Todd R. Clear

In the following viewpoint, Todd R. Clear argues that today’s high rate of imprisonment does not reduce crime. He insists that imprisonment is a flawed response to crime because it oversimplifies the crime problem. Clear argues that today’s criminal justice system treats crime as a “phenomenon of individuals” and ignores the complex social and economic forces that shape criminal behavior. The transfer of large numbers of individuals from communities into prisons, he contends, may increase crime in those communities by removing the forces that inhibit criminal behavior, including family stability, neighborhood order, and economic well-being. Clear is a professor and associate dean of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University at Tallahassee.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Clear, what is the “atomistic&rdquo...