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CRIMINOLOGY[1]

Table of Contents

QUESTION BANK.

Q.1.What is criminology? Discuss the possibility of the science of criminology.

Q.2. Define criminology. Discuss the possibility of the science of criminology.

Q.3. Discuss various schools of criminology.

Q.4. Define Criminology and discuss its nature and scope.

Q.5. Explain the importance of the study of criminology in the modern era.

SHORT NOTES.

Pre-Classical school of criminology.
The classical school of criminology.
Neo-classical school of criminology.
Positive school of criminology.
Clinical school of criminology.
Sociological school of criminology.
Criminology and medical science.

SYNOPSIS

I] Introduction

II] Definition

1) According to Sutherland an American criminologist

2) According to Elliot Merill

3) According to Taft

4) According to Webster Dictionary

III] Nature and scope of criminology

A] Following aspects elaborate nature of criminology

1) Criminal Anthropology

2) Criminal sociology

3) Criminal psychology

4) Criminal Psycho-neuro pathology

5) Penology-

B] Applied or practical criminology

C] Criminalistics

IV] Importance of criminology

1) Reformation of criminal

2) Provide background for professions

3) Create conditions conducive for social solidarity

4) Keeps updated as to new types of offences

5) Identify obnoxious and anti-social behaviours

6) Individual approach

7) Helps in improving scientific and technological knowledge

V] Schools of criminology

A) Pre-classical School of criminology

1) Social Conditions

2) Concept of crime causation

3) Remedies

B) Classical School of criminology

Cesare Beccaria:-

1) Fear of punishment causes change in human will

2) Concerned with ‘act’

3) Acceptance of punishment

4) Importance to prevention of crime

5) Quantum of punishment

6) Oppose arbitrary powers of Judges

7) Favours well defined criminal justice system

C) Neo- Classical School of criminology

1) Mental Condition recognized

2) Recognised distinction between first time offenders and habitual offenders

3) Recognises persons irresponsible for their conduct

4) Segregation of criminals from society

5) Recognises relation between crime and its causes

6) Paved way for correctional institution

7) Subjective approach

8) Paved way for jury system

Shortcomings of the school

D) Positive School

1) Cesare Lombroso (1838 to 1894)

I} His theory

a) Atavist or Hereditary criminals
b) Insane Criminals
c) Criminoids

II} Criticism against Lombroso’s theory

i) Racist
ii) Theory was ill founded

iii) Physical appearance has no relation with crime

iv) Delayed work

2) Enrico Ferri (1856 to 1928)

3) Raffaele Garofalo (1852 to 1934)

E) Clinical School of Criminology
F) Sociological School of criminology

Conclusion-

*****

NOTES

Causes of Crim:e

Causes of crime can be divided broadly into

1) Subjective causes of crime

i) Hereditary
ii) Bio-physical factor

2) Objective aspects of crime causation

i) Mobility
ii) Cultural Conflict

iii) Cultural Transmission Theory

iv) Family background
v) Political Ideology
vi) Religion

vii) Economic conditions

viii) Ecology

ix) Media
x) Neighbourhood

In Conclusion

I] INTRODUCTION:-

With modernisation in society, crimes have also increased. Many new types of crimes have emerged. There is a need to study criminal behaviour systematically and scientifically to control emerging crimes. The branch that studies crime and all its related aspects is known as ‘criminology’. The purpose of criminology study is to analyse different aspects of crime and devise effective measures for their treatment. It concerns the criminals’ re-socialisation and rehabilitation in society. Thus, criminology is a social study that seeks to discover the causes of criminality and suggest remedies to reduce them. It helps in the formulation of effective penal policy.

The term ‘criminology’ is a combination of the Latin word ‘crimen’ and the Greek word ‘logia’. Thus, ‘criminology’ means ‘the scientific study of the nature, extent, causes and control of criminal behaviour’. Thus, criminology deals with crime causation, crime analysis, and crime prevention. ‘Criminology’ is the science of crime. It seeks to study the phenomenon of criminality in its entirety.

Criminology thus (i) suggests measures to reform offenders and (ii) evolves liberal types of punishments that offer greater opportunities for their rehabilitation.

Thus, reformation and rehabilitation of criminals as good members of society and reducing the crime rate are important objects of the study of criminology.

