THE EARLY SCHOOLS OF CRIMINOLOGY : CLASSICAL VIEW AND POSITIVISM

THE CLASSICAL SCHOLARS Modern criminology is the product of two main schools of thought: The classical school originating in the 18th century, and the positivist school originating in the 19th century.

PRE-CLASSICAL NOTIONS OF CRIME & CRIMINALS Prior to the eighteenth century, explanations of a wide variety of phenomena tended to be of a religious or spiritual nature. Demonological explanations of crime began to wane in the 18th century with the beginning of a period of historians call The Enlightenment, which was essentially a major shift in the way people began to view the world and their place.

PRE-CLASSICAL NOTIONS OF CRIME & CRIMINALS Enlightenment thinkers focused on the dignity and worth of the individual. A view that would eventually find expression in the law & the treatment of criminal offenders.

THE CLASSICAL SCHOOL: CESARE BECCARIA AND REFORM The father of classical criminology is generally considered to be Cesare Beccaria. Dei Delitti e della Pene (On Crimes and Punishment) (1764): This book is an impassioned plea to humanize and rationalize the law and to make punishment more just and reasonable.

Beccaria believed that laws should be designed to preserve public safety and order, not to avenge crime. To ensure a rational and fair justice system, punishments for specific crimes must be decreed by written criminal codes, the discretionary powers of judges should be severely reduced. The Classical School: Cesare Beccaria and Reform

JEREMY BENTHAM AND HUMAN NATURE Principles of Morals and Legislation (1789) is a philosophy of social control based on the principle of utility, which prescribed “the greatest happiness for the greatest number.” Any human action at all should be judged moral or immoral by its effect on the happiness of the community. Hedonism: A doctrine with the central tenet that the achievement of pleasure or happiness is the main goal of life.

Rational behavior is behavior that is consistent with logic. Hedonism and rationality are combined in concept of the hedonistic calculus, a method by which individuals are assumed to logically weigh the anticipated benefits of a given course of action against its possible costs. Jeremy Bentham and Human Nature

Free will enables human beings to purposely and deliberately choose to follow a calculated course of action. If crime is to be deterred, punishment (pain) must exceed the pleasures gained from the fruits of crime. Jeremy Bentham and Human Nature

THE LEGACY OF THE CLASSICAL SCHOOL All modern criminal justice systems in the world assume the classical position that persons are free agents who deserve to be punished when they transgress the law.

THE LEGACY OF THE CLASSICAL SCHOOL Many of the ideas championed by Beccaria are contained in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and other documents at the heart of Western legal systems today. : the right to a speedy trial, freedom from cruel and unusual punishment, the right to confront one’s accusers, and equality under law,

WHAT IS POSITIVISM? In the 19th century criminologists began to move away from the classical assumptions, especially the assumption of free will as it is commonly understood, and toward a more scientific view of human behavior. The increasingly popular view among criminologists of this period was that crime resulted from internal and/or external forces impinging on individuals, biasing, or even completely determining, their behavior choices.

WHAT IS POSITIVISM This position became known as determinism, and its adherents were known as positivists. Positivistic criminologists were more concerned with discovering the biological, psychological, or social determinants of criminal behavior than with the classical concerns of legal and penal reforms.

CESARE LOMBARSO (1835 – 1909) Italian physician and psychiatrist What did he think/do? Studied cadavers of executed criminals in an effort to determine scientifically whether criminals were physically any different from non- criminals

BIOLOGICAL POSITIVISM: CESARE LOMBROSO AND THE BORN CRIMINAL Cesare Lombroso’s Criminal Man (1876) is considered the first book devoted solely to the causes of criminality. Lombroso’s basic idea was that many criminals are born criminal, and they are evolutionary throwbacks to an earlier form of life. He believed that facial features of criminals included things like enormous jaws and strong canine teeth.

Pictures of murderers that Lambarso believed carried facial features tied to criminal activity.

MurdererSean Penn See any similarities!? Does this mean Sean Penn is a Criminal?

Those in group "A" are all shoplifters, "B" are swindlers, "H" are purse snatchers, "E" are murderers, etc

BIOLOGICAL POSITIVISM: CESARE LOMBROSO AND THE BORN CRIMINAL Lombroso distinguished different types of criminals: 1.Insane criminal: Not born criminal, but rather become criminals as a result of an alteration of their brain. 2.Criminaloids: Categorized as habitual criminals, who become so by contact with other criminals.

THE LEGACY OF POSITIVISM The legacy of the positivist school was the shift from the armchair philosophizing about human behavior to utilizing the concepts and methods of science. Positivism did not disprove or destroy classical principles; it simply shifted emphasis from crime and penology to the individual offender.

RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY Building on classical theory, the Rational Choice Theory views crime as a choice that is influenced by its costs and benefits (pleasure vs. pain)—that is, by its “rationality.” Crime will be more likely to be deterred if its costs are raised (e.g., more punishment applied) The costs or punishments must be certain and immediate.

RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY Rational choice theorists believe that factors such as poverty, IQ, impulsiveness, or broken homes are not required to explain crime. The choice is made in context of personal and situational constraints and the availability of opportunities.

DETERRENCE AND CHOICE: PAIN VERSUS GAIN Deterrence: The prevention of criminal acts by the use or threat of punishment. Specific deterrence refers to the effect of punishment on the future behavior of the person who experiences the punishment.

General deterrence: the preventive effect of the threat of punishment on the general population; it is aimed at potential offenders. Recidivism: Committing another crime after previously being punished for one. Deterrence and Choice: Pain versus Gain