Criminology is considered a relatively young science of crime and methods of dealing with it. Without knowledge of this discipline, it is impossible to carry out effective measures to detain persons who have committed unlawful acts. As one of the components of science is the criminological characteristics of the personality of the criminal. It is she who is considered the fundamental link in all activities related to the disclosure of violations of the law. Let us further consider what the criminological characteristics, classification and typologies of the personality of criminals are.
Communication with other elements of the discipline
The criminological characteristics of the identity of the offender, a sample of which will be considered later, allows us to find out other problems that relate to the causes of offenses, as well as the choice of a method of combating illegal actions. Determinants - factors - of acts are associated with objective social phenomena that affect the moral condition of citizens. They are manifested in antisocial, individualistic views, attitudes and habits that form the basis of criminal behavior. On the other hand, the determinants are associated with circumstances conducive to the implementation of such ideas in a particular act. At first glance, these circumstances and phenomena do not depend on the person who committed the illegal action, and act as external factors regarding him. However, they get their criminal significance in the process of forming the identity of the offender. As a result, they are transformed into internal determinants.
The identity of the offender: the concept and criminological characteristics
The content of the definition includes the sociological status of the individual and the legal justification of its features. In this regard, the problem of the personality of the offender should be solved from the point of view of the general social doctrine of the person. This definition, in turn, combines two sides: biological and social. If we consider the concept of "personality", then it is inextricably linked with socialization. This, in particular, is about the public qualities of a person. They, in turn, are related to the content of his inner world, the degree of his awareness. The criminological characteristics of the personality of the offender are given in accordance with the laws of unlawful behavior of the individual, illegality as a mass phenomenon. Studies are subject to the identification of factors and the development of sound recommendations for choosing methods of combating crime.
Due to the fact that the basis on which the criminological characteristics of the personality of the criminal are based are the criminal legal and social aspects of life, investigation of the offense reveals only an antisocial orientation. However, this does not fully disclose the entire social essence of the illegal act. The criminological characteristics of the personality of a professional criminal are possible only taking into account all the signs that distinguish him as an individual. That is why the ratio and totality of social positive and negative qualities will allow you to have a complete picture of the persons committing illegal actions. The criminological characteristic of the personality of the criminal reflects a certain system of moral and psychological foundations, beliefs, attitudes, and features. She also shows a complex of volitional, emotional and intellectual qualities. Moral and psychological characteristics are in interaction with the social aspects of the individual. Therefore, the identity of the offender should be considered precisely in this unity.
Terminology
The identity of the offender is a complex of socially significant relationships, relationships, signs and characteristics that characterize a person found guilty of breaking the law, in combination with other (non-individual) conditions and circumstances that affect criminal behavior. A logical question arises. It consists in the following: when can one talk about a person in the context of a criminal, and at what time does this opportunity cease to exist, that is, in what framework does it take place? In answering this question, several aspects should be taken into account.
Time frame
The concept of personality is based on the criminological, sociological and criminal law aspects. In the latter case, it begins to exist when a person is guilty and continues until the conviction is paid off. This provision is of significant importance, since it allows you to correctly establish the scope and directions of the investigation of a criminal person. In addition, it is precisely those qualities that identify the decisive role in the commission of an unlawful act by her. The criminological characteristics of the personality of the offender are inextricably linked to the violation. However, specialists are more interested in the process of formation and development of a person, revealing the determinants of the formation of an individual. This interest ceases to exist at the moment when a person ceases to be anti-socially oriented. It follows from this that the antisocial features, on the basis of which the criminological characteristics of the personality of the criminal are given, exist before the illegal act is committed, and condition it. But the recognition of a specific individual as a violator is permissible only after and as a result of his illegal behavior.
Key features
Criminologists investigate criminals in the framework of specific factors, when the disclosure of their elements is not complete in terms of general sciences about society and man. This feature is due to the methodology and subject of study. The criminologists are faced with the task of delimiting the characteristics that would make it possible to detect typical signs and cause-effect relationships closest to the criminal. To conduct an in-depth analysis, specialists turn to other disciplines about a person. A criminal personality is characterized by a system of qualities, characteristics, signs. This complex defines her as a person who committed an illegal act. Common signs include:
- Age.
- Floor.
- Social status.
- Education.
- Profession.
- Role in society and more.
Specific features are also distinguished. They reflect the degree and nature of the public danger of the criminal. Domestic experts divide all the signs into the following groups:
- Social roles and position.
- Criminal law.
- Socio-demographic.
- Moral and psychological.
Socio-demographic features
By themselves, they have no criminological significance. This category includes such signs as gender, age, citizenship, place of residence and birth, and others. In the statistical reporting on persons who committed crimes, these features provide very significant information, without which the characteristics of violators will be incomplete. So, given the gender, we can conclude that illegal acts are more common for men. This is important when the criminological characteristics of the identity of criminals who have committed violent crimes are formed.
Age
It is of great importance to specialists. Depending on it, activity in a particular population group is determined. The criminological characteristics of the personality of a minor offender will have significant differences from the description of the characteristics of violators of the law of older age. So, the first, as a rule, is characterized by spontaneous offenses. Young people usually do not prepare, do not plan an illegal act in advance. The criminological characteristics of the personality of a minor offender include information about relationships in the family, school, and in the yard with peers. This allows you to more clearly define the circle of suspects. Illegal actions are more likely to be committed by those who live in dysfunctional families, have poor academic performance, and become acquainted with senior criminal elements.
