Abstract Mayhew and colleagues (1976) showed that opportunities for crime matter, sparking a revolution in crime theory, research, and prevention. But they could not resolve a conflict between subjective and objective interpretations of opportunity: does a crime opportunity depend on an offender perceiving it, or is it an objective fact of a situation? We reconcile these interpretations. Using a vehicle theft example, we illustrate the conflict and suggest that the subjective interpretation helps describe opportunity exploitation by offenders; only an objective interpretation can account for opportunity creation. We review 62 ideas elaborating crime opportunities. These ideas show that crime scientists embrace both opportunity exploitation and opportunity creation, which we call the Janus-faced opportunity perspective . It requires us to replace the offender view of opportunity with three alternative views: one subjective and two objective. Each has strengths and weaknesses. We conclude that the assumed conflict disappears when we realize that we use subjective explanations and objective explanations for different purposes.

ABSTRACT Involvement of corporations in international crimes and conflict atrocities, such as crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide, are neither isolated events nor uncommon. Importantly, corporate involvement in atrocity crimes is shaped by conditions in “zones of legal risk” (International Commission of Jurists), where gross human rights violations, atrocity crimes and extreme violence are pervasive. In this context, corporations become complicit in the most serious state crimes. The empirical study of 205 historical and contemporary cases across all global regions in a total of 36 countries explores patterns of involvement starting from the conceptual framework developed by the International Commission of Jurists. We identify six “risk profiles” of involvement defined by industry type, partners in such crimes, and the type of involvement and contribution to the crimes. Our results showcase the relationship between corporate characteristics and risks of involvement in serious violence for different risk profiles across space and time. Starting from a legal conceptual framework, we discuss how these results contribute to criminological theories of corporate crime, as well as to regulation theory and practice.

Abstract The decision to intervene when witnessing a crime is central to understanding bystander behavior and social control, yet there remain large gaps in knowledge about the factors that shape the decision to intervene and how. Drawing on theories of reactive guardianship, procedural justice, and crime reporting, we propose a broader conceptual framework of reactive guardianship and bystander decision‐making that considers both official (e.g., calling the police) and unofficial (e.g., confronting the offender) interventions. Using data from a national sample ( N = 1901) and a preregistered, video‐based, factorial experiment that manipulates both offender and victim race (Black vs. White), we explore the joint roles of race, policing attitudes, danger perceptions, and key individual characteristics in shaping bystander responses to crime. Findings indicate that policing‐related cognitions and emotions, gun ownership, and bystander characteristics (e.g., race, gender) are associated with differences in how people respond when they witness criminal offending. This study advances theories of formal and informal social control and offers policy‐relevant insights for improving public safety and trust in law enforcement.

Abstract While the possibility of reaching human-like Artificial Intelligence (AI) remains controversial, the likelihood that the future will be characterized by a society with a growing presence of autonomous machines is high. In fact, autonomous AI agents are already deployed and active across several industries and digital environments. This trajectory points to a progressive hybridization of society marked by new forms of social interaction at both micro and macro levels. Alongside traditional human-human and human-machine interactions, machine-machine interactions are poised to become increasingly prevalent. Given these developments, I argue that criminology must begin to address the implications of this transition for crime and social control. Drawing on Actor–Network Theory and Woolgar’s decades-old call for a sociology of machines – frameworks that acquire renewed relevance with the rise of AI foundation models and generative agents – I contend that criminologists should move beyond conceiving AI solely as a tool. Instead, AI agents should be recognized as entities with agency, understood as a multi-layered construct encompassing computational, social, and legal dimensions. Building on insights from the literature on AI safety, I thus examine the risks and challenges associated with the rise of multi-agent AI systems, proposing a dual taxonomy to characterize the channels through which interactions among AI agents may generate deviant, unlawful, or criminal outcomes. I then advance and discuss four key questions that warrant theoretical and empirical attention: (1) Can we assume that machines will simply mimic humans? (2) Will crime theories developed for humans hence suffice to explain deviant or criminal behaviors emerging from interactions between autonomous AI agents? (3) What types of criminal behaviors will be affected first? (4) How might this unprecedented societal shift impact policing? These questions form the core of this article, underscoring the urgent need for criminologists to theoretically and empirically engage with the implications of multi-agent AI systems for the study of crime and play a more active role in debates on AI safety and governance.