II] DEFINITION:-

There is no single and universally acceptable definition of ‘criminology’; therefore, we will discuss the following definitions given by different criminologists-

1) According to Sutherland, an American criminologist:-

“Criminology is the body of knowledge regarding crime as a social phenomenon. It includes the process of making laws, breaking laws, and reacting toward the breaking of laws within its scope. Criminology aims to develop a body of general and verified principles and other types of knowledge regarding this process of law, crime, and treatment or prevention”.[2]

2) According to Elliot Merill:-

“Criminology may be defined as the scientific study of crime and its treatment”.[3]

3) According to Taft:-

“Criminology is the study which includes all the subject matter necessary to understand and prevent crimes together with the punishment and treatment of delinquents and criminals”.[4]

4) According to Webster’s Dictionary:-

“Criminology may be defined as the scientific study of crime as a social phenomenon, or of criminals and their mental traits, habits and discipline, etc.”[5]

III] Nature and Scope of Criminology:-

Thus, from the above definitions, it is clear that criminology is the scientific, systematic, statistical and functional study of crime. The study aims to develop general principles to reduce crime and reform and rehabilitate criminals. It also suggests reforms in shaping penal policy. Criminology includes the study of crimes, administration of criminal justice, penalties, reforms and rehabilitation of criminals, and justice for victims of crime. Since the study is related to society, the scope of ‘criminology’ is vast.

Even though criminology’s scope is huge, some criminologists have tried to limit it by defining specific functions or areas of study.

According to Dr. Kenny, criminology is the branch of criminal science that deals with crime causation, analysis, and prevention.

According to Prof. W. A. Bonger:-

The study of criminology is related to the first two aspects, i.e. theoretical and practical. The third aspect, i.e. criminal psychology, is added later.

A) Following aspects elaborate nature of criminology:-

1) Criminal Anthropology[6]:-

‘Criminal Anthropology’ seeks to understand the offenders’ personalities in physical terms. Cesare Lombroso first time propounded this theory. According to Lombroso, criminals are different physically from normal persons and possess inferior physical characteristics. According to him, persons committing a crime are born criminals. They are physically different from others. Thus, criminals are studied on their physical traits.

2) Criminal sociology[7]:-

Sutherland is the founder of this theory. He called his theory “Differential Association”. According to this theory, criminal behaviour is a process of learning through associations with other criminals.

3) Criminal psychology[8]:-

French psychologist Binet and Criminologists from the U.S.A are the main propounders of this view. According to this view, there exists a correlation between criminality and the emotional aspect of human nature or psychology.

4) Criminal Psycho-neuro pathology:-

Dr Glueck and Freud are the main propounders of this theory. According to this theory, criminality and mental conflict among the offenders are correlated. Inferiority, complexion, frustration, deprivation, anxiety, etc., lead some persons to commit crimes.

5) Penology[9]:-

The study of penology concerns the various aspects of punishment and penal policies. Penology also studies various forms of punishments and their effects.

B) Applied or practical criminology[10]:-

Applied or practical criminology studies criminal hygiene and criminal policy founded on solid conclusions.

C) Criminalistics[11]:-

Criminalistics is the study connected with the investigation techniques of crime by the police and the detection of criminals.

IV] Importance of Criminology:-

The ultimate object of criminology is to render a crime-free society as far as possible. To achieve this objective, the study of criminology is beneficial. The study of criminology has the following advantages.

1) Reformation of criminals[12]:-

The concern of criminology is crime and criminal. The reformation of criminals is the main object of criminology. It studies criminals with the basic assumption that ‘no one is born criminal’. According to criminologists, there is always space for reformation in crime. Thus, rehabilitating criminals as good members of society is the main concern of criminology.

2) Provide background for professions[13]:-

According to Donald Taft, the study of criminology offers a background for professions and opportunities for social workers.

It provides perfect knowledge, useful to police, lawyers, attorneys, judges, jurors, probation officers, psychiatrists etc., concerning criminals.

3) Create conditions conducive to social solidarity[14]:-

Criminology seeks to create conducive conditions to social solidarity; it tries to part out with those obnoxious and anti-social behaviours.

Through adequate punitive sanctions, ‘criminology’ tries to convince criminals’ that ‘crime does not pay’; rather, it entails punishment, misery, misfortune and a bad reputation.

4) Keeps updated as to new types of offences:-

The study of criminology keeps concerned professions updated as to new types of anti-social behaviours, and it also suggests measures to control them. White-collar crimes, cyber crimes, theft of electronic goods, automobile smuggling, etc., types of crimes have increased enormously. Therefore, it has become essential for criminologists to keep themselves acquainted with new criminological developments.

5) Identify obnoxious and anti-social behaviours:-

The study of criminology helps to understand various behaviours of obnoxious and anti-social people.

6) Individual approach:-

The study of criminology does not merely study crime generally but individual criminals. It, therefore, suggests specific methods for causing reformation in criminals. One general technique may not be similarly useful for all types of offenders due to differences in their social and psychological backgrounds; they need individual treatment.

