Visions of Social Control

Stanley Cohen is at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is the author of numerous books, including Visions of Social Control (Polity, 1985), Folk Devils and Moral Panics:The Creation of the Mods and Rockers (1980), Against Criminology (1988) and Psychological Survival: The Experience of Long Term Imprisonment (1973).

• Acknowledgements ixIntroduction 1Something like a Definition 2The Sociological Connection 4What Follows 91 The Master Patterns 13The Original Transformation 14The Alleged Current Move: Destructing 30First Doubts, Second Thought 362 Inside the System 40Size and Density 43Visibility, Ownership and Identity 56Penetration and Absorption 76Conclusion: The Emerging Patterns 833 Deposits of Power 87Progress 90Organizational Convenience 92Ideological Contradiction 100Professional Interest 101Political Economy 102Conclusion 1124 Stories of Change 115The Quest for Community 116The Ideal of the Minimum State 127The Return to Behaviorism 139Conclusion: Telling Stories 1555 The Professionals 161Part of a ‘New Class’? 162The Logic and Language of Control 167Cognitive Passion 175Towards the Classified Society 1916 Visions of Order 197The Dystopian Assumption 197The City as Metaphor 205Planning for Order 211Maps and Territories 218Conclusion: Domains of Control 2307 What Is To Be Done? 236The Intellectual as Adversary 239Doing Good and Doing Justice 245Inside the System – Again 254Means and Ends 261Exclusion and Inclusion – Again 266Appendix: In Constructing a Glossary of Controltalk 273Euphemism 276Medicalism and Psychologism 278Acronyms 279Technobabble 280Notes and References 282Index 318

"A major achievement ... in range and in analysis it is quite the best thing to have appeared in the area for many years." Sociological Review "A model worthy of emulation and a challenge to all, regardless of theoretical, methodological or ideological persuasion." American Journal of Sociology "A rich, provocative, and at times brilliant analysis of social control, punishment and classification. Cohen's use of historical, theoretical and empirical description, his unique vision and objective argumentation, and his compassion and involvement with the issues make this an essential text for anyone interested in social control... Cohen has permanently broadened and illuminated the discourse in this field." Law and Society Review