Classical and Biological Theories of Crime

Classical and Biological Theories of Crime

The leading theorist of the Classical School of Criminology was Cesare Beccaria. He believed people would make their own choices on their own free will and that environmental or biological factors don’t influence one’s decision with regard to crime. Beccaria believed people loved pleasure and avoids pain so they were pleasure seekers. Humans are said to be capable of understand themselves and acting to promote their own self-interest, in the view that intelligence and rationality are fundamental human characteristics. People form societies according to similarities that seem acceptable to them. Each person is in control of their own fate. This frame of reference is called the classical school of criminology, as well as classical thinking in other disciplines such as philosophy, political science, and economics. Crime is seen as a product of free choice within this view. Each individual weighs the potential benefits against the potential costs of committing the crime. Society believes if they increase the cost for committing the crime it will prevent them from thinking about committing the crime. The five techniques of the classical school are the following: increase the effort, increase the risks, reduce the rewards, reduce provocations, and remove the excuses (merlo, 2007).

Physical attributes can lead an individual to criminal activities are the common assumptions of the biological theories of crime. If a parent had certain physical attributes that were passed down to the child, it would make the child more at risk for committing crimes. Cesare Lombroso believed certain physical attributes like high cheek bones, fat lips and large ears along with other features were connected to the criminal. William H. Sheldon believed the human physique was related to crime. The three body styles were: fat and soft, thin and fragile, muscular and hard (Zarka, 2007).

The difference between classical and biological...