Sociology & Anthropology · Criminology & Deviance
A topic within Criminology & Deviance, itself one of 11 topics in that field and part of Sociology & Anthropology.
2 works
Cesare Lombroso
Argues that some offenders are 'born criminals' identifiable by inherited physical traits, founding criminology's positivist school though its biological claims did not survive later scrutiny.
link checked 17 Sept 2026Robert K. Merton
Argues that crime rises where a culture prizes success but blocks legitimate means of reaching it, making deviance a predictable response to structural strain rather than individual pathology.