Organized Crime - A Cultural Introduction

This book aims to describe and demystify what makes organized criminal groups so culturally powerful. This new edition examines their codes of conduct, initiation rites, secret communication methods, origin myths, symbols, and lifestyles, and serves as an introduction to organized crime from the angle of cultural analysis.

List of contents

1. What is organized crime? 2. Theories 3. The Italian Mafias 4. Other criminal organizations 5. Organization 6. The players 7. Codes 8. The made man 9. The women 10. Resources 11. The business agenda 12. Strategic violence 13. Symbols, myths, traditions 14. Communications 15. Hybrid criminality 16. The age of AI 17. A gang instinct 18. Popular culture 19. Policing 20. Epilogue

About the author

Antonio Nicaso teaches courses on the social history of organized crime and Mafia culture at Queen's University. He is a leading expert on Mafia and Mafia-like criminal organizations in the world. He has published extensively on organized crime, including many bestsellers.
Marcel Danesi is Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the University of Toronto, where he taught courses on forensic semiotics. He has published extensively in the fields of linguistics, semiotics, and forensic semiotics.

Product details

• Authors: Marcel Danesi, Antonio Danesi Nicaso, Nicaso Antonio
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 01.08.2025
• EAN: 9781041002178
• ISBN: 978-1-0-4100217-8
• No. of pages: 356
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History; Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous; Social sciences, law, business > Social sciences (general); History, Sociology, Cultural Studies, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Criminology, TRUE CRIME / Murder / General, TRUE CRIME / Organized Crime, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography, Humanities, Organized crime, Social and cultural history, Social and cultural anthropology, Legal aspects of criminology, Computer fraud & hacking, Computer fraud and hacking, Criminology: legal aspects