Criminology
Theories of Criminology
Pre-Classical Theory of Crime
● During the Middle Ages, spiritual explanations as to why people broke the laws
● Explanations assumed God-given natural laws
● Governments had moral authority to punish sinners through “trial by battle” or “trial by
ordeal”
Cesare Bonseana di Beccaria (1738-1794)
● Argued against the unfair treatment of accused, wrote An essay on crimes and
punishment
● Punishment should fit the crime, laws should be determined by legislature, judges should
only determine guilt, and all should be treated equally under the law
● sole purpose of law is to deter people from committing crime
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
● English philosopher, founder of utilitarianism
● Believed that a person’s expectation of the future was the most predictive for deterrence
● therefore, punishment should be severe enough to deter people from crime
Rise of the Classical School of Criminology
● Enlightenment period, we moved away from believing crime was the result of sin
● began to understand people are hedonistic
● thus, people are 100% responsible for their actions
Four Key Principles
● Rationality: Humans have free will and their actions are the result of choice
● Hedonism: People will maximize pleasure while minimizing pain/punishment
● Deterrence: Punishment should be used to deter people from committing crimes
● Human Rights: Punishment should be proportional to harm done and all should be
treated equal under the law.
Moving Away from Classical Theory: Adolphe Quetelet (1796-1874)
● Belgian statistician, developed concept of ”social physics”
● Argued that crime was not the result of individual moral failings, but rather the product of
social and environmental factors
● This gave rise to the positivist theory of criminology
Positivist Theory of Criminology
● Crime is caused by certain factors that are external to the individual
● Criminals are not entirely responsible for their actions because they are influenced by
factors beyond their control
● this theory moves away from the more philosophical classical theory towards one that is
more “scientific”
Influences of Positivist Theories
● Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909) developed the “born criminal” theory of crime
● Pushed scientists to investigate psychological and social factors that could lead to
criminal behavior
, ● Led to the idea of indeterminate sentencing, punishment should fit the criminal rather
than the crime
Contemporary Theories of Crime
● Sociological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of social factors such as
poverty, inequality, and social disorganization
● Biological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of genetic, neurological, or
physiological factors
● Psychological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of individual psychological
factors such as personality traits, emotional states, and cognitive processes
● Social-Psychological Theories of Crime: Criminal Behavior is the result of the interaction
between social and psychological factors
SOCIOLOGICAL AND BIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME
Strain Theory
● Originally developed by Robert Merton in 1938
● Criminal behavior is a result of the strain/frustration that individuals experience when
they are unable to achieve their goals through legitimate means
● In the US, the same standard for success is enforced on everyone, even if they do not
have the means to satisfy these standards
5 Ways to Respond to Strain
● Conformity: pursuing cultural goals through social approved means (“Hopeful Poor”)
● Innovation: Accepting society’s goals but designing their own (often illegal) means of
achieving them (“Surviving Poor”)
● Ritualismes: Using the same socially approved means to achieve less elusive goals
(“Passive Poor”)
● Retreatism: Reject both cultural goals and the means to achieve them, then find a way to
escape it (“Retreating Poor”)
● Rebellion: Reject cultural goals and the means to achieve them, then work towards
replacing both of them (“Resisting Poor”)
General Strain Theory
● Developed by Robert Agnew in 1992, he believed Merton’s Theory was too vague and
only related to financial crimes
● We experience strain and become so upset that we commit a crime in order to cope
● 3 Main Sources of Strain
○ Loss of positive stimuli
○ Presentation of negative stimuli
○ Inability to reach a desired goal
Social Control Theory
● Criminal behavior is a result of the failure of social bonds or attachments to prevent
individuals from engaging in deviant behavior
● Hirsch (1969) stated that we shouldn’t ask “why do they do it?” But instead “why do the
rest of us not do it?”
● 4 Elements that Shape Bonds
Theories of Criminology
Pre-Classical Theory of Crime
● During the Middle Ages, spiritual explanations as to why people broke the laws
● Explanations assumed God-given natural laws
● Governments had moral authority to punish sinners through “trial by battle” or “trial by
ordeal”
Cesare Bonseana di Beccaria (1738-1794)
● Argued against the unfair treatment of accused, wrote An essay on crimes and
punishment
● Punishment should fit the crime, laws should be determined by legislature, judges should
only determine guilt, and all should be treated equally under the law
● sole purpose of law is to deter people from committing crime
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832)
● English philosopher, founder of utilitarianism
● Believed that a person’s expectation of the future was the most predictive for deterrence
● therefore, punishment should be severe enough to deter people from crime
Rise of the Classical School of Criminology
● Enlightenment period, we moved away from believing crime was the result of sin
● began to understand people are hedonistic
● thus, people are 100% responsible for their actions
Four Key Principles
● Rationality: Humans have free will and their actions are the result of choice
● Hedonism: People will maximize pleasure while minimizing pain/punishment
● Deterrence: Punishment should be used to deter people from committing crimes
● Human Rights: Punishment should be proportional to harm done and all should be
treated equal under the law.
Moving Away from Classical Theory: Adolphe Quetelet (1796-1874)
● Belgian statistician, developed concept of ”social physics”
● Argued that crime was not the result of individual moral failings, but rather the product of
social and environmental factors
● This gave rise to the positivist theory of criminology
Positivist Theory of Criminology
● Crime is caused by certain factors that are external to the individual
● Criminals are not entirely responsible for their actions because they are influenced by
factors beyond their control
● this theory moves away from the more philosophical classical theory towards one that is
more “scientific”
Influences of Positivist Theories
● Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909) developed the “born criminal” theory of crime
● Pushed scientists to investigate psychological and social factors that could lead to
criminal behavior
, ● Led to the idea of indeterminate sentencing, punishment should fit the criminal rather
than the crime
Contemporary Theories of Crime
● Sociological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of social factors such as
poverty, inequality, and social disorganization
● Biological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of genetic, neurological, or
physiological factors
● Psychological Theories of Crime: Criminal behavior is a result of individual psychological
factors such as personality traits, emotional states, and cognitive processes
● Social-Psychological Theories of Crime: Criminal Behavior is the result of the interaction
between social and psychological factors
SOCIOLOGICAL AND BIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME
Strain Theory
● Originally developed by Robert Merton in 1938
● Criminal behavior is a result of the strain/frustration that individuals experience when
they are unable to achieve their goals through legitimate means
● In the US, the same standard for success is enforced on everyone, even if they do not
have the means to satisfy these standards
5 Ways to Respond to Strain
● Conformity: pursuing cultural goals through social approved means (“Hopeful Poor”)
● Innovation: Accepting society’s goals but designing their own (often illegal) means of
achieving them (“Surviving Poor”)
● Ritualismes: Using the same socially approved means to achieve less elusive goals
(“Passive Poor”)
● Retreatism: Reject both cultural goals and the means to achieve them, then find a way to
escape it (“Retreating Poor”)
● Rebellion: Reject cultural goals and the means to achieve them, then work towards
replacing both of them (“Resisting Poor”)
General Strain Theory
● Developed by Robert Agnew in 1992, he believed Merton’s Theory was too vague and
only related to financial crimes
● We experience strain and become so upset that we commit a crime in order to cope
● 3 Main Sources of Strain
○ Loss of positive stimuli
○ Presentation of negative stimuli
○ Inability to reach a desired goal
Social Control Theory
● Criminal behavior is a result of the failure of social bonds or attachments to prevent
individuals from engaging in deviant behavior
● Hirsch (1969) stated that we shouldn’t ask “why do they do it?” But instead “why do the
rest of us not do it?”
● 4 Elements that Shape Bonds
