From the early twentieth century writings of Bonger and Gault, the military has been a consistent – albeit marginal – feature of criminological literature. In recent years there has been a renewed interest in the criminology of war and militarization. This book contributes to this intellectual shift and addresses the criminological study of the military as a social institution. It provides a comprehensive outline of the ways in which the study of criminology can be brought to bear on the military institution and concepts of militarisation.
Drawing upon cognate disciplines including history, military sociology, methodology, criminal justice, psychology, law and international relations, this book demonstrates the importance of critical, empirical and theoretically informed ways to study the military institution, its cultural practices, internal systems, personnel and external influences in the context of criminology. It serves as a platform with which to formalise a new and innovative direction in critical criminology: the criminology of the military.