Introduction to Criminology: Why Do They Do It?
Second Edition
Learning Objectives
- Describe what distinguishes positivistic perspectives from the Classical/rational choice perspectives in terms of assumptions, concepts, and propositions.
- Explain how the early, pre-Darwinian theories, such as craniometry and phrenology, are different from (and similar to) later post-Darwinian theories, such as Lombroso’s theory of offending.
- Identify the key assumptions, propositions, and weaknesses of Lombroso’s theory of atavism and the born criminal.
- Explain the shift to more psychological areas, namely IQ testing, and how it affected the field in terms of policy and thinking about individuals’ risk for criminality.
- Evaluate the key propositions, concepts, and weaknesses of Sheldon’s body type theory, and how he measured the various body types of this perspective.