7) Helps in improving scientific and technological knowledge:-

The study of criminology helps improve scientific and technological knowledge for controlling crime. The study also helps criminologists to design plans to identify the causes of crime and adopt appropriate remedial measures to control it.

Whether Criminology is a Science?[15]:-

In fact, it is very difficult to treat criminology as a science. It is because the essence of any faculty being science lies in its general propositions of universal validity. Such general propositions of universal validity can be made only regarding stable and homogenous units. Thus, H2O makes water and is not subject to change in time or place; therefore, it is a perfect science.

However, a crime which is a subject matter of criminology is neither stable nor homogeneous. It is a variable concept that changes from time to time and from place to place. Scientific criminal behaviour is impossible. Therefore, criminology cannot be termed a science.

However, laying down some general principles about crime and its causes is possible, but that does not make criminology a science. Nevertheless, the importance of criminology cannot be undermined on the ground, whether it is pure science or not.

V] Schools of Criminology[16]:-

Schools of criminology are also called the ‘theories of criminology. These schools are nothing but different thoughts which explain different causes of crime and suggest remedies for its control. According to Sutherland, schools of criminology mean a system of thought that consists of an integrated theory of causation of crime and the policies of control implied in the theory of causation. Each of these schools explains crime in its own manner and suggests punishment and preventive measures that suit their ideology. The study of each of these schools is based on research and analysis.

There are two main schools of criminology, viz. Classical School and Positive School. However, there are some other schools also which have contributed well to the development of criminology; they are as follows-

A) Pre-classical School of criminology[17]:-

Social Conditions- This school of criminology was prevalent during the 17^th and 18^th centuries in Europe. The scholasticism of Saint Tomas Aquinas dominated the school. However, later philosophers like Donate Alighien, Martin Luther and Jean Boadin contributed to this school. During that period, state activities were dominated by religion. During the period, the concept of the divine right of the king was prevalent.

Concept of crime causation:- in fact, the school has not studied the causes of crime. There was a general belief that man, by nature, is simple, and some superpower controls his actions. A man commits a crime not by his free will but due to the influence of an external spirit known as ‘demons; or ‘devils’.

Remedies:- Worships, sacrifices, and ordeals[18] were usual practices followed to satisfy the spirits and to relieve the victims from the evil influences of demons. However, the King was free to inflict punishment to deter the offender. According to Hobbes, a fear of punishment at the hands of a monarch was a sufficient deterrence for the members of the society to keep them away from sinful acts. However, the school has lost its importance in modern days since there was no scientific study on crime causation, and the School made a penal policy.

B) Classical School of criminology[19]:-

The Classical school has rejected the theory of the pre-classical school. They rejected the demonological theory of criminology and evil spirits in committing a crime.

Cesare Beccaria:-

Cesare Beccaria is the founding father of modern criminology. During the middle of the 18th century, Beccaria attempted to humanise criminal law by insisting on the natural rights of human beings (i.e. offenders).

He laid greater importance on the mental phenomenon of the individual and attributed crime to the ‘free will’ of the individual. According to him, man commits crime not due to an evil spirit but by his ‘free will’. According to him, man is free to do as he pleases, and therefore it is very important to inculcate in him, through teachings, threats or rewards, to conform to the sanctions of society. He was an advocate of the utilitarian philosophy prevailing at that time. The utilitarian philosophy placed reliance on hedonism, i.e. the pleasure and pain theory. Donald Taft explains that ‘man is free to commit a crime since; he wants to get pleasure and avoid pain’.

The following are the main tenets of the classical school-

1) Fear of punishment causes a change in the human will:-

The theory assumes that an individual can control his conduct by exercising his power of will. It means human behaviour is ‘self-generated’ and ‘self-controlled’. In short, it is not the evil spirit which does the crime. Therefore, fear of punishment can bring a change in human ‘will’ and pursue him to desist from committing a crime.

2) Concerned with ‘act’:-

The theory is more concerned with the ‘act’ of the criminal than his ‘intent’. The theory believes that the act of an individual and not his intent forms the basis for determining criminality within him.

3) Acceptance of punishment:-

The school accepts punishment as a principal method of infliction of pain, humiliation, and disgrace to create fear in man and control his behaviour. Thus, the school supports retributive[20] forms of punishment.

4) Importance of the prevention of crime:-

The school stress on prevention of crime than the punishment for it. Therefore, it stresses the drafting of Criminal Codes prescribing systematic punishments so the prospective criminal could know beforehand how much the punishment for a particular offence is.

According to Beccaria, ‘the aim of punishment should only be to prevent the criminal from committing new crimes and keep other budding society members away from committing crimes. Therefore, he insists that the punishment and the method of inflicting them should be in proportion to the crime to make the most efficacious and lasting impression on the mind and the least painful impressions on the body of the criminal.