For older people, a different behavior is characteristic. Of great importance is the length of the period during which the individual is in an unfavorable situation. The criminological characteristics of the personality of violent criminals and hooligans indicate a tendency to delinquency in early childhood. Such a conclusion is drawn from the analysis of the behavior of individuals over a long time. In the departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, juvenile delinquents are dealt with by relevant specialists. They study their behavior at school and at home, identify unlawful actions, and hold parents accountable. In many cases, such work gives only temporary results. Subsequently, socially dangerous individuals grow out of such violators.
Moral qualities
The criminological characteristics of the personality of a violent criminal indicate the absence of any moral values, principles, views, worldview. This allows you to not feel responsible for the implementation of certain actions. When examining such an individual, specialists pay attention to his belonging to a social group, his relationships with other people in various spheres of life, and his position regarding his duties as a citizen and a person.
Social role
The criminological characteristics of the personality of a mercenary criminal reflects his position in society and in the team. Initially, such citizens occupy small posts or medium-sized posts that allow them to carry out unlawful actions covertly for quite some time. Lack of funds pushes many people to illegal actions. They do not take into account that there are many legal methods to achieve wealth, and choose the easiest way. Once in a critical situation, many are not able to soberly assess what is happening. They succumb to emotions, not thinking about the consequences. The criminological characteristic of the person of a careless criminal usually reflects precisely this state of affairs. In fact, being a law-abiding citizen, a person in a hopeless situation, as it seems to him, goes against the law. As a result, he leaves a lot of traces, does not think through the matter to the end, and if he plans, then he will necessarily miss some detail that will subsequently lead to it.
A special case
Unfortunately, in the modern world there are crimes against the personal freedom of man. They are not covered openly in the media, but periodically there is information about the loss of citizens. The criminological characteristics of the identity of the trafficking offender are quite complex and reflect many aspects of human behavior. It lacks not only moral and ethical principles, but also humanity. Such people do not harm the victims with their own hands, but they easily allow others to do this, receiving considerable rewards for this.
Criminological characteristics of the personality of the criminal: sample, description
The analysis of individuals is usually based on 2 bases. By the nature of the antisocial orientation of criminals are divided into the following types:
- By aggressive and disrespectful attitude to a person and the most important benefits (conscience, honor, health, life).
- By selfish, selfish motivation, which is associated with ignoring the principles of honest work and social justice.
- By individualistic-anarchist attitude to various social institutions, family, service, civic responsibilities.
- By the presence of an irresponsible attitude towards the implementation of various TB rules, which is manifested in crimes through negligence.
The second criterion reflects the depth and persistence of the asociality of the individual. In accordance with it there are:
- Consistent criminogenic appearance. Such an individual develops in an environment in which periodically there are violations of moral and legal norms. Based on this, the criminological characteristics of the personality of the offender are compiled. Example: a situation conducive to an illegal act is actively formed by the individual himself. The offense is a consequence of behavior common to a citizen. It is determined by stable antisocial attitudes, orientations and perceptions.
- Situational-criminogenic appearance. He is distinguished by a violation of moral standards and petty offenses. What might such a criminological characteristic of a criminal’s personality look like? Example: an illegal act is largely due to an unfavorable situation from a legal, moral and socio-economic point of view. The microenvironment and the way of antisocial life, which he had before, fail to violate the subject.
- Situational view. This category includes individuals characterized by weakly expressed immoral elements in behavior. Such subjects commit an offense under the influence of a situation that arose not through their fault. Along with this, such an individual may justify someone else's and his behavior or not know about the legal ways of solving the case. This type mainly includes citizens who take everything that is bad.
Psychological picture
In accordance with the Western principles of the analysis of the identities of criminals, there are 7 stages of the formation of a characteristic:
- Assessment of the most illegal act.
- A detailed analysis of the specific characteristics of a crime scene.
- Victim assessment.
- A study of police reports.
- Studying the conclusion of the medical examiner.
- Developing a suspect profile.
- Formation of an investigative strategy.
Practice situation
A corpse was discovered in a vacant lot. From it, 200 meters, a crumpled rag was found behind the fence, on which traces of blood were found. As the investigation established, the crime scene is a wasteland where a corpse was discovered. The blood on the rags found belongs to the deceased. During the reconstruction of the killer’s actions, experts suggested that to hide the traces, the perpetrator tried to destroy the traces of blood on his hands. For this, he used a scrap of rags. In accordance with the peculiarities of the situation (the clothes of the victim, a pool of water, grass, sand, which could act as an alternative means of achieving the goal), as well as the atypical method of destroying evidence, we can conclude about the probable reasons for the choice of action. In the latter, a specific composition can be identified. It consists in a leisurely, unjustifiably prolonged wiping of hands with a rag. As a result, a version appeared about the symptom of the suspect. In particular, about the nature of his professional activity. Investigators suggested that his work was related to fuel, lubricants or other dirty material, which can be used without special protective gloves. Along with this, in everyday life, a likely means of eliminating hand pollution is a rag. Based on all these findings, the range of suspects by professional grounds (plumber, mechanic, etc.) was significantly narrowed.
Individual actions
The reasons explaining them are connected with the mechanism of concealment of the weaknesses of the guilty party. The category of such individual actions includes masking:
- Traces at the scene.
- The fact of the crime.
- Places where the event occurred, etc.
Disguise will also be performances and dramatization. In this regard, investigators need to establish whether the person chosen by the guilty person has the effect of a concealment. If there is reason to believe this, then perhaps the offender was associated with the victim, the scene of the incident, or his circumstances. It is likely that a complex relationship of these factors will be established.
Finally
As can be seen from the above information, the study of the identity of the offender has both scientific, educational and practical significance. A comprehensive analysis of the individual should not be limited to identifying individual characteristics, often only superficially describing the subject. The study should be conducted taking into account a set of features. This will act as a guarantee of a more complete detection and adequate assessment of the development of the identity of the offender. , , . , . . . , , , .