Criminal behavior tends to follow a distinct psychological pattern. It is relatively uncommon during childhood, is initiated by most offenders during late adolescence and early adulthood, and diminishes or disappears by the mid-20's. This pattern is not characteristic of all people since some never commit crimes and others are career criminals, but it is a general description of the age or developmental pattern of criminal offenders. Further, this pattern has profound implications for crime and delinquency theories which must not only explain initiation into, maintenance of, and desistance from crime involvement but also be able to explain why crime flourishes during adolescence. Contributors note that traditional crime and delinquency theories often lack a developmental perspective, fail to distinguish between different phases of criminal careers, and tend to ignore developmental changes across the life course. The volume emphasizes movement away from a static identification of the criminal by presenting a broad range of developmental explanations of crime. It covers a wide range of theoretical territory and reveals how a developmental perspective enhances the explanatory power of traditional theories of crime and delinquency. The specific focus is on biological and psychophysiological models, social learning theory, control theory, strain theory, symbolic interactionism, and cultural explanations of crime. References, notes, and figures