With the rapid development of the capital market, financial fraud cases have occurred frequently, seriously damaging the interests of investors and market order. Guanghui Logistics Company has attracted a lot of attention in recent years due to its financial fraud issues. Its fraud methods are complex and the impact is wide-ranging, making it a typical case for research. Based on the CRIME theory, this article conducts a relatively in-depth and comprehensive analysis of the event from the five aspects of fraud actors, means, motives, regulatory mechanisms, and consequences. Then, through the analysis of the event, it summarizes and puts forward relevant suggestions for preventing financial fraud from the perspectives of actors, motives, and supervision, aiming to provide assistance for the stable operation of China's financial market environment and the users of financial information.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the applicability of conventional criminological theories to white-collar offenders involved in cryptocurrency-related market manipulation, specifically pump-and-dump schemes. Using Sutherland’s differential association (DA) framework as a theoretical foundation, this research tests whether demographic and theoretical factors – such as self-control, DA, anomie and strain – predict illegal financial behavior in emerging digital markets. Design/methodology/approach Survey data from a national sample of US adults on the promotion of cryptocurrencies for financial gain were analyzed using t-tests and regression models. Findings The findings of this study suggest that traditional theories of crime, including DA, anomie and strain, lose predictive significance when demographic variables are considered. High-income, male and younger individuals were most likely to engage in cryptocrime in general. Overall, the results of this study highlight the complexity of white-collar criminality in digital spaces and suggest that financial and demographic factors outweigh conventional criminological theories when predicting involvement in cryptocrime. Originality/value This paper considers early notions of white-collar crime against modern online financial crimes. The authors addressed the intersection of criminological theory and modern cryptocurrency crime.

Efforts to smuggle narcotics (drugs/dangerous substances) into Indonesia from abroad have not stopped or decreased; in fact, they tend to be stable without any significant decrease. Indonesia is still a fertile field for narcotics smugglers with various modes, especially narcotics brought by foreign nationals. The proposed problem formulation is as follows: What factors increase the occurrence of narcotics smuggling by foreign nationals when viewed from the theory of criminal organizations? Second, how will the government's efforts to combat transnational narcotics smuggling be in the future? Related to the theory of transnational criminal organizations and the steps taken by the Indonesian government in overcoming and eradicating organized transnational narcotics smuggling crimes committed by foreign nationals. The author's analysis method in this study is normative legal research examining applicable laws, literature, and norms related to the problems studied, using secondary, primary, and tertiary materials. The global crisis has encouraged the rise of the narcotics business, which is linked to the theory of transnational organized crime related to syndicate organizations, as can be seen in the still high number of narcotics smuggling cases in Indonesia, amounting to 240 cases from 2024 to March 2025. The Indonesian government should take the following steps to overcome this crime: strengthen human resources, conduct counseling and surveys, support technological facilities and infrastructure, increase cooperation with other countries, and involve the community in eradicating narcotics smuggling.

ABSTRACT This article advocates incorporating theories of criminalization into theories of democratization. The article adds to the growing theory and analysis of democratic policing and the role of policing in societies transitioning to, and away from, democracy. It provides some tools of analysis to look at criminal law and policing in popular autocracies. The link between criminalization, policing, and securitization is also considered. Adopting a critical analysis of the importance of the rule of law to democratization and how critical legal and criminology theories have analyzed the rule of law, it looks at how the criminal law can be used to control target populations. The article suggests that democratization analysts could benefit from more closely scrutinizing criminal laws and policing in backsliding democracies. Democracy analysts often use a positivist and institutionalist view of policing but insights from critical criminology and legal theories provides a deeper ability to analyze policing and power in transitional societies. Given that overcriminalization is often popular, the article concludes that populists and autocrats in backsliding democracies will increasingly securitize criminal threats and use criminal law to increase their powers and at the same time increase their popularity.

ABSTRACT Over two decades ago, Robert Agnew formulated his General Theory of Crime and Delinquency in which he maintains that crime is more likely to occur when constraints against such behaviors are low and motivations for them are high. Understanding that numerous influences can either act as a constraint against crime or motivation for it, Agnew grouped these correlates into five life domains: self, family, school, work, and peer. Using data from the Evaluation of the Gang Resistance Education and Training (GREAT) Program in the United States, 1995–1999, this study examines the direct and indirect effects of the self, family, school, and peer domains on teen drug use. The study found partial support for the theory as not all life domains significantly predicted teen drug use, and some effects were mediated by the constraint and motivation factors. Therefore, Agnew’s General Theory of Crime and Delinquency appears to be somewhat applicable for understanding teen drug use.

