Beschreibung
This book analyzes kidnapping in three general ways. First, kidnapping, including the threat of kidnapping, reflects a breakdown in the mechanisms of social control in society. At the level of interpersonal relations, the weakening of social control processes allows kidnappers to function in different situations and for diverse motives. This book addresses such questions as: What are the conditions under which kidnappers can evade social control by abducting or threatening to abduct another person? What factors trigger the response of social control mechanisms to kidnappers or attempted kidnappers? How effective are the institutional responses to abductions. Second, governments and para-military and terrorist groups also employ kidnappings as part of their foreign and domestic policy. This analysis evaluates why and under what conditions governments, para-military and terrorist groups decide to abduct individuals and groups. Emphasis is on how individuals, groups, and governments employ abductions to achieve their social, cultural, religious, and political objectives. Third, certain cultural traditions foster abductions. This analysis examines how cultural traditions in different societies emerge to foster behaviors such as bride abductions. Moreover, this book addresses the extent to which social change modifies these cultural patterns.
Autorenporträt
Dr. Stephen J. Morewitz is President of the consulting firm, Stephen J. Morewitz, Ph.D., & Associates, San Francisco & Tarzana, CA, which was founded in 1988. He is the Founder and President of the Forensic Social Sciences Association. He is a Lecturer in the Department of Justice Studies and Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, San Jose State University and is a Lecturer in the Department of Health Sciences, California State University, East Bay. Dr. Morewitz has been on the faculty or staffs of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Medicine and School of Public Health, DePaul University, and the California School of Podiatric Medicine. Dr. Morewitz, a triple-certified forensic social scientist, is the author of twelve books, one forthcoming book, and many other publications. His books include the award-winning Handbook of Forensic Sociology and Psychology (Co-Edited with Dr. Mark L. Goldstein) (New York: Springer, 2014), the award-winning Death Threats. New Research and Clinical Perspectives (New York: Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2008), the award-winning, Domestic Violence and Maternal and Child Health (New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers/Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2004), the award-winning Stalking and Violence. New Patterns of Trauma and Obsession (New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers/Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2003), and Sexual Harassment and Social Change in American Society (Bethesda, MD: Austin & Winfield, Rowman and Littlefield Publishing Group, 1996). In 2010, he was named San Jose State University Scholar Presenter for his book, Death Threats. New Research and Clinical Perspectives (New York: Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 2008).
