With a criminology degree, there are a number of career paths available for the individual. Individuals that have just graduated are likely to get involved in these particular careers. These are some of the more flexible career fields when it comes to individuals who are educated by whom may not have the experience that some other employment offices may desire. In addition, these jobs are interesting and allow the individual to learn and explore aspects that they were not able to while in school. The hands on experience will help the graduate in many ways later on in their careers as well as at the time of their employment. One of these exciting careers is in the field of crime intelligence analysis. This is a very interesting field for individuals that are looking to have experience when it comes to deciphering the foundation of crimes. Some other creative careers when it comes to criminology employment opportunities would go on to include consumer advocates, who work with laws and regulations that would either benefit or protect the average consumer from the manufacturers or corporations, environment protection analysts, who help to formulate different regulations when it comes to the environment and the protection that it can receive from the public and community members at large, and a regional crime prevention coordinator, who would be in charge of coming up with different methods in which to protect the residents in a region of the state. This is a position that would also help to come up with ways in which the community crime prevention members would be organized and structured in order to provide a more effective and efficient crime task force within the region. As a result, this career is very important when it comes to preventing crime within the region by understanding some of the underlying pressures and structures of the criminal element within the society or culture. One of the most obvious career opportunities that exists for individuals that graduate with a criminology degree would be that of those who go on to become police officers. This can extend into other fields of the police department including detectives and criminal psychologists on the payroll of the police department. In this area, many people are able to come together in order to look at how society and crime interacts on an intimate level. The crimes that take place are not looked at and analyzed in order to come up with ways to prevent the crime in the area, rather the police force is able to catch the criminals and hopefully take them out of the society in which they were raised or committing the crimes. In some cases, the police officers are able to work and interact with the regional crime coordinator, in order to create a more solidified union of crime prevention within the region, city or town. There are some other cases in which the police officers will interact with community correction officers, either because they are employed in jails where the criminals are required to serve their time or as parole or probation officers who are able to readjust the criminal to the society in which they live or to make sure that they are not violating any rules or restrictions that have been placed on them.

To many people interested in the roots and origin of Criminology, Lombroso is considered to be the father of the science, meaning that he explored it and examined it from many angles in order to expose it. It was first used by a law professor in Italy, Raffaele Garofalo, who actually used the Italian term for the word, criminologia. A French anthropologist also used the term around the same time as Garofalo, who referred to the term as criminology. There are some who believe that it is possible that the study of bumps on an individuals skull, referred to as Phrenology, is a better mark of representation when it comes to the scientific origins of the term. Lombroso is considered to be the father of criminology because of the many advances that he attempted to make in the field. If not for him, criminology might not be as developed as it is today. Over time, many different theories were composed as to what caused criminal behavior. These theories have their roots in biology, psychology, and society, to name a few. Over time, by using these foundations for new theories, different schools of thought began to emerge. Through these different schools of thought, the theoretical science of the criminal element could be rationalized. Individuals often debate in order to attempt to define the reason for crime, so that it may then be eliminated by solving the problem of what causes crime. By identifying and responding to the motivator for crime and deviant behavior, more effective measures of social control could be put into action. Currently, we are able to take care of the symptoms of crime. For example, we have police officers who catch criminals. When found guilty by a panel of their own peers, the criminal will go to jail. That takes the criminal out of society. However, there are new criminals emerging every day. We have learned to treat the symptoms, the individual criminals, but we have not yet been able to determine the instigating factor in these developments. Throughout the history of criminology, this is the main goal of the science. Since it is a theoretical science, all of the theories that correspond to the topic cannot immediately be proven as accurate or inaccurate, merely theoretical. However, the continuous effort of individuals to idealize the workings of the individual and society have been transformed and re-defined since the beginning use of the term. If the history of criminology shows us anything, it is that the human nature to establish right from wrong and the differences between individuals distinguishing the difference is virtually a timeless theme, at least since its birth. By continuously researching and documenting the variables and changes within society and crime, people who are interested in criminology can line up the theories with the established facts. After this is done, it is possible to sit down and analyze the coinciding factors in order to determine the best course of action when it comes to evolving society so as to limit crime and intolerance as much as possible.

