Much of this difficulty is associated with the fact that the concept has been viewed at a nominal level of measurement of the question asked: 'Is this group and/or its operations an example of organized crime?' A neoteric, continuum (ordinal) model of the concept of 'organized crime' suggests that such a question is futile and that an analogy can be drawn with other social science concepts such as 'professionalism.' A continuum model of organized crime suggests that rather than viewing the concept as a matter of kind (i.e., is it or is it not), it is far more useful to view it as a matter of degree, that is, 'To what extent does this group and/or its operations resemble organized crime?' Deriving the key definitional components of organized crime as suggested by a content analysis of selected current authors, ths 'cosa nostra' is viewed as a prototype (ideal type) of organized crime similar to the status of medicine in the professions, with other criminal organizations falling at various points along the continuum. Finally a brief analysis of governmental response to organized crime suggests that use of a generic definition broadens the scope of federal law enforcement efforts in attacking 'organized crime.' (Author abstract)