Introduction: Developing a Criminology of Leisure and Sport
Authors: Berry, M., Berry, C., Caudwell, J.
Publication Date: 01/01/2026
Pages: 1-16
DOI: 10.4324/9781003569466-1
Abstract:This chapter sets out the intellectual foundations for Criminology, Leisure and Sport: Interdisciplinary Perspectives, positioning leisure and sport as essential topics for analysing crime and harm. It traces the sociological and criminological development of the field, highlighting how leisure and sport can act as drivers of social inequalities and injustices, despite their cultural framing as sites of freedom, enjoyment and personal development. Drawing on key concepts such as deviant leisure and zemiology, the chapter illustrates how commodification, labour precarity, gendered and racialised inequalities and harmful institutional cultures shape experiences within recreational and elite sport. In addition, it identifies their generative, expressive and rehabilitative capacities, emphasising their potential to support identity transformation, community building and desistance from crime. Situating these debates within broader historical and economic shifts, the chapter argues for a criminological imagination that takes leisure and sport seriously as spaces where harm is produced and social control is negotiated. It concludes by outlining the volume's thematic structure, demonstrating how each contribution advances theoretical, methodological and practical insights into the complex relationship between leisure, sport and contemporary forms of crime and harm.
Source: Scopus
Introduction: Developing a Criminology of Leisure and Sport
Authors: Berry, M., Berry, C., Caudwell, J.
Publication Date: 01/06/2026
Publisher: Routledge
Source: Manual