What is criminology

Criminal justice

The study of agencies of social control that handle offenders, such as courts, police, and prisons.

Criminologist's question: Why do crime rates vary?

Criminologists investigate variations in crime rates over time and across cultures.

Causes of crime

Factors criminologists study to understand why some individuals commit crimes while others do not.

Profile of a crime victim

What criminologists determine about why specific individuals become victims.

what is criminology according to Siegel

criminology is the scientific approach to the study of criminal behaviour

when and by who was the term criminology first used

the term criminology was fist used in the 19th century by French sociologist called Toppinard

what questions do criminologists ask to understand the goal better

• why do crimes rates vary over time and culture?

• why are some individuals more prone to crime

• why do crime rates differ across ages, genders and races

• why are some harmful acts criminalized and others not?

• why do some people become victims and others not

• what can we do to prevent crime

what is the definition Walsh gives to Criminology

Criminology is an interdisciplinary science that gathers and analyses data on various aspects of criminal, delinquent, and generally antisocial behaviour

what is the goal for criminology

to understand its subject matter and to determine how the understanding can benefit society

what does criminology do

criminology examines why those individuals committed crimes that got them ensnarled in the criminal justice system

what method do criminologist use to answer their questions

the scientific method

what is the scientific method

it is a tool for seperating truth from error by demanding evidence for any conclusions criminologists arrive at

How is evidence obtained

evidence is obtained by formulating hypotheses derived from theory that are rigorously tested with data

what do criminologists aim to achieve by following the scientific method

to build verified knowledge to aid crime fighting

who benefits from the verified knowledge produced by criminologists

policymaker, police and correctional officials

how does the scientific method assist in the battle against crime

it provides a systematic approach to knowledge verification

what does criminology study

crime, criminals, victims, punishment, prevention

how does criminolgy differ from other disciplines in studying crime

it considers the context of crime

what is meant by criminology studying crime in its relativity

it examines crime within its social context

what type of issues do Criminologists study

• the causes of crime

• society’s reaction t crime when people break the law

• differences in the nature and scope of crime between communities in the same area

• why some people commit crimes while others in similar circumstances do not

Criminologists study the victims of crime, what do they try to determine through the study

they try to determine why people become victims as well as examine the profile of a crime victim and what makes people prone to victimisation

who is the father of American criminology

Edwin H. Sutherland

what are Edwin H. Sutherland’s 3 aspects of criminology

• the making of laws

• breaking laws; the area of the causes of crime

• reacting to law-breaking; the work of the police and the courts

name the 5 fields of specialisation identified by Bezuidenhout and Little

• criminal law

• crime theories

• victimology

• criminal and deviant behaviour systems

• criminal justice