ABSTRACT Video game environments are a place of social interaction for millions of people around the globe, but increasing monetization and connection to third-party transaction systems create risks for financial cybercrime. This study analyses the overlap between perpetration and victimization of financially motivated cybercrime in video game settings and its relationship with gaming self-control and risky online behaviors associated with gaming. Latent class analysis and a regression model estimated on a sample of 1812 adult video game players in Spain find evidence of victim-offender overlap regarding online fraud in gaming environments as well as co-occurrence with multiple forms of deviance (causing offense and gaming disruption), potentially risky financial activities (such as trading in cryptocurrencies), and gaming self-control problems. As such, we contribute to the literature by applying the established frameworks of general theory of crime, risky lifestyles theory, and online disinhibition to the study of financial crime in a digital setting of growing social relevance. We discuss these findings in relation to gaming platforms’ responsibilities to protect users in the context of legislative obligations such as the EU Digital Services Act and outline how they can guide some possible approaches to prevention.

The increasing involvement of male youths in criminal activities within Kinondoni District, Dar es Salaam, reflects a complex interplay of socioeconomic, human resource, and demographic factors. This multidisciplinary study investigates the root causes of youth criminality by integrating perspectives from Human Resource Management (HRM), criminology, and social development. Specifically, it examines how unemployment, poverty, lack of vocational skills, family disintegration, peer pressure, and urban marginalization contribute to criminal behavior among jobless male youths. Guided by the economic theory of crime, social control theory, and age-graded theory, the study employs a mixed-methods approach, Convergent Parallel designed with pragmatism philosophy. Data were collected from 93 respondents including prisoners, police officers, ward executive officers, and youth using stratified and purposive sampling techniques. Tools such as structured questionnaires, interviews, and police document reviews were employed. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively, while 10 informants who volunteered after filling questionnaire were interviewed and data underwent thematic analysis while documentary data involved content analysis. The findings reveal that male youths aged 15–21 are particularly vulnerable to crime due to a combination of economic hardship, poor family structures, social exclusion, and lack of access to employment and skills training. The study concludes that youth crime prevention requires a holistic, cross-sectoral strategy involving economic empowerment, targeted Human Resource Management interventions, community engagement, and social policy reforms. It recommends investing in skill-building programs, employment pathways, and community-based rehabilitation initiatives to address the root causes of youth involvement in crime and promote long-term social stability.

Previous research has identified attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and low self-control as risk factors for aggressive behavior. While associations among these variables have been widely documented, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Grounded in the General Theory of Crime, this study investigates the relationship between ACEs and aggression, with a particular focus on the mediating roles of ADHD and self-control in a serial mediation model. Based on the theoretically grounded assumption that ACEs contribute to adult ADHD symptomatology, which impairs self-control and predicts aggressive behavior, this study examines the dynamic interplay among these constructs in a mixed-gender sample of 350 participants aged 18 to 76years (M = 34.9, SD = 13.1). Serial mediation analyses revealed positive associations between ACEs and aggression, as well as between ACEs and ADHD. Additionally, a significant positive correlation was observed between ADHD and aggression. Conversely, self-control exhibited a negative relationship with both ADHD and aggression. Mediation analyses indicated that ADHD and self-control partially mediated the link between ACEs and aggression in adults irrespective of gender and age. Our results suggest that violence prevention efforts could benefit from early interventions aimed at reducing ACEs, diagnostic assessment and treatment of ADHD symptoms, and therapeutic interventions designed to enhance self-control and thereby mitigate their impact on aggression.

Targeted killings by state actors are critical challenge for forensic and criminological analysis, especially in a cross-border context. Despite much criminological and policy discussion, a striking lack exists of a systematic process of integration of visual and forensic information used to measure the validity of official accounts of investigations. This research uses the concepts of State Crime Theory and Crime Scene Reconstruction Theory to put state actions in perspective and understand forensic data in the context of accountability. A qualitative case study approach adopting an interpretivist paradigm was used to analyze source materials for this project, which included publicly available fact-finding reports, crime scene photographs, ballistics records, post-mortem results and narrative versions of the investigation. Visual content analysis, ballistic trajectory analysis and narrative-forensic consistency analysis showed that there were great discrepancies between what was being said and what the material evidence showed. Major points such as directional, controlled fire that is not related to moving vehicles, biomechanically impossible trajectories of wounds, patterned bloodstains that are spatially confined, and deviations in processing of evidence are significant. These results illustrate the effectiveness of forensic and visual evidence combination to visualize event dynamics and the critical analysis of the legitimacy of force use by the state. On the basis of these results, the research suggests the use of uniform forensic guidelines, consistency theories on evidences/ narratives, special investigators, and external controls as solutions to enhance accountability, transparency, and integrity of operations in politically sensitive or transnational murders and all other associated crimes. All in all, this study provides a replicable methodology of forensic evaluation of targeted murders that connects empirical studies and theoretical criticism and provides empirical advice on policy and investigative practice.

