I was curious as to see what would transpire upon entering the word criminology into the search bar. Imagine my surprise when nothing came up - considering the broad range of philosophical, social, political and economic contexts the subject crosses. Just a thought.
Not sure criminology has much to do with philosophy. There’s been plenty of discussions about the ethics of punishment, the purpose of punishment, the motivation behind punishment and justice.
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This comes to mind…
I babble about strain theory all the time. Given the broadness of the field of criminology, wouldn’t it make sense to look for specific philosophical points of view within it?
Criminology is, by definition, the study of crime. People are punished for acts constructed as crimes. Crime is also defined as a harm caused - an injustice. The dilemma arising concerning the punishment of others led to moral justifications of deterrence, incapacitation and just desserts. Punishment against crimes are metted out in a court of law and these justifications underpin the sentencing process. After reading your response and and the post that your link led to, it would appear that I am not saying anything that you do not already know. Crime is a historical and social construct, it relates to a society at a specific time. New crimes are constantly being legislated through the process of criminalisation, with others being amended and/or abolished. Therefore, crime is also a political construct, and along with the philosophies of punishment used to further political agendas. My point is that in order to gain a complete understanding of the symbiotic relationship between crime and punishment, penology is an integral component.
I agree. Then any argument promoted is not done so in an evaluativeless vacuum.