6 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CRIMINOLOGY AND CRIMINOLOGY TO HIGHLIGHT - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The differences between criminology and criminology are quite remarkable. Despite being similar terms that belong to the same science and a type of legal psychology, they are different in their applications and concepts.

This confusion is generated with great regularity among people who are new to the understanding of these sciences, and therefore it is important to identify the differences of these two concepts, as well as their particular definition.

Main differences between criminology and criminology

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Criminology is a social science and is considered one of the branches of sociology, and is based on the deviant behavioral analysis of criminals, serving in the deduction of cases with the support of psychology, psychiatry and also philosophy.

Criminology pursues the knowledge of the motives, consequences, reactions and prevention of crime, both individually and socially. That is, everything that happens at the mental, anthropological and social level in the author and in the context of a crime.

While criminology is a natural science that is based on the scientific method, physics, chemistry, and biology.

Due to this, it encompasses other sciences to achieve the practical application of investigative methods to achieve its objective, which is to clarify the material collected from the crime scene to deliver the results of the findings to the corresponding authorities.

2- In the object of study

Criminalistics studies crime as a social event, that is, it analyzes it with the application of natural sciences and legal sciences, that is, it collects all the evidence, identifies it and analyzes it with the support of medicine, toxicology, anthropology, and other sciences.

It focuses on inappropriate behavior and is based on criminal law, analyzing the social reaction to the acts carried out by criminals.

While criminology studies behavior patterns, social trends regarding crime, and the consequences that it may cause in society.

It focuses on studying the reason for a crime, searching and analyzing the evidence or materials that give an indication of the evidence of a particular case.

3- In the legal aspect

One of the clearest differences between these two terms is that criminology is the scientific study of the non-legal aspects of crime, including its causes and possible solutions to criminal behavior.

It is totally preventive and helps to formulate criminal laws to impose measures that stop the deviant behaviors that lead to antisocial acts.

Criminalistics, on the other hand, seeks to determine who is responsible for the crime, so that he receives the verdict and the laws are applied as determined by the legal authority in the criminal process.

That is, in the criminal sphere, criminology is linked to repressive actions on the perpetrator of a crime committed, seeking the truth of the facts, proving guilt and identifying the individuals involved in the criminal event.

4- In the investigative process

In the investigative process, criminology is at a theoretical level, due to its ability to study the behavior, causes, consequences and reactions of crime both of those involved and of society and the government.

It relies on psychological and anthropological theories to search for possible causes and viable solutions.

In criminology, the investigative process is at a practical level since it examines the crime scene meticulously through specialized techniques in forensic sciences, to recreate the scene and present it to the authorities with all the clues and the general memory of the fact. It relies on other sciences to determine the procedure of the crime.

5- How and why

It is important to note that each one answers a question. Criminalistics answers the questions of how, when, where and who, relying on the different disciplines to determine the cause of the crime.

Criminology answers the reason for the crime, that is, what is the cause that motivates the criminal to commit a crime, and what are the consequences that affect said crime in the social and individual sphere.

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Within criminology there are careers that are carried out in government agencies, courts and police services such as: drug agent, probation agent, victim care specialist, investigator, litigation officer, intelligence agent, among others.

On the other hand, in criminology professionals are developed in police departments, crime laboratories and hospitals.

There are various positions in forensic science, the qualification of which will depend on the academic degree, specializations or experience of each professional.

However, the careers that can also be carried out in criminology are: crime scene examiner, forensic scientist, laboratory analyst, forensic psychologist, among others.

Extended concepts of criminology and criminologist

Criminology is a multidisciplinary science that is based on the study of the criminal phenomenon, that is, the scientific study of crime, criminal action and the application of the law on certain crimes according to their level.

Study crime to find out what its causes are, the ways in which it manifests itself and what the consequences are in society. That is, it explains and determines the causes of a criminal event.

The fundamental part of criminology is to prevent crime and to find mechanisms to remedy antisocial actions.

Criminology examines the psychological, hereditary, and environmental causes of crime; and it is based on the sociological and anthropological knowledge of society, delimited in criminal law.

It also explores the modes of criminal investigation and the appropriate sentence for each crime committed.

Criminology also looks at the effectiveness of methods of sanction or correction compared to forms of treatment or rehabilitation.

The criminology professional is prepared to reduce crime, conduct investigations in specific territories and study the profiles and behaviors of criminals.

On the other hand, criminology is basically the applied science in which the way in which a crime was carried out and who committed it is determined.

It allows the realization of the recognition, collection, identification and interpretation of physical evidence, and the application of natural sciences to legal sciences in a scientific way.

Criminology is the application of scientific techniques to criminal cases and is very often considered an applied science.

Some applications within criminology are fingerprint, mechanics, planimetry or photography, among others.

Criminalistics studies are based on methods and techniques from various disciplines to complement investigations, among which are: forensic anthropology, document copying, forensic entomology, forensic toxicology, etc.

Although the two terms can become confused, establishing their differences helps to provide a clear and concise idea of ​​the application and individual characteristics of each in the legal sciences and in society.

References

1. Brianna Flavin. Criminology vs. Criminal Justice vs. Criminalistics. (2017). Source: rasmussen.edu
2. Thomson Gale. Criminalistics. (2005). Source: encyclopedia.com
3. California Association of Criminalists. Source: cacnews.org
4. Criminalistics vs. Criminology. (2016). Source: orensiclaw.uslegal.com
5. Criminalistics and Criminology. (2014). Source: laweblegal.com