This article is devoted to the analysis of one of the key principles of optimal law enforcement in the economic theory of crime and punishment — the principle of marginal deterrence. Despite its importance of for organizing an effective fight against crime, there is no consensus understanding of it even at the theoretical level, which makes it difficult to empirically test the effectiveness of marginal deterrence. Here we consider in detail alternative approaches of researchers to understanding this principle, as well as the impact that different understandings have on the optimal policy of public law enforcement and crime deterrence. In this article, we also propose an original model of marginal deterrence that fills a noticeable theoretical gap: the crimes between which a potential offender chooses in our model differ from each other not in the income they can bring him, but in the probability for him to avoid punishment. The main conclusion: the severity of punishment for a crime with a higher probability of detection, in general law enforcement, not only has an internal optimum, but most likely this optimum will be lower than the traditional solution for cases where it exists, in which the optimal severity of punishment is equal to the amount of damage caused to society by the offense, divided by the probability of punishment. This result also holds for cases where the social damage from a crime with a lower probability of detection and punishment of the offender does not exceed the similar damage for an alternative crime characterized by a higher probability of detection.

Backsliding Democracy and the Criminal Law: Using Criminalization to Build Power and Popularity

Cyberbullying is a growing concern, intensified by the widespread use of the Internet, social media, and mobile technologies. Features such as anonymity, impersonation, and the instantaneous reach to vast audiences enabled by these technologies further amplify the risks associated with cyberbullying. Although an extensive body of literature has examined cyberbullying, there remains a notable gap in socio-technical discourse, particularly concerning how individuals engage with social and technological environments to perpetrate cyberbullying. Specifically, the nuanced roles of technology and the dynamic interplay among offenders, victims, technologies, and forms of guardianship are rarely explored in depth within the existing literature. This study addresses these gaps by analyzing 75 court cases of cyberbullying, applying the principles of the general theory of crime (GTC) and routine activity theory (RAT) through a socio-technical lens that focuses on the offender, the victim, the technologies involved, and guardianship. The findings reveal two distinct processes by which cyberbullying emerges: “fist-to-click” and “born-digital.” These categories provide novel insights into the trajectories of adult cyberbullying and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon.

The article provides a comprehensive criminal-law analysis of the problem of illegal sale of donor blood and its components in the context of ensuring the right to health care under conditions of martial law or a state of emergency, as well as during epidemics and pandemics. The relevance of the study is determined by the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which has led to a significant increase in the number of persons requiring urgent transfusion care and has enhanced the strategic importance of donor blood as an indispensable and limited medical resource. The paper substantiates the thesis that the current criminal legislation of Ukraine lacks a special legal provision that would define as criminally punishable the socially dangerous manifestations of illegal sale of donor blood and its components under crisis conditions. The author critically analyses the provisions of Article 143 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and demonstrates that blood and its components cannot be regarded as the object of the criminal offense provided for in paragraph 4 of this Article. This is explained by the use, within the field of transplantation, of a narrow interpretation of the concept of “human anatomical materials.” Particular attention is paid to the correlation between medical and legal approaches to defining the concept of human anatomical materials. It is proven that, from a medical perspective, blood constitutes a type of human anatomical material. At the same time, at the level of national legislation and international legal instruments in the field of transplantation (in particular, Directive 2004/23/EC), blood and its components are deliberately excluded from the legal regulation of transplantation, as they are not used in the application of this method of treatment. Accordingly, an expansive interpretation of the object of the crime provided for in Article 143 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine is inadmissible and contrary to current legislation. The article reviews judicial practice related to the illegal circulation of donor blood and its components, which demonstrates the absence of a unified approach to the criminal-law qualification of such acts. It is emphasized that in a number of cases law enforcement authorities and courts unjustifiably apply the provisions of paragraph 4 of Article 143 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, whereas a more appropriate qualification of such acts lies under general criminal law provisions, in particular Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. It should also be taken into account that, under current legislation, the illegal sale of donor blood entails administrative liability pursuant to Article 45-1 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses. A separate section of the paper is devoted to the analysis of the grounds for criminalizing the illegal sale of donor blood and its components under crisis conditions. Drawing on the theoretical framework of the theory of criminalization, the author substantiates the existence of a set of objective and subjective factors that justify the expediency of establishing criminal liability for such acts during periods of martial law or a state of emergency, as well as during epidemics and pandemics. It is argued that administrative-law measures are insufficient under these conditions, while the illegal sale of donor blood poses a direct threat to the life and health of a significant number of individuals and undermines the state’s capacity to perform its fundamental social functions.

