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‘Crimino-Entrepreneurial Behaviour’: Developing a Theoretically Based Behavioural Matrix to Identify and Classify

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Abstract

This chapter offers a much-needed summary of how to identify what is collectively referred to as ‘crimino-entrepreneurial behaviour’ due to its spanning of two disparate human efficacies—crime and entrepreneurship. Given that it is a theoretically unexplored territory, the chapter provides a behavioural matrix from which politicians, policy makers, theorists and practitioners can identify and categorise examples of criminal entrepreneurship in real live cases. This is of vital importance given the theoretical paucity in relation to the topic. The matrix illustrates the multi-disciplinary theoretical complexity of such entrepreneurial behaviour present within the paradigm and the flexibility of the matrix as an investigative tool. Finally, the chapter closes with a discussion of the findings and implications for future research.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    It must be noted however that Professor Petter Gottschalk a renowned expert in criminal entrepreneurship does teach classes to police officers at the Norwegian Police Academy as well as teach Leadership at the Norwegian School of Management.

  2. 2.

    This author encourages readers to try out the framework on cases that they have knowledge and awareness of. This would make a good tutorial or student exercise. For example, students should be encouraged to use the framework to analyse and theorise (1) a television series such as “The Wire”, “Gomorrah” or perhaps a movie such as The Godfather or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels; (2) alternatively, they can examine a novel whose character is an entrepreneur or a criminal; (3) newspaper articles on criminal and entrepreneurs; and (4) biographies of entrepreneurs and criminals. The purpose of the reading, in all cases, is to identify relevant theoretical influences in play, with a view to creating a typology of criminal and entrepreneurial actors.

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Smith, R. (2019). ‘Crimino-Entrepreneurial Behaviour’: Developing a Theoretically Based Behavioural Matrix to Identify and Classify. In: McAdam, M., Cunningham, J.A. (eds) Entrepreneurial Behaviour. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04402-2_4

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