ABSTRACT
Chapters 5 through 8 have examined explanations of crime in terms of the offending individual. Rational choice theorists, for example, employ the concept of free will, and argue that people are rational beings who decide whether or not to violate the law. Biogenic theorists assume that genetic or other differences place some people at high risk of law violation. Social structure and process theorists view the individual as acting within the specifi c contexts of his or her environment. Depending upon the nature of these contexts, persons are thought to have varying probabilities of becoming involved in criminal activity.
