CRIM 300W Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: National Crime Victimization Survey, Flat Earth, Motor Vehicle Theft

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Criminology
• Course: CRIM 300W
• Professor: Jay H

Document Summary

Introduction: an overview of issues in criminological theory. Criminology = scientific study of crime, especially why people commit crimes. Philosophical and legal examinations of crime = logic and deductive reasoning. Journalists exploring and revealing crime but tend to examine anecdotes and not examine objectively. Criminology is based on using scientific method and hypotheses to tests: journalists examine a specific case and make conclusion based on that. Social sciences = use of scientific method to examine and test. Religious accounts of crime are based on authoritarian or reasoning principles, not based on observations. It is because the bible, the koran, the pope, the church says it. Not based on authority or anecdotes but on empircal research. Criminology is based on science and its work is accomplished through direct observation and testing of hypotheses, even if those findings do not fit neatly into logical principles or the general feelings of the public.