Positivist, Sociological, Contemporary Criminology

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Positivist Criminology Theory
Sociological Criminology
Contemporary Criminology
Conclusions
References

Introduction

Beccaria supported the ideas of utilitarianism, which state that the happiness in the world can grow due to punishment (Siegel, Brown, & Hoffman, 2012). It is argued that the threat of punishment can be a tool to control and reduce crime. The laws and such authorities as police and courts are in charge of the safety of citizens. However, apart from the legal punishments, other forms of social control can regulate behavior. They appeared in the course of criminology development and were shaped by its contemporary perspectives.

Positivist Criminology Theory

Positivism treats human behavior as a product of extrinsic factors such as social, biological, psychological, and economic (Siegel et al., 2012). About criminology, early positivists believed that the facial features of criminals could be the signs of antisocial behavior. Biological approaches in criminology also include the ideas of Lombroso who believed that serious criminals inherit their offensive behavior (Siegel et al., 2012). Although these theories are not popular at present, there exists a biological theory that mirrors the connection between physical and social features of a person and their impact on his or her habits and behavior. Thus, the investigation of external factors can help to predict or prevent antisocial and criminal behavior.

Sociological Criminology

The sociological approach to criminology suggests considering the impact of social factors on a person’s inclination to criminal behavior (Siegel et al., 2012). These factors include age, sex, the population in the area, and social class. Moreover, Quetelet suggested the idea that alcohol consumption is one of the factors which increase the risks of criminal behavior (Siegel et al., 2012). Another socially-related idea is that criminal behavior can be connected with negative socialization experiences of a person. On the whole, sociological criminology ideas can be applied to discover the risk groups of possible criminals and reduce the unfavorable social impact. On the other hand, social blame can restrain some people from criminal actions.

Contemporary Criminology

Contemporary criminology includes six perspectives. They are classical or choice, biological-psychological, structural, process, conflict, and integrated perspectives (Siegel et al., 2012). For example, the perspective of rational choice advocates that criminals make their decisions rationally (Siegel et al., 2012). It contradicts previous biological theories. In the context of behavior control, choice perspective suggests that there should be more choices for people so that they could prefer conventional behaviors to criminals (Siegel et al., 2012).

Contemporary criminology introduces the notion of the sociology of law. In this respect, theories of crime causation were developed (Siegel et al., 2012). They are supposed to answer the question concerning the reasons for selecting criminal behavior. Although true causes of crimes are still not discovered, the development of these theories can help in preventing and reducing crimes due to the knowledge of reasons behind them.

Another direction in criminology is victimology. The victim plays a crucial role in the criminal process (Siegel et al., 2012). Thus, the investigation of the victim’s behavior and the development of guidelines on how not to become a victim can become another way of social control.

Conclusions

Contemporary criminology focuses on measuring, understanding, and controlling crime (Siegel et al., 2012). Criminologists find connections between crime and deviance. They are similar since both deviant and criminal behaviors differ from the norms of society. Thus, social control can be taken over the first signs of deviant actions before they become criminals.

References

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 4.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 5.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 6.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 9.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 11.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 12.

Siegel, L.J., Brown, G.P., & Hoffman, R. (2012). CRIM. Introduction to criminal justice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. p. 13.

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