5) Quantum of punishment:-

The school supports the right of the state to punish offenders in the interest of public security. Therefore, the school stressed awarding that much of the punishment which would exceed the pains over pleasures he derived by committing that crime. However, the school warns that any punishment beyond the abovementioned proportion is surplus and tyrannical.

6) Oppose the arbitrary powers of Judges:-

The School believes that criminal law primarily rests on positive sanctions; therefore, it opposes using arbitrary powers by Judges. According to the school, the Judge should limit their verdicts strictly within the confine of law. Thus, the school does not give importance to judicial discretion.

7) Favours well-defined criminal justice system[21]:-

Due to its pleasure and pain ideology, the school favours curtailment of judicial discretion and drafting of well-defined criminal Codes. It favours the well-defined criminal justice system so that criminal would know beforehand how much pain they will get if he commits a particular crime. Until the emergence of the school, the drafted Criminal Code was not in existence, only judicial decisions prevailed, and a lot of judicial discretion was left to the judges.

Since the theory insists on a well-defined criminal justice system, criminal Codes were drafted in France, Germany and Italy.

Criminologists and philosophers like Bentham, Montesquieu, Hume, Bacen, Rousseau etc., have contributed to this school. They have enriched this school with their contribution.

However, the school suffers from the following shortcomings also-

i) The School suggests equal punishment for the same offence, leaving no space for judicial discretion, no space for discrimination between first-time offenders and hardened criminals, sane and insane criminals, and very age-old and young offenders.
ii) Moreover, the school ignores the mental element in committing a crime. It suggests punishment to the criminal irrespective of mens rea. It leads to a miscarriage of justice.

iii) The school has not studied or researched the causation of crime.

Despite shortcomings, the school has contributed considerably to the field of ‘criminology’.

C) Neo-Classical School of Criminology[22]:-

Neo-Classical School builds its theory on the lacunas of Classical School. It removed the shortcomings of the classical school.

Features of Neo-Classical Schools are as follows-

1) Mental Condition recognized:-

The School recognised that certain extenuating circumstances or mental disorders deprive the person of his normal capacity to control his conduct. Therefore, the school felt the need for lenient punishment in cases of psychopathic offenders.

2) Recognised distinction between first-time offenders and habitual offenders:-

The School recognized the distinction between first-time offenders and recidivists. Consequently, the school moved its attention towards individualising treatment of the offender and the treatment methods. The school suggested such methods of punishment which would suit the psychopathic circumstances of the accused.

3) Recognises persons irresponsible for their conduct:-

The school categorises criminals as responsible for their conduct and those who are irresponsible. According to the School, the man acting on reason and intelligence is a self-determining person and, therefore, is responsible for his conduct. However, those lacking normal intelligence or having some mental depravity are irresponsible in their conduct as they do not possess the capacity to distinguish between good and bad. Therefore, the school suggests different treatments for responsible and irresponsible persons.

4) Segregation of criminals from society[23]):-

Even though the school recognises different treatment of responsible and irresponsible criminals, it suggests keeping them segregated from society.

5) Recognises relation between crime and its causes:-

The school recognises that all crimes do have a cause. The school traced psychopathy and psychology as basic causes of crime, but it also recognised the relationship between crime and the environment of the criminal.

6) Paved the way for the correctional institution:-

By making a difference between responsible (i.e. sane) and irresponsible (insane) criminals, the school paved the way for the subsequent formation of different correctional institutions such as parole[24], probation[25], reformatories, open prisons etc.,

7) Subjective approach[26]:-

The school adopted a subjective approach than the general approach to criminology and the conditions under which an individual commits a crime.

8) Paved the way for the jury system:-

Due to the New Classical School approach, the jury system originated.

Shortcomings of the School:-

The school suffers from the following shortcomings, viz.

The school believes that the criminal, whether responsible or irresponsible, is a menace to society and, therefore, needs to be eliminated from it.
The concept of responsible and irresponsible criminal seems abstract, and it cannot furnish legal ground for Judges and juries to form a basis for their discretion.

Nevertheless, the School has contributed well to criminology.

D) Positive School:-

The ‘Positive school’ is also called an Italian School. During the 19^th century, some French doctors established that it is neither the ‘free will’ of the offender nor his innate depravity which attract him towards crime, but anthropological features of the criminal. Auguste Comte, a French sociologist, has also felt the need to adopt a scientific approach to social phenomena like crime.

Italian doctors and criminologists further strengthened the findings of French doctors. Three of the schools’ main exponents were Italian, i.e. Cesare Lombroso, Garofalo and Ferri; therefore, the school was also known as ‘Italian School’. Since the school was based on a scientific study, it was also called a ‘positive school.

