My favorite books on the economics of crime and justice

Why am I passionate about this?

Throughout my academic career, my chief scholarly interest has been to assess public policy using coherent theory and rigorous empirical method. The economics of crime and justice offers a powerful framework for achieving these ends.


I wrote...

Errors of Justice: Nature, Sources and Remedies

By Brian Forst,

Book cover of Errors of Justice: Nature, Sources and Remedies

What is my book about?

This book takes a new perspective on the assessment of criminal justice policy, focusing on the social costs of errors of justice – both the error of failing to bring offenders to justice and the error of imposing costs on innocent people and excessive costs on offenders. The book first lays the foundation for a commonsense approach to the management of the criminal justice system, from policing and prosecution to sentencing and corrections, then examines the sources of error in each sector, the harms they impose on society, and frameworks for analyzing and reducing them and their social costs. Errors of Justice received Book of the Year award from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences in 2006

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of White-Collar Crime

Brian Forst Why did I love this book?

Benson and Simpson use the opportunity perspective – assuming that crimes often depend on offenders recognizing an opportunity to commit an offense – to uncover the processes and situational conditions that induce white-collar crimes. 

They offer solutions to this persistent and widespread social problem, recognizing the difficulties of control.

The treatment is thoroughly researched and empirically supported. 

By Michael L. Benson, Sally S. Simpson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked White-Collar Crime as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

White-Collar Crime: An Opportunity Perspective analyzes white-collar crime within a coherent theoretical framework. Using the opportunity perspective, which assumes that all crimes depend on offenders recognizing an opportunity to commit an offense, the authors uncover the processes and situational conditions that facilitate white-collar crimes. In addition, they offer potential solutions to this persistent and widespread social problem without being reductive in their treatment of the difficulties of control.

With this third edition, Benson and Simpson have added substantive online teaching materials and expanded their coverage with up-to-date case studies and discussions of recent investigations into white-collar crime and control. These…


Book cover of The Costs of Crime and Justice

Brian Forst Why did I love this book?

Cohen offers a comprehensive sweep of the financial and non-financial consequences of criminal behavior, crime prevention, and society’s response to crime, public and private.  

Crime costs are far-reaching, including medical costs, lost wages, property damage, pain and suffering, and reduced quality of life for victims and the public at large, as well as public expenditures on police, courts, and prisons, and the costs borne by offenders and their families, who often suffer consequences apart from the punishments they receive for committing crime. 

By Mark A. Cohen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Costs of Crime and Justice as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This book presents a comprehensive view of the financial and non-financial consequences of criminal behavior, crime prevention, and society's response to crime. Crime costs are far-reaching, including medical costs, lost wages, property damage and pain, suffering, and reduced quality of life for victims and the public at large; police, courts, and prisons; and offenders and their families who may suffer consequences incidental to any punishment they receive for committing crime.

The book provides a comprehensive economic framework and overview of the empirical methodologies used to estimate costs of crime. It provides an assessment of what is known and where the…


Book cover of Controlling Crime: Strategies and Tradeoffs

Brian Forst Why did I love this book?

Controlling Crime uses an economic approach to examine ways to reduce crime without sacrificing public safety.

Topics include criminal justice system reform, social policy, government policies affecting alcohol and drug abuse, and private crime prevention approaches.

 Attention is paid to the respective roles of both the private sector and government agencies.

Through a broad conceptual framework and a careful review of the relevant literature, this volume provides insight into the effectiveness of a wide variety of interventions to reduce crime. 

By Philip J. Cook, Jens Ludwig, Justin McCrary

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Controlling Crime as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Criminal justice expenditures have more than doubled since the 1980s, dramatically increasing costs to the public. With state and local revenue shortfalls resulting from the recent recession, the question of whether crime control can be accomplished either with fewer resources or by investing those resources in areas other than the criminal justice system is all the more relevant. "Controlling Crime" considers alternative ways to reduce crime that do not sacrifice public safety. Among the topics considered here are criminal justice system reform, social policy, and government policies affecting alcohol abuse, drugs, and private crime prevention. Particular attention is paid to…


Book cover of The Privatization of Policing: Two Views

Brian Forst Why did I love this book?

This book presents contrasting views on the privatization of policing: whether it is mostly a good thing, its downsides, and which aspects of policing lend themselves to privatization. 

Forst argues that a blend of public and private policing can provide a more equitable and efficient delivery of policing services than can public police alone.  

Manning, unfriendly to economics and management efficiency, takes a dramaturgical perspective, concluding that those paradigms are fundamentally at odds with the traditional policing mandate, which confers on the government a monopoly on the use of coercion. 

By Brian Forst, Peter K. Manning,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Privatization of Policing as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The increasing reliance on private security services raises questions about the effects of privatization on the quality of public police forces, particularly in high-crime, low-income areas. In an effective pro-and-con format, two experts on policing offer two strikingly different perspectives on this trend towards privatization. In the process, they provide an unusually thoughtful discussion of the origins of both the public police and the private security sectors, the forces behind the recent growth of private security operations, and the risks to public safety posed by privatization. In his critique of privatization, Peter K. Manning focuses on issues of free market…


Book cover of An Economic Analysis of Crime and Justice: Theory, Methods, and Applications

Brian Forst Why did I love this book?

This book applies economic theory and econometric methods to problems in criminology.

It is divided into three parts. Part I discusses models of criminal recidivism. Part II describes the economic model of crime. Part III estimates cost functions for prisons.

Specific chapters cover statistical analysis of qualitative outcomes; analysis of two measures of criminal activity – the arrest rate and the conviction rate; and long-run estimates of cost functions for a group of Federal Correctional Institutions. 

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Book cover of Who Will Take Care of Me When I'm Old?: Plan Now to Safeguard Your Health and Happiness in Old Age

Joy Loverde

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Who Will Take Care of Me When I'm Old?: Plan Now to Safeguard Your Health and Happiness in Old Age

By Joy Loverde,

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