Criminology

Criminology

Assignment

Question # 1 Discuss the evolution of criminological thought from the classical school to the positive school. In your discussion be sure to contrast the assumptions each school makes about how we define crime, what motivates criminals and the purpose of punishment.

The field of criminology is not merely based on sociology but also involves the study of psychology, law, anthropology and many other fields. Study of criminology can be defined as the scientific study that looks for the causes of occurrence of crime, how it can be corrected and what ways are to be implemented to prevent crime in society, as it has become a major social problem resulting from various reasons. Crime is considered to be a complex matter therefore it can be investigated from many different perspectives. There have been many changes in the field of criminology over the years, and several radical shifts in the field of criminology have made people to have different perception about crime and criminology (Cole & Smith, 2007).

It is significant to understand criminology as it is important in both theoretical and practical senses. Crime affects the society on the whole, thus criminology is essential to understand as it helps to determine the factors and causes that results in social disintegration, along with this the study also suggests ways to prevent and eradicate crime by searching for measures for remedy. The study will enable to indicate ways that will eliminate the chance of criminal behavior in society (Carrabine, et. al, 2009).

Study of crime first occurred in the late 18th century that was known as the Classical School of Criminology. The approach was main philosophical rather than scientific, where philosophers had a view to have more rational punishment for criminals. An Italian scholar Cesare Beccaria believed that people's behavior is motivated by pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain that is referred to as utilitarianism. She stated an individual gets involved in criminal activities when he believes that the expected pleasure that would result from illegal acts will outweigh the pains of punishment. To deter criminal behavior severe punishment is the solution, crime occurs when the outcomes are positive with fewer efforts, therefore fear of punishment will enable society to control crime. Although this approach proved to be effective, but the biggest problem that was encountered by this standardized punishment, it did not leave any room for individual circumstances, even children and mentally ill were treated and punished the same way (Cole & Smith, 2007).

However later in the 19th century, a new school of thought, positivist school emerged that argued punishment should fit the criminal and not the crime, as there are various other factors that lead people to become criminals it was believed that environmental factors also contribute in occurrence of crime. Cesare Lombroso, the father of criminology introduced and innovative way of looking at criminals he categorized criminals as being either insane criminals who incur crime as a result of alteration in their brains that tends to upset their ...