the purposes of this book are to review the basic concepts and principles of criminological theories and to evaluate their adequacy as explanations of criminal and deviant behavior or of the criminal law and justice system. While not exhaustive, the coverage of theories is comprehensive. I have included all the major theories that have been the subject of nine out of ten theory-testing articles in the leading criminological journal over the past three decades (Stitt and Giacopassi, 1992). The first goal in presenting each theory is to give a concise and clear exposition of its central concepts, assertions, and hypotheses. The intent is to provide an accurate, understandable introduction for readers who are not familiar with the theory and a review for those who are. In each case, an effort has been made not only to present the classic or original statements of a theory but to show modifications and revisions of it, including the most recent and significant developments. The second goal is to evaluate the theory. In Chapter 1,1 review the main criteria by which the merits of a theory can be judged—logical consistency, scope, parsimony, applicability to policy, testability, and empirical validity. All these are invoked at various points, but the central focus of the evaluation of each theory is the empirical validity of the theory. I review the research relevant to the theory and assess how well the findings support or contradict the main assertions of the theory. Before the empirical adequacy of a theory can be evaluated, of course, it must be testable, and a considerable amount of attention is given to questions of tautology and measurement. The last chapter (Chapter 11) is devoted to the topic of theoretical rivalry and integration. Recent examples of conceptual and propositional integration are reviewed and evaluated.

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