When people delve into criminology, they might initially be a bit surprised by how extensive the field is. Everybody involved with the formal study of crime, the relationship between the perpetrator and their environment, and society's response to crime would have some kind of place under the broad umbrella of Criminology. Sometimes, criminologists are researchers that are trying to discover the common links between criminal behavior and the environment, so they can pinpoint what it is that causes or perpetuates crime.
There are currently a number of different theories that attempt to explain, through the process of science, what it is that causes a crime to take place. These theories began to emerge in earnest in the middle of the eighteen hundreds. Over the course of the following two hundred or so years, new theories began to spring up and gradually they started to involve genetics, hormones and biological makeup. Before that, criminology theories relied heavily on society and its effect on the individual to either steer someone into crime or away from crime.
There are 3 distinct schools of thought when it comes to criminology. One of the first schools of thought, the Classical school, holds that utilitarian philosophy is the supporting notion of criminology. They argue that individuals have free will and can decide for themselves what is right and what is wrong. The selfish, or self-serving, side of the struggle has to be balanced against the rational of the individual. When the hedonistic side wins, crime may ensue. Rational is the side of the individual that would consider the penalty for committing the crime and, if that penalty is severe enough, is believed to be the part of the person that would stop them from carrying out the crime by looking at the costs. Positivists tend to believe that the elements that strengthen the criminal's propensity to break the law are not under their own control. Instead, elements like society, or the person's genetics do.
These are things that are considered to be beyond the control of any individual, but are still elements that might play what Positivists assert as the biggest part in the cause, when a criminal has carried out a crime. In the Chicago school of thinking, individuals believe that criminals are a product of the disorganized environments from which they come. Later, this definition was expanded to include the belief that older generations taught younger generations about criminal activity. It is then fair to say that these individuals believe that crime happens only where the social composition of the area is damaged and unbalanced.
Crime is often considered to be a blemish in our culture and society. It causes people to be anxious when they just want to live quietly. Criminologists are, in their own way, attempting to discover what causes criminal activity, or promotes that kind of behavior in a person in order to reduce the amount of crime.
There are currently a number of different theories that attempt to explain, through the process of science, what it is that causes a crime to take place. These theories began to emerge in earnest in the middle of the eighteen hundreds. Over the course of the following two hundred or so years, new theories began to spring up and gradually they started to involve genetics, hormones and biological makeup. Before that, criminology theories relied heavily on society and its effect on the individual to either steer someone into crime or away from crime.
There are 3 distinct schools of thought when it comes to criminology. One of the first schools of thought, the Classical school, holds that utilitarian philosophy is the supporting notion of criminology. They argue that individuals have free will and can decide for themselves what is right and what is wrong. The selfish, or self-serving, side of the struggle has to be balanced against the rational of the individual. When the hedonistic side wins, crime may ensue. Rational is the side of the individual that would consider the penalty for committing the crime and, if that penalty is severe enough, is believed to be the part of the person that would stop them from carrying out the crime by looking at the costs. Positivists tend to believe that the elements that strengthen the criminal's propensity to break the law are not under their own control. Instead, elements like society, or the person's genetics do.
These are things that are considered to be beyond the control of any individual, but are still elements that might play what Positivists assert as the biggest part in the cause, when a criminal has carried out a crime. In the Chicago school of thinking, individuals believe that criminals are a product of the disorganized environments from which they come. Later, this definition was expanded to include the belief that older generations taught younger generations about criminal activity. It is then fair to say that these individuals believe that crime happens only where the social composition of the area is damaged and unbalanced.
Crime is often considered to be a blemish in our culture and society. It causes people to be anxious when they just want to live quietly. Criminologists are, in their own way, attempting to discover what causes criminal activity, or promotes that kind of behavior in a person in order to reduce the amount of crime.
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