This course provides a general introduction to the study of the causes of crime from an interdisciplinary perspective. The central focus centers on the major theories of crime causation developed over the past two hundred years. Significant issues in criminology -- for example, the role of age, race, gender, and social class in crime causation as well as explanations of specific forms of crime such as violence and white collar crime -- are highlighted and discussed. In addition, special attention is devoted to the measurement of crime and what is known from the available empirical data on the nature and extent of crime in the United States.