A Chair of Criminology at the French National Council of Universities: State Driven Criminology, Threat Centred Approaches, and the Lack of Academic Credibility

Abstract

The recent introduction of criminology in France is politically motivated and state-driven. It follows the principles dictated by Alain Bauer, former security advisor of President Nicolas Sarkozy, who both favor research on criminality only to arrest criminals. Their vision of criminology is designed to address urban criminality and blue collar crime, while failing to recognize crimes perpetrated by the powerful and the companies.