We will discuss their approach as follows-

1) Cesare Lombroso (1838 to 1894):-

Cesare Lombroso was a Doctor and psychiatrist. He first adopted scientific study to understand the criminal’s personality in physical terms. He worked in the military as a Doctor, where he got an opportunity to handle mentally affected soldiers and observe their physical conditions.

I} His Theory:-

He published his first book known as “the criminal man”. In his book, he shifted emphasis from crime to criminal. According to him, criminals are physically inferior in terms of standard of growth and, therefore, tend to commit inferior acts. According to him, criminals are less sensitive to pain and, consequently, have little regard for the sufferings of others.

Lombroso justified the involvement of Darwin’s theory of biological determinations in criminal behaviour. He classified criminals into three main categories-

a) Atavist or Hereditary criminals[27]:-

These criminals are also termed ‘born criminals. Born criminals are of distinctive types. These criminals could not be reformed from indulging in criminality, irrespective of their living environment. Lombroso called them ‘incorrigible, i.e. beyond reformation. Thus, according to him, regardless of their background, these criminals cannot resist committing offences and cannot be reformed.

According to him, ‘atavists’ (born criminals) possess atavistic characteristics, i.e. characteristics of man’s ancestors, i.e. apes or primitive-age mankind. Thus, according to him, these criminals possess ape-like characteristics. At first, he enumerated as many as sixteen abnormalities or characteristics of a criminal such as-

i) Peculiar size and shape of the head and eye.
ii) Enlarged jaw and cheekbones.

iii) Fleshy lips,

iv) Abnormal teeth,
v) Long or flat chin,
vi) Retreating forehead,

vii) Dark skin,

viii) Twisted nose etc.,

Later on, Lombroso added some more physical traits to his thought, such as biology, psychology and environment; however, his main stress remained on atavism.

However, later on, he revised his theory of Atavism and mentioned that only one-third of criminals are born criminals and not all.

Finally, he admitted that his theory of Atavism was ill-founded. He mentioned such criminals as occasional criminals and not atavists.

b) Insane Criminals[28]:-

According to Lombroso, this category of insane criminals resorts to criminality because of certain mental disorders or depravity.

c) Criminoids[29]:-

According to Lombroso, these types of criminals tend to commit crimes to overcome their inferiority complexions and meet their survival needs; for that purpose, they borrow artificial behaviour of superiority.

II} Criticism against Lombroso’s theory:-

Even though Lombroso’s contribution to criminology due to his theory is excellent, he is criticized severely on the following grounds-

i) Racist:-

Some criminologists criticize Lombroso’s theory as recast and against some races.

ii) Theory was ill-founded:-

Lombroso himself admitted that his theory of Atavism was ill-founded. Moreover, after carrying out his research, criminologists like Goring mentioned that there is nothing like identifying criminals based on their physical characteristics. However, he agrees with Lombroso as far as mentally depraved criminals are concerned.

iii) Physical appearance has no relation to crime:-

According to Gabriel Tarde, criminal behaviour results from the learning process, and there is no direct relationship between physical appurtenance and criminal propensities.

iv) Delayed work:-

According to Sutherland, shifting attention from crime as a social phenomenon to crime as an individual phenomenon took Lombroso fifty years to complete the work which was already in progress.

Nevertheless, Lombroso’s contribution to criminology is remarkable.

2) Enrico Ferri (1856 to 1928) :-

Ferri was a follower of Lombroso. He was a member of the Italian parliament and a lawyer. He challenged Lombro’s view and, through his thorough research, proved that mere biological reasons were not enough to lead any person to criminality, but other factors such as emotional reactions, social inferiority or geographical conditions also play a vital role in determining criminal tendencies in men. He is therefore called the founder of ‘criminal sociology’.

In his book ‘Law of Criminal Saturation’ Ferri mentions that crime is a systematic product of three main features as-

i) Physical or geographical, ii. Anthropological, iii. Psychological or social:-

He observes that social change, which is inevitable in a dynamic society, results in disharmony, conflict and cultural variation. Traditional patterns of social control mechanisms lose their value; therefore, crime is bound to be increased tremendously.

The ferry does not blame the criminal for the crime; instead, he mentions that he is a product of the conditions which played his life. Therefore, he suggests that the primary purpose of a crime prevention programme is to remove conditions that make him a criminal.

He suggests adopting a series of measures for the treatment of offenders. He asserts that punishment could be one of the methods of reforming the criminal. He stressed awarding indeterminate sentences to reform criminals.

3) Raffaele Garofalo (1852 to 1934):-

Another important exponent of the Italian School (Positive School) is Raffaele Garofalo. He worked initially as a Magistrate and got the position of Minister of Justice in Italy.

