 6677 citations. Previous affiliations of Stephen Farrall include University of Birmingham & University of Oxford.

Rethinking What Works with Offenders: Probation, Social Context and Desistance from Crime

Abstract: Contents Foreword by Christine Knott (Chief Officer, Greater Manchester Probation Area) Introduction. Part 1 Introduction 1 Probation, social context and desistance from crime: introducing the agenda 2 Realism, criminal careers and complexity 3 The Study Part 2 Probation, motivation and social contexts 4 Defining 'success' 5 The focus of probation 6 Resolving obstacles: the role of probation supervision 7 Motivation and probation 8 Probation work: content and context 9 Motivation, changing contexts and probation supervision Part 3 Persistance and desistance 10 Desistance, change and probation supervision 11 The factors associated with offending Part 4 Conclusions 12 Probation, social context and desistance from crime: developing the agenda Index

QUESTIONING THE MEASUREMENT OF THE ‘FEAR OF CRIME’: Findings from a Major Methodological Study

Abstract: Research upon the fear of crime has grown substantially in recent years. From its very inception, this field has relied almost exclusively upon quantitative surveys, which have suggested that the fear of crime is a prevalent social problem. However, doubts about the nature of the instruments used to investigate this phenomenon have cumulatively raised the possibility that the fear of crime has been significantly misrepresented. Dealing with the epistemological, conceptual, operational and technical critiques of quantitative surveys in general and of fear of crime surveys in particular, this article suggests that our understanding of the fear of crime is a product of the way it has been researched rather than the way it is. As the aim of the research project under which this data was collected was to develop and design new quantitative questions, the article ends with some possible solutions to the epistemological, conceptual, operational and technical problems discussed which may improve future quantitative research in this field.

Gender, socially desirable responding and the fear of crime: Are women really more anxious about crime?

Abstract: In this article, the authors use survey data to explore relationships between gender, fear of crime and socially desirable responding. The data show that for men, but not women, reported fear levels are inversely related to scores on a so-called 'lie scale', which measures the tendency to provide socially desirable rather than totally candid responses. This pattern holds irrespective of age and suggests that the genders are affected differently by social pressure to downplay fears about crime. Statistical analyses suggest that this tendency is likely to be responsible for the observed inclination for males to report lower levels of crime-related anxieties. In fact, males may actually be more afraid of crime than women when this tendency is quantified and corrected for. The results raise concerns about apparent gender differences in fear of crime, and about the use of fear of crime measures more generally. The present findings may also go some way to resolving the victimization-fear and fear-risk paradoxes which for so long have mystified criminologists. The article ends with some recommendations for research into the fear of crime.

Structuration, human development and desistance from crime

Abstract: Understanding how and why offenders stop committing offences is crucial for the development of effective crime prevention and criminal justice practices. Yet desistance has been the subject of little empirical research and relatively neglected by theory. In this article, the authors attempt to move beyond existing approaches to desistance which are limited by a tendency to focus on either aspects of human agency (e.g. decision making) or aspects of social structure (e.g. employment status and family responsibilities). Drawing on structuration and human development theories, and an examination of existing research on the ending of criminal careers, this article works towards an integrated theory of desistance. Empirical data drawn from a study of 34 life histories are used to illustrate the potential of a theory that combines an analysis of individual decisions and structural constraints. The authors present evidence to suggest that changes in the relative level and nature of individual power offers a new avenue of research for those wishing to explain desistance.

