ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the previous studies of the relationships between political processes and crime/the criminal justice system. We identify three broad approaches to these studies, which focus on what we describe as Parliamentary Narrativism, Sociological and Political Science Narrativism, and a third approach which provides a Macro-Economic Perspective. We outline these three approaches, summarising their overall approach and the variables and levels of explanation which they operate at and the sorts of processes they seek to explain (changes in punitiveness and criminal justice legislation or increases in crime). Of course, none are “right” and none are “wrong,” but in critiquing these approaches, we find that whilst each has strengths, none provides a thorough explanation of the relationships between crime and political processes. We close this chapter by outlining the approach which we have adopted, and which draws upon many of the studies we outline herein.
