There are multiple branches of overlapping theories of Criminology. Focusing on what Conflict Criminology, Radical Criminology, Peacemaking Criminology, and Postmodern Criminology outline as their assumptions of crime causation may better help social scientists understand individuals’ actions and ultimately assist in preventing crime.
Conflict Criminology or theory assumes that the conflicting of interest groups is what society is based on (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This is because in many cases, conflicting groups are not on equal ground and one is often more powerful than the other (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This theory asserts that some crimes are defined as such because of the dominating social group (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Because the dominating social group defines the crimes, they are often able to get away with the same actions with no penalty, or a lesser penalty than the subordinate social group (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This leads to the assumption that all people …show more content…
Postmodern Criminology emphasizes three ideas. First, postmodernists believe that language is central to society and it has inherent power (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Second, language creates a reality in which nothing is concrete, and therefore that which we take to be true, is only relational (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Finally, postmodernists believe that truth is relative to our experiences and there is no real truth (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This rationale lends to the idea that there is no one true interpretation of the law, rather there are many interpretations which are dependent on the context in which they arise (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This form of criminology is different from the others in that it is based in the idea that rationality and truth are different for each person. Based on this, what one person may find to be wrong, another person may
Conflict Criminology or theory assumes that the conflicting of interest groups is what society is based on (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This is because in many cases, conflicting groups are not on equal ground and one is often more powerful than the other (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This theory asserts that some crimes are defined as such because of the dominating social group (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Because the dominating social group defines the crimes, they are often able to get away with the same actions with no penalty, or a lesser penalty than the subordinate social group (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This leads to the assumption that all people …show more content…
Postmodern Criminology emphasizes three ideas. First, postmodernists believe that language is central to society and it has inherent power (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Second, language creates a reality in which nothing is concrete, and therefore that which we take to be true, is only relational (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Finally, postmodernists believe that truth is relative to our experiences and there is no real truth (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This rationale lends to the idea that there is no one true interpretation of the law, rather there are many interpretations which are dependent on the context in which they arise (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). This form of criminology is different from the others in that it is based in the idea that rationality and truth are different for each person. Based on this, what one person may find to be wrong, another person may