An Overview and History of Criminology

A crime is an act that violates the law. While a lawyer prosecutes or defends people accused of crimes, criminologists study crime and criminal behavior, applying principles of sociology, philosophy, psychology, anthropology, statistics, and economics to learn about people who commit crimes. Criminology involves figuring out why people commit crimes, the common characteristics of criminals, and the effects of crime on both individuals and communities as a whole. The history of criminology dates back hundreds of years to the point when the first criminal statistics were recorded.

Overview of Criminology

A criminologist examines human behavior as it pertains to breaking the law. Criminologists often hold advanced degrees and work in research or academic fields, specializing in controlling and deterring crimes. The scope of a criminologist’s study seeks to understand the reasons for committing crimes and the impacts on society while finding a way to prevent criminal behavior. Various criminological theories are classified as sociological, psychological, biological, or classical. These theories help explain why people commit crimes, which can be helpful for deterring future crimes. Sociological theories focus on community influences such as systemic oppression that can lead to criminal behavior. Psychological theories explain crimes as actions connected with specific negative childhood experiences. Biological theories claim that criminal behavior is caused by inherited biological traits, and classical theories state that criminal behavior happens due to conscious choices by criminals.

The History of Criminology

The word “criminology” was likely first used in 1889 by Paul Topinard. During the 18th century, social philosophers began exploring the foundation of criminology, initially devising different types of criminology theories. The classical school of criminology focused on deterrence by fast punishment, and the belief was that criminals had free will to decide whether or not to commit crimes. The positivist school differed in approach, instead believing that people’s behavior is influenced by external and internal factors, some of which are outside of an individual’s control. These criminologists focused on brain defects or other physical issues that created criminal tendencies. The Chicago school of criminology didn’t appear until the 20th century and was initiated by sociologists at the University of Chicago. These sociologists stated that societal and environmental influences were instrumental in criminal behavior. During the 1940s, the American Society of Criminology was formed, and the first school of criminology opened in 1950.

Applying Criminology

Crimes don’t happen in a vacuum. Rather, they are complex societal events. Every crime is unique, with specific participants, causes, and consequences. Some crimes affect more people than others, but victims and witnesses will have unique reactions. Reactions to crimes can affect punishments, which affect future crimes. Criminologists learn how to examine the behavior associated and involved with criminal activity. Criminologists study the type and location of crimes, their frequency, the causes of crimes, societal and individual reactions to breaking the law, consequences of crimes, and government reactions to crime. The purpose of answering these questions is to understand why people commit crimes in an effort to deter future crimes.

Criminology and Criminal Justice

Criminology and criminal justice are related fields, but there are also key differences. While criminology focuses on studying and analyzing crimes to learn why people commit them, criminal justice pertains to the application of the criminal justice system, which includes law enforcement, the court system, and the corrections system. Criminology works behind the scenes with the goal of understanding and then preventing crimes; criminal justice involves the systems in place for apprehending criminals, prosecuting them, and carrying out sentences.