Introduction into criminology – lecture 1
What makes a good criminologist?
A criminologist should be: curious and persistent, critical (questioning what is
studied and why), reflexive (aware of their own biases), pragmatic and thorough.
What is criminology?
The study of crime, criminals, criminal justice and society’s reactions to crime.
A field shaped by major traditions:
- Classical school (18th century): crime results from free will and rational choice
(Beccaria, Bentham).
- Positivism (19th century): crime explained by biological or social factors. The
criminal is different than an ordinary citizen.
Who is the criminal?
Early positivists like Lombroso claimed criminals could be identified by physical
features. This introduces the concept of othering (distinguishing criminals as
fundamentally different).
What is crime?
Legal definition → crime is an act violating criminal law.
Sociological definition → focuses on norms and deviance.
Social Constructivist definition → crime results from social processes of
labelling and power.
Human rights definition → violations of basic rights should count as crime.
Harm definition → focuses on harms to environment animals, and non-human
life.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 2
Criminology today
Modern criminology must move beyond sensational topics like serial killers and
focus on:
- Crimes of the powerful
- state crimes
- Environmental harms
- Digital crime and surveillance
- Racism, emotions, stigma
- Post-colonial, feminist and queer criminologies
Criminology as an interdisciplinary field
Criminology overlaps with: sociology, anthropology, philosophy of law,
victimology, forensic sciences.
Major theoretical traditions
- Classical school (18th-19th century)
Crime results from free will and rational calculation. Punishment should be
proportionate, swift, certain and severe enough. Neo-classical school adds the
notion of liability (not every one had free will).
- Positivism (late 19th – early 20th century)
Crime explained by factors outside individual control: biological, psychological
and social. Lombroso: criminal man with biological traits. Freud: psyche (id/ ego/
superego).
- Sociological positivism (early – mid 20th century)
Crime explained by sociental structures and environments. Durkheim: anomie.
, Merton: strain theory. Chicago school: social disorganization. Social control.
- Critical criminology (1960 – 1970)
Shaped by civil rights, feminism, anti-war movements, environmentalism. Focus:
structural inequality, power and criminalization, state as a source of harm.
Schools: Marxist, neo-Marxist, feminist, post-colonial, left realism, constructivism.
Argues: Harm, not law, should define crime. The criminal justice system often
maintains power, not justice. Crime arises from structural inequalities, not just
individual choices.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 3
Historical roots of punishment
Ancient Greece: harsh laws and aimed at deterrence.
Medieval period: punishment were brutal an tied to religion, sin and fear.
Why do we punish?
Aims of punishment:
Retribution → moral payback: wrongdoers deserve punishment.
Deterrence → prevent future crime.
Rehabilitation → treat underlying causes of offending.
Incapacitation → remove offender from society .
Restorative justice → repair harm done to victims.
Types of punishment
Punitive → imprisonment, corporal punishment, capital punishment.
Welfarist → probation, community measures, welfare-based interventions.
Radical → restorative justice, abolitionism, decriminalization.
Key philosophical debates
Retributivism vs. utilitarianism
Retributivism → focus on moral desert, proportional, past-oriented.
Utilitarianism → maximize societal good: justify punishment by its
consequences.
Sociological perspectives
- Drukheim: punishment reinforces social solidarity.
- Marx: punishment maintained capitalist interests: reflects class power
relations.
- Elias: punishment becomes more civilized → violence moves behind the scenes.
- Foucault: modern punishment is about discipline and surveillance, not pain.
Prison and abolitionism
- Goffman: prisons are total institutions → they strip identity and autonomy.
- Foucault: panopticon → self-surveillance, normalization, discipline.
- Angela Davis → prisons are linked to racism, capitalism and inequality.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 4
Problems of counting crime
Crime measurement is not objective: data sources include police statistics,
victimization surveys. Many crime never reach official statistics. Factors such as
reporting, police recording and legal definitions distort numbers.