Social Order and the Fear of Crime in Contemporary Times

Abstract: The fear of crime has been recognized as an important social problem in its own right, with a significant number of citizens in many countries concerned about crime In this book, the authors critically review the main findings from over 35 years of research into attitudes to crime, highlighting groups who are most fearful of crime and exploring the theories used to account for that fear Using this research, the authors move on to propose a new model for the fear of crime, arguing that such methods, which involve intensity questions (such as 'how worried are you about x '), may actually conflate an 'expressive' or 'attitudinal' component of the fear of crime with an experiential component and therefore fail to provide a comprehensive insight into how crime is perceived Taking an entirely new approach to their subject, the authors use existing quantitative data from the British Crime Survey to pose theoretically informed questions to help identify those who only 'expressively' fear crime, separating them from those who have the actual experience of worrying about crime By exploring the extent to which each group has different social attitudes and backgrounds, and whether there is more than one social/cultural form of the fear of crime, this innovative and exciting title promises to reposition this aspect of criminology to a more prominent place

Making Good: How Ex-Convicts Reform and Rebuild Their Lives

Abstract: Can hardened criminals really reform? "Making Good" provides resounding proof that the answer is yes. This book provides a fascinating narrative analysis of the lives of repeat offenders who, by all statistical measures, should have continued on the criminal path but instead have created lives of productivity and purpose. This examination of the phenomenology of "making good" includes an encyclopedic review of the literature on personal reform as well as a practical guide to the use of narratives in offender counseling and rehabilitation.The author's research shows that criminals who desist from crime have constructed powerful narratives that aided them in making sense of their pasts, finding fulfillment in productive behaviors, and feeling in control of their future. Borrowing from the field of narrative psychology, Maruna argues that to truly understand offenders, we must understand the stories that they tell - and that in turn this story-making process has the capacity to transform lives. "Making Good" challenges some of the cherished assumptions of various therapy models for offenders and supports new paradigms for offender rehabilitation. This groundbreaking book is a must read for criminologists, forensic psychologists, lawyers, rehabilitation counselors, or anyone interested in the generative process of change.

The culture of control: crime and social order in contemporary, society

Abstract: Nos últimos trinta trinta anos, houve profundas mudanças na forma como compreendemos o crime e a justiça criminal. O crime tornou-se um evento simbólico, um verdadeiro teste para a ordem social e para as políticas governamentais, um desafio para a sociedade civil, para a democracia e para os direitos humanos. Segundo David Garland, professor da Faculdade de Direito da New York University, um dos principais autores no campo da Sociologia da Punição e com artigo publicado na Revista de Sociologia e Política , número 13, na modernidade tardia houve uma verdadeira obsessão securitária, direcionando as políticas criminais para um maior rigor em relação às penas e maior intolerância com o criminoso. Há trinta anos, nos EUA e na Inglaterra essa tendência era insuspeita. O livro mostra que os dois países compartilham intrigantes similaridades em suas práticas criminais, a despeito da divisão racial, das desigualdades econômicas e da letalidade violenta que marcam fortemente o cenário americano. Segundo David Garland, encontram-se nos dois países os “mesmos tipos de riscos e inseguranças, a mesma percepção a respeito dos problemas de um controle social não-efetivo, as mesmas críticas da justiça criminal tradicional, e as mesmas ansiedades recorrentes sobre mudança e ordem sociais”1 (GARLAND, 2001, p. 2). O argumento principal da obra é o seguinte: a modernidade tardia, esse distintivo padrão de relações sociais, econômicas e culturais, trouxe consigo um conjunto de riscos, inseguranças e problemas de controle social que deram uma configuração específica às nossas respostas ao crime, ao garantir os altos custos das políticas criminais, o grau máximo de duração das penas e a excessivas taxas de encarceramento.

Gender, Crime, and Desistance: Toward a Theory of Cognitive Transformation

Abstract: This article analyzes data derived from the first detailed long‐term follow‐up of a sample of serious adolescent female delinquents and similarly situated males. Neither marital attachment nor job stability, factors frequently associated with male desistance from crime, were strongly related to female or male desistance. A symbolic‐interactionist perspective on desistance is developed as a counterpoint to Sampson and Laub’s theory of informal social control, and life history narratives are used to illustrate the perspective. This cognitive theory is generally compatible with a control approach but (a) adds specificity regarding underlying change mechanisms, (b) explains some negative cases, and (c) fits well with life course challenges facing contemporary serious female (and more provisionally male) offenders.