According to him, the criminal is a creature of his own environment. He defined crime as ‘an act which affects the sentiments of pity (respect for rights of others) and probity (respect for others’ property). He asserts that lack of compassion generates crimes against a person, while lack of probity leads offenders to commit crimes against property.

He divided criminals into four categories, viz.

i) Murderers (endemic criminals).
ii) Violent criminals (due to the prejudice of honour, politics and religion)

iii) Criminals lacking the sentiments of probity, and

iv) Lascivious or lustful criminals (commit crimes against chastity)

E) Clinical School of Criminology[30]:-

According to the School, the personality of a criminal is a combination of internal and external factors; therefore, punishment should be based on the criminal’s personality.

According to Prof. Gillin, a criminal is a product of biological inheritance, which influences his development through his own experiences of life to which he is exposed from the time of his infancy to the time of his committing the crime.

The School suggests that only such criminals who do not respond favourably to correctional methods must be punished with severe punishments like imprisonment or transportation for life, etc., and those who are merely victims of social conditions shall be subjected to correctional methods such as probation, parole, reformation, open prison etc.,

F) Sociological School of Criminology[31]:-

This school seeks to locate the causation of crime in a social environment.

According to Trade, a social analyst, crimes result from the human tendency to imitate others. According to this school, the crime rate changes with the change in social organization. Apart from changes in social organization, some other social factors, such as economy, political ideology, the density of population, employment situations, etc., have a direct bearing on crime causation in society.

Sutherland, through his “Differential Association[32]” theory suggests that human personality and culture are directly related, and a person becomes a criminal mostly due to the chain of circumstances in which he associates or moves.

The School recommends the application of humanitarian methods for treating offenders. Due to this approach, the sociological school is also described as a ‘rational school’.

The school asserts that persons prone to criminality should be corrected through persuasive rather than traditional punitive methods.

The school supports the multiple-factor theory of crime causation. According to the multiple-factor theory, crime is a product of a great variety of factors which cannot be reduced in general propositions. In other words, the multiple-factor theory suggests that crimes are caused by a combination of several factors; therefore, no specific theory of criminal behaviour is ever possible.

Conclusion: These schools have shifted traditional attention from crime to the criminal. Their theories contributed considerably to the development of criminology.

*****

Note-

CAUSES OF CRIME:-

There are various causes of crime. Understanding the causes of crime is very important to reducing the crime rate. Criminologists, through their research, have found various causes of crime and suggested remedies. In fact, schools of criminology study the causes of crime. Different criminology schools are nothing but approaches and findings of different causes of crime.

Causes of crime can be divided broadly into:-

I] Subjective causes[33] of crime:-

Subjective aspects of crime causation relate to a criminal’s physical and mental condition. The subjective causes of crime causation relate to the personality of the criminal.

Subjective causes or reasons for crime causation may be further divided into-

1) Hereditary[34]:-

Lombroso is the first criminologist who has a related crime to heredity. According to him, certain criminals are criminals by birth. They become criminals due to heredity and the traits of criminals in them. (For further details, refer to Positive Law School).

2) Bio-physical factor:-

Physical and biological abnormalities are treated as responsible for criminal behaviour. The study shows that criminals are characteristically different, abnormal, defective, and inferior both biologically and physically. According to this view, the particular size and shape of the skull and brain lead a person to commit a crime. This view is known as ‘phrenology’. This theory is based on Lombroso’s ‘born-criminal’ theory and was developed by Prof Franz Joseph, John Gasper, and Dr Coldwell.

According to the doctrine of phrenology, the physical and biological differences and abnormalities among men are responsible for their criminal behaviour.

II] Objective Aspects[35] of Crime Causation:-

External or objective factors are related to the surroundings of the criminal. These include sociological factors.

1) Mobility[36]:-

Mobility is the moving of persons from one place to another. Such moving may be due to a search for employment or unsecured living conditions at an existing place.

Migration breeds criminality if migrant fails to get employment opportunities or accommodations etc.,

2) Cultural Conflict[37]:-

Cultural conflict occurs when people from different cultures live together. Such social conflicts may occur due to industrialisation, urbanisation, or migration. Cultural conflict leads to social disorganisation and increases crimes. Cultural conflict may also arise due to differences between old and new values, local and adopted values, traditional and modern values, and values imposed by law.

Cultural conflict leads to religious offences, rioting, looting, and murders. India-Pakistan Partition in 1947, the Bangladesh-Pakistan partition in 1971, ethnic riots in Sri Lanka, etc., are some examples of cultural conflicts.