When thinking about what criminology is, an individual needs to first consider what aspects and fields are affected by the criminal element. Some of these fields will also either perpetuate or deter crime, depending on how they are used. Anthropology, sociology, law, research positions and others all tie into criminology. Criminology could then be defined as how any of these many multitudes of societys development and creation are able to affect how individuals interact, specifically when it comes to the degenerate element. Using science to approach the evolution of crime within an area or timeframe allows individuals to learn how an environment may respond to and otherwise affect crime. Certain things can be analyzed in order to come to a conclusion about crime and the criminal element within a particular area, such as any hereditary elements that may have had a factor or psychological issues that would have instigated the crime. In addition, many criminologists are also interested in studying how the punishment of criminals affects the likelihood of the same crimes being performed. When peoples actions or movements deviate from the normal status of things in a way which is excessively harmful or dangerous to themselves or others, criminologists may become involved in the situation. By studying both crime and the law, an academic person can come up with possible motivations for an individuals actions. These theoretical explanations are often helpful when profiling a person who has yet to be caught by the police, as well as when statistics are needed in order to illustrate a trend or issue for a community. However, it is not just crimes that are studied and analyzed by the criminologist. In addition, they also look at the criminal justice system on a whole in order to make sure that it is functioning in a sufficient manner that benefits the lives of citizens. The definition of criminology is broad in order to encompass all of the different fields that fall under the term. However, by being more specific in the type of criminology that is being investigated, an individual is able to focus more on the individuals cornerstones of the different types of criminology that exist. For example, psychological criminology was a part of criminology for a long time but did not begin to be looked at on its own until the 20th century. This field looks at the abnormalities and mental diseases that may feed criminal behaviors. It is specialized in the way that proponents of this type of criminology believe that the personality of the individual is the breeding ground for the levels and types of crime that the individual will be capable of committing. Emotions and behavior patterns are often able to remain relatively stable and predictable regardless of what type of environment the individual is placed into, which helps academics to formulate the idea that this is what defines a person. Criminologists are able to look at crime and other related fields from different perspectives in order to analyze the cause and effect relationship of the crime, the individual and the environment in which they are immersed.

While criminology is the scientific study of the interactions that inherently occur between criminals and the public or the criminal elements and society, critical criminology is slightly different. This concept of criminology has a solid foundation in the belief that a singular crime is considered to be criminal due to the historical and social beliefs at the time. For example, one famous illustration of this is that homosexuality was considered to be illegal for individuals in the United Kingdom. This type of interaction between individuals was declared legal for men over 21, but this was not until 1967. Since there is nothing within the act that changed over the years, the only thing that changed was the judicial government at the time and what they believed was morally right or wrong. Overall, there is nothing deemed inherently wrong about the act itself. One of the main questions that individuals interested in critical criminology need to ask themselves whether or not an act is a crime because it is wrong or whether it is merely a crime because someone with the elected power decided to make it so. Within critical criminology, there are a number of theories that have been formed. Conflict theories were never very popular within the United States, in part due to the fact that during the late 1970s, when critical criminology was more popular, there were many criminology departments that were closed due to political reasons. Other critical criminologists were concerned that conflict theories did not properly address the different issues that faced society. Critics of conflict theories that exist in criminology maintain that these individuals ignored some important differences in the level of criminal activities between socialist and capitalist societies. Japan and Switzerland are two countries that are socialist in nature, but they have extremely low rates of crime in their countries, as compared to capitalist societies like the United States of America. In feminist theories, individuals attempt to give another dimension to criminology, in the form of gender. The supporters of these theories are for the most part trying to bring a new form of awareness to the way crime is viewed. Instead of focusing on criminals who are male performing crimes against other males, it is argued that criminologists need to investigate more how the female affects this preconceived approach to crime. Many parties concerned with this type of critical approach to criminology also try to educate other female criminologists. This is important to this group of individuals because too many times, female criminologists will adopt the male perspective and perpetuate the same cycle of applying male concepts on females in the world of crime. While there are other theories that are applicable in the field of criminology, such as postmodern and peacemaking theories, the conflict and feminist theories are the most prevalent ones within the world of criminology at large. By looking at the way that different theories can be applied to criminology and the different areas that fall under the term, individuals are able to learn more about the society in which they live. Another point that can be explored would be how the criminal relates to the society in which the crime is committed.

When investigators are examining and studying crime from a scientific perspective, this is referred to as criminology. This includes the parallels between crime and different forms of phenomenon such as the development of particular types of laws. Criminology also works to identify how to address the criminal behavior of criminals and how to eventually control the criminal element. Drawing on psychological and sociological research, criminologists are able to look at the different ways in which a criminals environment will affect them. It can also help when it comes to profiling criminals in order to understand them and have a better chance of catching a criminal that is on the loose. By using criminology, individuals are able to not only profile a potential perpetrator, but they are also able to take a more intellectual look at how crime is perpetuated in our world and what steps can be taken in order to limit crime. There are different schools of thought when it comes to how individuals approach the concept of criminology. Some of the most popular schools include those that are known as the Classical school, the Positivist school and the Chicago school. These schools were developed over a period of time, ranging from the middle of the 19th century and continuing well into the 20th century with the Chicago school of thought. One of the main factors that differentiate the schools of thought would be how the criminologists view environment in the life of the criminal. Some believe that the criminals have to take responsibility for their actions regardless of what is happening in the environment at the time, in line with the Classical movement, while others believe that criminals may be predisposed to crime, as is proposed by the Positivists. The Chicago school of thought poses the possibility that criminals are able to learn deviant behaviors from others and that when social organizations, such as schools and neighborhoods, are not organized they will not be able to control the criminal element that occurs. By identifying how an individual feels that crime is either created or continued, it can provide the basis for the school of thought that the individual falls under when it comes to criminology. Criminology experts look at crime in a variety of different manners. By defining the distinctions between the different types of crimes, it is easier to come up with theories as to how and why the crime took place. One type of crime would be those that go against core values. These seemingly natural laws are ones that are common among many different cultures, separated by time and space. Natural laws are those that are considered to be able to protect individuals and their property from abuse by others. Some of the more controversial laws include statutes which are put into place by legal institutions. The relationship between state and citizen is explored in these laws, which is what causes the conflict in some instances. As a result of looking at the different construction foundations behind laws, it is possible to understand the many different ways in which crimes are categorized. Organized crime, state crime, blue or white collar crimes and organized crime are some of the most popular types of crime that exist.

