WHERE THERES A WILL, THERES NO WAY - THE TREATMENT OF THE CHOICE DEBATE IN CRIMINOLOGY TEXTBOOKS, 1956 TO 1965 AND 1983 TO 1992

I examine how the choice controversy--conceptualized in sociology as t he structure-agency debate and in criminology as the determinism-free will debate--has been depicted in 53 criminology textbooks published f rom 1956 to 1965 and from 1983 to 1992. My data show that despite dram atic shifts in criminological thinking from determinism toward a more moderate position on the choice debate, most criminology textbooks in both periods favor a deterministic view. I conclude with a call for so ciologists as teachers to reflect carefully about how they depict the choice debate to their students.