3) Cultural Transmission[38] Theory:-

A modern 20th-century theory of crime causation is the ‘cultural Transmission Theory. ‘ Shah and Mckay propound the theory. According to it, traditions of delinquency are transmitted through successive generations of the same inhabitation in the same way as language and attire are transmitted.

Thus, some clans and groups in society, such as pardhi (in Maharashtra), Kenjarbhat (in Rajasthan), etc., are disreputed for indulging in criminal activities from generation to generation.

4) Family Background:-

According to Sutherland, family background has the greatest influence on the criminal behaviour of all the social factors. Since children imitate their parents and relatives, they imbibe criminal tendencies if their parents or relatives have criminal behaviour. Children in such families unconsciously learn about criminal activities.

A broken family, lack of parental control, ignorance, illiteracy or illness of either parent are some factors that lead children to criminality.

Donald Taft has mentioned that several family factors are responsible for deviant or criminal behaviour.

5) Political Ideology[39]:-

With the change in political ideology, the acts that were illegal till yesterday may become legal today and vice–versa. However, society may not adopt such changes suddenly. Therefore, offences like rioting, religious conflicts, and conflicts between political parties with different ideologies may occur.

In today’s system, one may say politics breeds criminality. Money and muscle power determine today’s politics. Several criminals find shelter in today’s politics. Coalition Government has become a political trend; therefore, parties with different ideologies come into power, breeding criminality to subserve their ideologies. The parties which are not in power adopt disruptive practices to gain popularity.

Thus, mass protests against the government, destruction of public properties etc., are the very common modes the political parties adopt to gain popularity and power.

6) Religion:-

If used correctly, religious ideologies uplift human life and increase tolerance and mutual understanding. Therefore, they decrease criminal tendencies. However, religion’s negative function is very destructive. Therefore, Karl Marx said, “Religion is opium.”

Intolerance for other religious ideologies caused most wars in the world. Mass murders, destruction of public and private properties, rapes, and offences against women occur due to religious conflicts. Recent deaths in Gujarat and killings by terrorists in India, Pakistan, Iraq, America, etc., are the outcome of religious fanaticism.

7) Economic Conditions:-

According to Karl Marx, human behaviour is determined by economic factors. According to Bonger, a criminal is a product of a capitalistic system that creates selfish tendencies. In short, capitalism generates many crimes. In capitalism, each person extracts the maximum from the other in return for the minimum from his side.

Economic inequality, poverty etc., breed several deviant behaviours such as sexual crimes due to the employment of women and children, hoarding, black marketing, thefts, exploitation of the poor etc.,

8) Ecology:-

“Ecology” means ‘surrounding’. Topographical conditions of the particular region also result in crimes. Enrico Ferri, an eminent Italian criminologist, analysed the crime index of his country and stated that in the same country, the crime rate varies considerably from region to region. Criminologists from France, England and the USA have recorded similar findings. According to them, the same crimes are more peculiar to a particular region than other parts of the country. Thus, violations of customs, exercise and drug laws are more common in border areas and coastal regions, as illegal trade in animal articles, ivory, etc., and Naxalism and tree cutting are common in forest areas. Pick-pocketing, gambling, and thefts are common in urban areas.

9) Media[40]:-

Mass media like TV and films greatly impact the viewers’ minds. For their popularity, scenes of violence and cruelty are shown in most of the movies on TV and in cinemas. It affects viewers’ minds adversely, specifically youngsters. Youngsters try to imitate the same. Juvenile delinquency results from violence, vulgarism and undesired sex scenes shown in media. Today’s mobile use for negative purposes, watching pornographic, etc., increases offences against a woman.

The use of Facebook, WhatsApp, hike massager, etc., transfers sensitive data quickly, thereby causing alarm in society. It may sometimes lead in group clashes, riots, loot etc.,

Thus, in conclusion, audio and video media play a vital negative role in increasing criminality.

10) Neighbourhood:-

Neighbourhood influences personality. A person may become good or bad according to his surroundings; criminality breeds in bad surroundings or neighbourhoods. Thus, opportunities to commit offences like prostitution, theft, cheating, pick-pocketing, etc., are available in thickly inhabited areas. Similarly, homosexuality is common among prisoners. Poor localities and hutment areas also breed criminality.

Thus, the neighbourhood influences his personality and makes him either a good or bad citizen.

In Conclusion, we may say that there may not be a single explanation for crime causation. Crimes are caused by multiple factors, including social, economic, mental or physical defects, geographical or typographical, political, etc. causes.