What makes a good criminologist?
A criminologist should be: curious and persistent, critical (questioning what is
studied and why), reflexive (aware of their own biases), pragmatic and thorough.
What is criminology?
The study of crime, criminals, criminal justice and society’s reactions to crime.
A field shaped by major traditions:
- Classical school (18th century): crime results from free will and rational choice
(Beccaria, Bentham).
- Positivism (19th century): crime explained by biological or social factors. The
criminal is different than an ordinary citizen.
Who is the criminal?
Early positivists like Lombroso claimed criminals could be identified by physical
features. This introduces the concept of othering (distinguishing criminals as
fundamentally different).
What is crime?
Legal definition → crime is an act violating criminal law.
Sociological definition → focuses on norms and deviance.
Social Constructivist definition → crime results from social processes of
labelling and power.
Human rights definition → violations of basic rights should count as crime.
Harm definition → focuses on harms to environment animals, and non-human
life.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 2
Criminology today
Modern criminology must move beyond sensational topics like serial killers and
focus on:
- Crimes of the powerful
- state crimes
- Environmental harms
- Digital crime and surveillance
- Racism, emotions, stigma
- Post-colonial, feminist and queer criminologies
Criminology as an interdisciplinary field
Criminology overlaps with: sociology, anthropology, philosophy of law,
victimology, forensic sciences.
Major theoretical traditions
- Classical school (18th-19th century)
Crime results from free will and rational calculation. Punishment should be
proportionate, swift, certain and severe enough. Neo-classical school adds the
notion of liability (not every one had free will).
- Positivism (late 19th – early 20th century)
Crime explained by factors outside individual control: biological, psychological
and social. Lombroso: criminal man with biological traits. Freud: psyche (id/ ego/
superego).
- Sociological positivism (early – mid 20th century)
Crime explained by sociental structures and environments. Durkheim: anomie.
, Merton: strain theory. Chicago school: social disorganization. Social control.
- Critical criminology (1960 – 1970)
Shaped by civil rights, feminism, anti-war movements, environmentalism. Focus:
structural inequality, power and criminalization, state as a source of harm.
Schools: Marxist, neo-Marxist, feminist, post-colonial, left realism, constructivism.
Argues: Harm, not law, should define crime. The criminal justice system often
maintains power, not justice. Crime arises from structural inequalities, not just
individual choices.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 3
Historical roots of punishment
Ancient Greece: harsh laws and aimed at deterrence.
Medieval period: punishment were brutal an tied to religion, sin and fear.
Why do we punish?
Aims of punishment:
Retribution → moral payback: wrongdoers deserve punishment.
Deterrence → prevent future crime.
Rehabilitation → treat underlying causes of offending.
Incapacitation → remove offender from society .
Restorative justice → repair harm done to victims.
Types of punishment
Punitive → imprisonment, corporal punishment, capital punishment.
Welfarist → probation, community measures, welfare-based interventions.
Radical → restorative justice, abolitionism, decriminalization.
Key philosophical debates
Retributivism vs. utilitarianism
Retributivism → focus on moral desert, proportional, past-oriented.
Utilitarianism → maximize societal good: justify punishment by its
consequences.
Sociological perspectives
- Drukheim: punishment reinforces social solidarity.
- Marx: punishment maintained capitalist interests: reflects class power
relations.
- Elias: punishment becomes more civilized → violence moves behind the scenes.
- Foucault: modern punishment is about discipline and surveillance, not pain.
Prison and abolitionism
- Goffman: prisons are total institutions → they strip identity and autonomy.
- Foucault: panopticon → self-surveillance, normalization, discipline.
- Angela Davis → prisons are linked to racism, capitalism and inequality.
Introduction into criminology – lecture 4
Problems of counting crime
Crime measurement is not objective: data sources include police statistics,
victimization surveys. Many crime never reach official statistics. Factors such as
reporting, police recording and legal definitions distort numbers.
