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Criminological discourse from its inception has been contentious and prone to
complex social conditioning and terms of reference. Political, religious and social
factors all come to bear on our perceptions of crime. When this reality is bound with
the scientific study of causation the result is many paradoxical schools of thought
I shall illustrate within this essay the notion that perhaps crime is a much more fluid
concept than rigid sociological, medical or political approaches can master. The
infinite variable factors relating to crime and deviance coupled with society in a
wrote: “Every crime has its origin in a multiplicity of causes” (Lombroso 1911 pg 1) I
shall, however, also illustrate that classicism and positivism also bring jewels of truth
different tools to work with. The art of a Criminologist therefore is perhaps the art of
selecting the correct paradigm for the situation and negotiating between them. No
single theory can claim a monopoly on truth. “Appreciative relativism” (Einstanter &
Henry 2006 pg: 296) is perhaps a more useful perspective in the study of crime.
developed an awareness of deviant behaviour and created the construct that we now
context evidence the existence of positivist thought from their first recorded act of
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deviance: as Eve exclaims in her defence: “the serpent deceived me, and I ate”
[Genesis 3:13]. The tendency to search for external factors for crime and deviance is
evidently an innate one: based on the notion that, essentially, human nature is
benevolent. Clearly the notion that external factors conspire in the commission of
crime is a golden thread amid the fabric of criminology. This is perhaps interesting
Within the academic study of crime the positivist school of thought can be seen to
emerge from a distinctly medical paradigm. In the twilight years of the 19th Century
the study of crime. The schools founding member Cesare Lombroso introduced a
Rosetta stone of sorts into the criminological world in that he contributed to the
most notably injected a biological positivism into the study of crime. An “Atavistic
criminological anthropology.
Whilst Lombroso’s and subsequent Italian school theories are much lampooned for
subsequently being discredited this broad commendation ignores the fact that
including education, social class and alcoholism (Lombroso 1911). Whilst his
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In relation to the study of crime; the positivist notions forwarded by the early pioneers
sparked a departure in the discourse of crime by enabling the study of the subject
devoid of metaphysical dogma so engrained within European society at the time. This
enabled the study of crime to become independent of moral and theological norms
With the ascent of studies into psychiatry positivist criminological thought came to
have a bearing in this field also. Sigmund Freud established a defective mind rather
than bodily features in relation to the study of crime in the psychodynamic approach
positivism with the development of personality theory and the notion of crime as an
public policy to this day. This is evidenced through the biosocial / medical paradigms
used to respond to low level deviance within juveniles and specifically with the rise of
2005). The wholesale embrace of this approach however ignores underlying social,
cultural and political issues. Difficult and revolutionary social questions can be
“other” and defective is therefore reinforced, validating the rest of society. This has
popular appeal and is perhaps why biological determinism and medical approaches
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have always shaped the study of crime and make a popular bedfellow with policy
makers.
The collective known as the Chicago School however advanced the study of crime as
one might currently recognise it. The positivist influence, this time, stemming from a
sociological viewpoint. Robert Ezra Park and Ernest Burgess’ work essentially
focused on the social disorganisation created by the mass urbanisation prevalent at the
The inherent danger of positivist thought with regard to crime is clearly a total
positivism, the danger is that universal principles cannot be applied in broad contexts.
thought pertaining to the social contract, criminal justice and penology. Cesare
consideration into the harm caused to society by crime, an ideological outline of the
basis for punishment and the relationship between state and offender (Beccaria 2003).
of offenders” (Maguire et al 2002 Pg11) forwarded the study of crime in that the
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more logical, and humane, analysis of the problems of crime and suitable
not an end in itself. Bentham’s utopian vision for society added to criminological
crime. If crime essentially exists primarily as a free choice on the part of the offender
then the study of causation within criminological disciplines is thrown into disarray.
This has proved particularly convenient for conservatively inclined governments and
most blatantly is evidenced in the works of theorists such as James Q. Wilson and
The underpinning assumption that pleasure or gain is derived from all crime could be
said to be either a naïve analysis or a populist and politically expedient one owing to
The most flawed facet of classical and positivist criminological thought is perhaps
common consensus is shared. The fact that social norms and laws governing criminal
behaviour are created by an elite and mostly directed at lower socio-economic groups
political and economic power” (Scraton 2007 Pg 219). On a base level the same moral
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funds for financial gain. An egalitarian view of crime can only have meaning in an
equal society.
In conclusion it can be seen as evident that both classicism and positivism have their
uses in the study of crime. The absurdity of total positivist determinism is paralleled
criminological discourse. In an age of sound bites and shortening attention spans the
intricacies of the study of crime must be maintained. Chaque homme à son propre
goût: each man (sic) to his own taste. It is this attitude that continually evolves the
study of crime. Society is constantly in a state of flux and crime is a much more fluid
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Bibliography
Beccaria, Cesare (Editor: Richard Bellemy), 2003, On Crimes and Punishments and
other writings (4th Ed). Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.
Downes, David & Rock, P, 2007, Understanding Deviance (5th Ed). Oxford. Oxford
University Press.
Einstadter, Werner & Stuart Henry, 2006, Criminological Theory: An Analysis of its
underlying assumptions. Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc.
Maguire, Mike (ed) et al, 2002, The Oxford Handbook of Criminology (3rd Ed).
Oxford. Oxford University Press.
Lombroso, Cesare. 1911, Crime: Its Causes and Remedies Translated by Henry P.
Horton New Jersey: Little, Brown and Company.
Scraton, Phil. 2007, Power, conflict and criminalisation. Oxon. Routledge Publishers.
Siegel, Larry 2005, Criminology: The Core (2nd Edition). Wadsworth Publishers.
California