This book, by contrast, tries to make sense of the mafia in simple, rational terms. … The hypothesis developed here is that the mafia is a specific economic enterprise, an industry which produces, promotes, and sells private protection.

XREF: This rational-economic framing mirrors how economists like Gary Becker analyze crime, and contrasts with cultural or moral explanations of organized crime.

Diego Gambetta, The Sicilian Mafia The Busi…, loc. 10