Journal article
Fusing concept to theory: identity fusion’s potential role in crime research
- Abstract:
- Developing theories, evidence, and methods that could help to reduce crime is foundational to crime research. Here we present an interdisciplinary framework that can shed light on old theories and open up promising avenues for novel research into diverse criminogenic areas including violence, desistance, turning points, individual and family risk factors, and reintegration. This framework relates to ‘identity fusion’ – a powerful form of group bonding whereby the individual’s personal and social selves become ‘fused’. We argue that the fusion mechanism is an underappreciated cause of – and simultaneously a potential solution to – many forms of criminal behaviour. Accordingly, we discuss applied opportunities to develop this approach from both theoretical and policy perspectives.
- Publication status:
- Published
- Peer review status:
- Peer reviewed
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- Files:
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(Preview, Version of record, pdf, 1.1MB, Terms of use)
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- Publisher copy:
- 10.1007/s11186-025-09637-z
Authors
+ European Research Council
More from this funder
- Funder identifier:
- https://ror.org/0472cxd90
- Funding agency for:
- Whitehouse, H
- Grant:
- 694986
- Programme:
- Horizon 2020
+ UK Research and Innovation
More from this funder
- Funder identifier:
- https://ror.org/001aqnf71
- Funding agency for:
- Newson, M
- Grant:
- MR/T041099/1
- Programme:
- Future Leaders Fellowships
- Publisher:
- Springer
- Journal:
- Theory and Society More from this journal
- Publication date:
- 2025-08-04
- Acceptance date:
- 2025-07-17
- DOI:
- EISSN:
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1573-7853
- ISSN:
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0304-2421
- Language:
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English
- Keywords:
- Pubs id:
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2247462
- Local pid:
-
pubs:2247462
- Deposit date:
-
2025-07-22
Terms of use
- Copyright holder:
- Newson et al
- Copyright date:
- 2025
- Rights statement:
- Copyright © 2025, The Author(s). This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
- Licence:
- CC Attribution (CC BY)
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