Serial Offending and the Criminal Events Perspective

This article argues that the utilization of the criminal events perspective (CEP) can help advance the relatively young literature on serial offending. Much of the literature on serial offending understandably concentrates on the motivations of offenders, but the CEP views crime as an event that involves precursors to the act, the act itself, and the aftermath of the event, all of which occur in a social context. The CEP and the life course history method are used in this qualitative case study of a serial offender currently incarcerated in the southeastern United States. Data for this study come from a variety of sources, including semi-standardized interview data and data from police reports and interrogations. Theoretical and methodological implications of this study for future research on serial offending are discussed.

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