The Sicilian Mafia: The Business of Private Protection

by Diego Gambetta

Overview

In a society where trust is in short supply and democracy weak, the Mafia sells protection, a guarantee of safe conduct for parties to commercial transactions. Drawing on the confessions of eight Mafiosi, Diego Gambetta develops an elegant analysis of the economic and political role of the Sicilian Mafia.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780674807426
Publisher:	Harvard University Press
Publication date:	02/01/1996
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	346
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Diego Gambetta is Professor of Sociology at the University of Oxford and Official Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford.

Table of Contents

Introduction

PART 1: THE INDUSTRY OF PREOTECTION

1. The market

2. The resources

3. The industry

PART 2: THE INDUSTRY IN SICILY

4. The Origins

5. The Cartel

6. The Trademarks

PART 3: PROTECTION IN PRACTICE

7. Dispute Settlement

8. Orderly Markets

9. Disordered Markets

Conclusion

Postscript

Appendix A: Etymologies of Mafioso and Mafia

Appendix B: Descriptions of the Mafia Ritual

Abbreviations

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Editorial Reviews

[Gambetta] has done an outstanding job of gathering and analyzing the data that were available...A tremendous achievement.
— Peter Kollock

American Journal of Sociology

A carefully argued and well written interpretation of the Sicilian Mafia which should be required reading for every student of criminology.
— David Nelken

British Journal of Criminology

This is a fascinating book. It provides a wealth of information about an organization which, despite its repellent nature, understandably continues to intrigue many people. And the narrative, based, as much of it is, on the testimony of various ex mafiosi who have turned state's evidence, possesses a compelling immediacy. As a work of history, it is first-rate.
— Larry J. Sechrest

Journal of Economics

A remarkable theoretical achievement. Starting from what is apparently a most unpromising premise, that the workings of the Mafia can be understood within a rational choice framework, Gambetta repeatedly surprises us with his theoretical ingenuity...In a brief review, one cannot do justice to the complexity of the arguments in a book likeGambetta's. Let it suffice to say I could not put it down and I estimate it will become a classic in the burgeoning literature upon the rational choice approach to sociological analysis.
— Peter Abell

British Journal of Sociology

The Sicialian Mafia goes far beyond the promise of the title. It represents an important and arguably enduring contribution to both sociological and economic theory. Gambetta 's book shows the fruitfulness of a rigorous economic analysis applied with consistency and it is, in spite of the ominous subject, fun to read. It sheds new light on the birth and evolution of the mafia. Furthermore, the twofold parallel between the mafia, an economic industry, and the state, the political community par excellence, can bring us to a more accurate understanding of the nature of the markets for unusual commodities like protection, and it contributes, indirectly, to the political theory of the emergence of protection agencies.
— Alberto Vannucci

European Sociological Review

Diego Gambetta's analysis of the Sicilian Mafia is likely to become a classic. It uses a dazzling combination of economic theory and sociological insight to make sense of a significant but mysterious social institution.
— Robert Sugden

Journal of Economic Literature

Draws on economic analysis and on the confessions of eight Mafiosi and the trials their revelations triggered to reshape traditional interpretations of the Mafia's origins, functions, and social consequences. Translated from the Italian original (publication date not stated). Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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