Criminology is a theoretical science that is used in order to try to explain not only the relationship between the criminal and society, but also the relation of judiciary committee in the social setting and the criminal element in the social setting as well. By looking at different pieces of the scientific puzzle, it is possible for many people to come up with theories to explain how society functions with crime, in response to it and as a means to perpetuate the crimes. Through these specific theories, it is possible for individuals to understand some different stances on how crime is created in a society and how a society may influence an individuals decision to commit a particular crime. In some cases, it is also used in order to determine how time and the general implications on moral and immoral behavior in a society. This can be one of the biggest considerations that are taken when a government is thinking about making an amendment to their laws. For example, homosexuality was considered, for a long time, to be illegal within the United Kingdom, including England. However, what ended up happening in 1967 was that a law was passed that allowed individuals to act in homosexual ways if they chose to, but only if the individual was over the age of 21. This helps to expose that there was likely nothing wrong with the specific act, but the people of the time that viewed the act. This is how criminology approaches crime. They look at the specific crime, and then look to determine how society or laws may have affected the crime at that period of time. As a result, criminologists are able to use these crimes and examples in order to understand more fully how individuals react in a society when it comes to laws and regulations. Criminology does not study crimes and specific laws. Rather, they simply study the reactions between individuals that are exposed to this type of situation. This helps them to be able to accurately understand how society functions. Crime seems to be an inevitable part of society. If we can one day understand why this is so, we stand a better chance of being able to one day eliminate crime from different societies. Criminology is a unique field because it does not try to eliminate crime conclusively right now. They understand that first it is necessary to research and understand how society and crime are interrelated in different societies. Once this is clearly understood, we can begin to eliminate the criminal elements within a society. Because there are so many different societies, and crime does not relate the same way in all of them, it is very important to make sure that blanket theories are not created in order to try to attack crime on all points within the world. Rather, there are different rules and structures that play within different areas and may affect crime. Criminology views crime as something that cannot be avoided at the current time, but perhaps could be at some point when we understand more about interactions between the community and the individual.

When it comes to the science of exploring how crime and society interacts, there are number of different theories that have been developed with the attempt to explain what causes such reactions in individuals. Over time, there have been many different theories that have been established and in most cases these theories have been developed as a reaction to the social or judicial challenges or changes that have been created. Criminology theory is important. While there are many theories that cannot be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt in every single society and cultural setting, it is very important for individuals to keep looking and keep developing different theories. By understanding past theories that have failed or not be able to be applied successfully to different crime settings, it is more likely that individuals will be able to work up to theories that can be applied in these different settings. Criminology is a very broad science. It covers many different types of crimes and cultures or societies in which the crimes take place. Another area that is covered by the scientific study would be the laws that are created by society in response to the various crimes that have been committed in the area. While criminology itself as a science was not created and defined as a term until the end half of the 1800s, there were many theories that were almost instantaneously created in order to promote the science. Some of the theories were based around the individual and their role in crimes, but others were more interested by taking the role of society into consideration as the cause for certain crimes in different areas. Over time, these theories were elaborated on and re-defined in order to make sense in the time period which would be applying the theory to their studies of the social setting in a set time frame. It is very important for individuals to understand that criminology is a theoretical science. In effect, this means that criminology will likely not be able to have a set definition of cause and effect when it comes to crime and the society in which the criminal is brought up. At the very most, we have these theories that are constantly being improved upon in order to try to understand crime in a specific society for a specific period of time. Some of the most popular theories that have come forth so far include the conflict theories, in which the individual criminal alone is held responsible for their reactions, as well as the rational choice theory in which it is maintained that the criminal is able to come up with the pros and cons of an action or crime before they perform the action, and that they ultimately decide that there are more pros than cons when it comes to that criminal decision. Certain theories cannot be applied across the board. For example, these theories may be applied to both females and males, but the feminist theories in relation to criminology will maintain that this approach cannot be used and that females need their own theories when it comes to criminology and what motivates women to commit crimes.