*****

[1] गुन्हेषास्त्र

[2] गुन्हेषास्त्र हे ‘गुन्हा हि एक सामाजिक घटना असून त्याच्या माहिती अथवा संबंधीचे षास्त्र आहे’. यामध्ये कायदे बनविण्याच्या प्रक्रीयेचा, कायदाभंग करण्याचा तसेच अषा कायदेभंगास दयावयाचे शिक्षेचा समावेष होतो. गुंन्हेषास्त्राचा उद्देष हा कयदे बनविण्याची प्रक्रीया, गुन्हा आणी उपाय व त्यास प्रतिबंध करण्यासंबंधी सर्वसाधारण व पडताळा केलेल्या तत्वांची, अथवा इतर प्रकारचे माहितीची निंिर्मती करणे हा आहे.

[3] गुन्हा व त्यावरील उपाय याचा षास्त्रीय अभ्यास करणारे षास्त्र म्हणजे गुन्हेषास्त्र होय.

[4] गुन्हेषास्त्र हा अभ्यास असून त्यामध्ये, गन्हेगारी जाणूनघेणे, त्यास प्रतिबंध करणे त्याच बरोबर गुन्हेगारास शिक्षा व उपचार यासंबंधी सर्व विशयांचा समावेष होतो.

[5] गुन्हेषास्त्र हे ‘गुन्हा हि एक सामाजिक घटना समजून त्याचा ंिकंवा गुन्हेगार व त्याच्या मानसिक वैषिश्टयांचा, सवयींचा व शिस्तींचा अभ्यास करणारे षास्त्र होय.

[6] गुन्हेगाराच्या षारिरीक वैशिश्टयांचे षास्त्र

[7] गुन्हेगारी व त्याची सामाजिक परिस्थिती

[8] गुन्हेगारी व त्याची मानसिकता

[9] शिक्षेच्या परिणामांचा अभ्यास / दंडनितीषास्त्र

[10] प्रत्यक्षातील गुन्हे षास्त्र

[11] गुन्हा व गुन्हेगाराच्या पोलीस तपासासंबंधीचे षास्त्र

[12] गुन्हेगार सुधारणा

[13] अनेक व्यवसायांना पाठबळ देने

[14] समाजिक ऐक्यासाठी वातावरण तयार करणे

[15] गुन्हेषास्त्रास शास्त्रीय षाखा म्हणता येईल काय?

[16] विशिश्ठ विचारप्रनालीचा पाठपुरावा करनारे गुन्हेषास्त्र तज्ञांचा गट

[17] फार पुर्वीचा / विज्ञानपूर्वीचा / ग्रीक रोमन कालीन विचार

[18] सत्वपरीक्षा

[19] षास्त्रीय विचारसरणी / स्वतः च्या कृतीस स्वतः गुन्हेगार जबाबदार विचारसरणी

[20] बदला घेणेप्रमाणे शिक्षा

[21] चांगल्या पध्दतीच्या फौजदारी न्याय प्रक्रीयेवर / दंड संहीता बनविण्यावर भर

[22] नवशास्त्रीय विचारसरणी ज्यामध्ये जबाबदार व जबाबदार नसलेले गुन्हेगार असे वर्गाीकरण केलेले आहे.

[23] समाजापासुन वेगळे ठेवणे

[24] पळून जाणार नाही अथवा ठरल्या वेळी परत येईन अषा कैदयाच्या अभिवचनावर त्याची काही काळासाठी मुक्तता करणे

[25] ठराविक काळात गुन्हा न करण्याच्या अटीवर शिक्षेत सुट

[26] व्यक्तीनिश्ठ दृश्टीकोन

[27] अनुवांशिक गुन्हेगार

[28] वेडसर गुन्हेगार

[29] गौण अथवा हलक्या प्रतिचा असल्याच्या न्यनगंडातुन बाहेर पडन्यासाठी अथवा मोठा दाखविनेसाठी व चरीतार्थासाठी गुन्हा करनारे गुन्हेगार कि जे मोठा भासविण्यासाठी व मोठेपनाचा क्र्रत्रीम आव आनतात.

[30] गुन्हेगारीचे कारणांची चिकीत्सा करणारा दृश्टीकोन

[31] समाजिक कारणाने गुन्हेगारी होते असे मानणारा दृश्टीकोन

[32] गुन्हयासाठीची वेगवेगळी कारणे

[33] गुन्हेगारे व्यक्ती संबंधीची म्हणजेच त्याचे शरीर व मनस्थिती यासंबंधीची कारणे

[34] अनुवांशीक कारणे

[35] गुन्हेगारीसाठी बाहय घटक जबाबदार मानणारा दृश्टीकोन

[36] स्थालांतरण

[37] समाजिक किंवा सांस्कृतीक संघर्श

[38] समाजिक किंवा सांस्कृतीक वारसा

[39] राजकीय विचारसरणी

[40] जनसंपर्काची साधने