What is the scientific study of crime and the causes of criminal behavior?

What is the scientific study of crime and the causes of criminal behavior?

• A. Criminology
• B. Corpus Delicti
• C. Cultural Deviance Theory
• D. Control Theory

Answer: (A)

Criminology is the scientific study of crime and the causes of criminal behavior. It’s an interdisciplinary field that blends sociology, psychology, law, anthropology, and public policy to understand why crimes occur, who commits them, and how society responds. Criminologists examine patterns, risk factors, and how personal factors interact with social conditions—like poverty, family dynamics, peer influence, mental health, and neighborhood context—to explain criminal activity and to develop strategies for prevention and justice. The other terms relate to specific ideas or legal concepts rather than the broad field: corpus delicti refers to the proof that a crime occurred, cultural deviance theory is an approach about deviance based on subcultural norms, and control theory is one theory about how social bonds influence delinquency.

Criminology is the scientific study of crime and the causes of criminal behavior. It’s an interdisciplinary field that blends sociology, psychology, law, anthropology, and public policy to understand why crimes occur, who commits them, and how society responds. Criminologists examine patterns, risk factors, and how personal factors interact with social conditions—like poverty, family dynamics, peer influence, mental health, and neighborhood context—to explain criminal activity and to develop strategies for prevention and justice. The other terms relate to specific ideas or legal concepts rather than the broad field: corpus delicti refers to the proof that a crime occurred, cultural deviance theory is an approach about deviance based on subcultural norms, and control theory is one theory about how social bonds influence delinquency.