Positivist School Of Criminology

Prior to the eighteenth century a wild array of scientific abnormalities had been defined as having a supernatural or religious origin. It was common to blame strange, lewd, or criminal actions as being caused by some other worldly demonic presence. People did this to alleviate themselves of guilt. The age of enlightenment, brought about a change in the way people viewed themselves and world around them. This period also brought about a change in the way people viewed criminal justice. Criminologists wanted to understand the nature of crime and why people committed it. Through observation, scientific research, and back room discussions several theories came about that led to the formation of the classical and positivist schools of Criminology.

He took the grouping of offenders laid out by his partners Lombroso and Garofalo and added two more categories; habitual and involuntary criminals. Habitual criminals could be characterized by committing crimes based on their environment and societal pressures. These criminals could be defined by having shared facial features like small earlobes, gaunt faces, and bushy eye brows. These criminals start out as moral being but are genetically inclined to commit crimes. These people are more likely to be susceptible to recidivism. However, involuntary criminals are ones who commit crimes by accident through the failed use of common sense or

Their views differ so greatly from that of classical theorist. This is most likely why their theories have not been accepted Charles Buckman Goring published his 1913 study entitled The English Convict: A Statistical Study, in which he outlined the failing of Lombroso research. He did not try to negate his findings. He only wanted to state to the world that methods that Lombroso used to conduct his research were not necessarily scientific or empirical; meaning much more research would need to be done to validate his theories. (Mutchnick, Martin, Austin, 2009, p.29). There has been little evidence over the years to prove that DNA can truly be used determine and group offenders. However, the positivist approach has led to the formation of probation and parole programs and targeting individualized treatment to the needs of the