Criminology is a sub-field of
sociology dealing with matters related to
crime and criminal behavior. It includes fields such as
crime statistics,
criminal psychology[?],
forensic science,
law enforcement, and
detective methods.
Naturally, criminology must take into account that the definition of crime varies according to the cultural mores and, especially, laws of a given area. This is an area where caution is warranted; if one is comparing, e.g., violent crimes between nations, one must be careful that the actions counted in that category are similar for each nation; otherwise the comparison is meaningless.
Criminology has, over time, developed several schools of thought, including:
- Classical school
- Positivist school
- Chicago school
- Conflict schools
- Frankfurt school
- Statistical school
See also:
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