Overview
The purpose of this entry is to “take stock” of the important contributions of longitudinal studies in the field of criminology. First, classic longitudinal studies in criminology are reviewed. Second, the authors review key findings from the major contemporary longitudinal studies that focus on the development of crime and delinquency. Third, there are numerous longitudinal studies that have a broader focus but have important provided important insight into crime and delinquency; thus, some of the contributions of these studies are examined. To conclude, potential avenues for future research are suggested.
Introduction
Core issues that capture the imagination of criminologists, such as identifying the antecedents of criminal behavior or why some individuals desist from crime while others continue criminal lifestyles, are issues which require longitudinal data to disentangle. Sheldon and Eleanor Glueck conducted a series of seminal studies (1950) that demonstrated that...
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Nguyen, H., Loughran, T.A. (2014). Longitudinal Studies in Criminology. In: Bruinsma, G., Weisburd, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5690-2_249
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