In 1797, Paul Johann Anselm von Feuerbach —widely regarded as one of the founding fathers of modern criminal theory— published Anti-Hobbes, one of his most significant philosophical works. Like much of Feuerbach's work, this book remained untranslated into Spanish until 2010, when the Spanish edition was published. Nevertheless, Anti-Hobbes has received significant attention in Latin American legal philosophy over the last fifteen years, with reviews and critical texts being published. In this text, I will analyse critical remarks against Feuerbach's ideas in Anti-Hobbes made by three Latin American authors in recent years: Mauro Benente's leftist critique, Santiago Truccone’s republican critique, and Eugenio Raúl Zaffaroni's critique of punishment theory. I will demonstrate that, although the discussion was stimulating, none of the critical remarks are conclusive.

The maxim of Societas delinquere non potest has mutated into the non-maxim but accepted Societas delinquere potest, whereby the legal person, in addition to being a passive subject of criminal law, becomes an active subject, but under the question of not having the capacity for criminal action and guilt; in this context, the present investigation was proposed to probe the current theoretical doctrinal state on which the responsibility of the legal person is based, with the general objective of analyzing the models of criminal imputation of the criminal responsibility of the business entity. Under a qualitative approach and using legal research methods of theoretical, historical and exegetical analysis, the results show the existence of models that run between the imputation of self-responsibility, of hetero-responsibility, mixed model, and the model of organization and management, where criminal responsibility is conditioned to the organizational defects of the company. The study warns about the lack of imputation schemes based on criminal dogma, which allowed us to conclude about the legal paradox that, even though there is a legislative recognition of criminal liability of the legal entity, the models do not show a coherent criminal theory and doctrine of corporate imputation.

This article re-examines the legitimacy of criminal regulation of cannabis use within the theoretical framework of the Hart-Devlin debate, with a view to clarifying the limits of criminal law intervention in cases of so-called “harmless immorality.” To this end, it first compares and analyzes Hart’s liberal theory of criminalization, which inherits John Stuart Mill’s harm principle, with Devlin’s legal moralism, which justifies the exercise of the penal power on the basis of majority morality and social cohesion. On that basis, it offers a theoretical account of how the competing values of individual self-determination, public health, and the protection of minors are structured in contemporary debates over cannabis regulation. The article then examines the processes of decriminalization and legalization of cannabis, as well as the associated constitutional debates, in jurisdictions such as the United States, Canada, and Germany, and explores their tensions with the international drug control regime established under United Nations conventions. It further surveys empirical research on the extent to which criminal law-centered drug policies have in fact contributed to reducing drug use, lowering crime rates, and improving public health outcomes. On the domestic front, the article analyzes the structure of blanket criminalization of cannabis use and possession under the Korean Narcotics Control Act, together with the reasoning of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, and identifies the points at which the current legislative scheme either conflicts with, or operates in a manner that undermines, core modern principles of criminal law such as ultima ratio, the prohibition of excessive punishment, and the protection of adult individuals’ freedom in self-regarding conduct. Building on this analysis, it proposes a phased decriminalization strategy that clearly distinguishes between mere use/possession and profit-motivated distribution/ trafficking, and that shifts the regulatory model for the former toward an administrative, treatment- and education-oriented public health approach. Overall, by taking the debate over cannabis regulation as a focal case, the article reconstructs the classical confrontation between liberalism and legal moralism regarding the justification and limits of criminalization, and, through the integration of comparative and empirical analysis, argues for a fundamental reconsideration of Korean criminal law at both the legislative and interpretive levels.