Deck 8: Early Theories of Criminology

Question 1

Which of the following were key notions that the Classical School of crime was based on?

A) policy,religion,and justice
B) punishment,retribution,and deterrence
C) rights,fairness,and due process
D) sin,temptation,and possession

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following specific reforms did Beccaria call for?

A) reducing due process
B) setting out punishments in law
C) executions for minor offences
D) increasing judges' power

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following philosophies was part of the Classical School of criminology?

A) feminism
B) egalitarianism
C) Darwinism
D) utilitarianism

Answer 3

D

Question 4

For Beccaria,which two factors are most important for punishment to be effective in deterring crime?

A) the certainty and reliability of punishment
B) the severity and swiftness of punishment
C) the severity and certainty of punishment
D) the certainty and swiftness of punishment

Question 5

Prior to the 18th century,theories about crime causation included which of the following beliefs?

A) Crime could be reduced if punishments fit the crimes and were well documented because criminals would calculate that they could not profit from their actions.
B) People exercise their free will and choose to act in particular ways,even ways they know to be wrong,because the Devil is tempting them.
C) Crime,like other human behaviour,is the result of natural causes and hence can be altered by applying scientifically derived knowledge.
D) Criminals are throwbacks to an earlier stage of evolution.

Question 6

Which of the following practices were used historically to address possession by the devil which was thought to be responsible for criminal behaviour?

A) family interventions
B) torturous water trials
C) immersion in Judeo-Christian training
D) threats of banishment

Question 7

Which of the following is one of the extenuating circumstances emphasized by Neoclassical theorists as part of their reforms to the offender sentencing?

A) IQ
B) gender
C) mitigating circumstances
D) attire

Question 8

Beccaria argued that punishment for crimes should be swift and certain for what reason?

A) in order to drive out the Devil
B) to protect the rights of citizens
C) in order to effectively deter further crimes
D) to avoid overcrowded jails

Question 9

Which of the following concepts best represents the intentions of a judge handing down a sentence of life imprisonment in order to send a message to others who might commit the same crime?

A) rehabilitation
B) deterrence
C) rehabilitation
D) vengeance

Question 10

Which of the following statements is reflective of the Classical theory's perspective on why people break the law?

A) If we don't know any better we will make mistakes.
B) If we need it we will take it.
C) If we think we can get away with it we will break the law.
D) If the devil makes us do it we can't help ourselves.

Question 11

What was one of the reforms that directly resulted from the ideas of the neoclassical theorists?

A) France's penal code was revised to include more discretion for judges as well as consideration of extenuating circumstances.
B) France's penal code was revised to include less discretion for judges so they could not take into consideration extenuating circumstances.
C) Greater severity in punishment by judges in France in order to better deter would-be criminals
D) Expert court testimony by criminologists who were able to determine whether a defendant was guilty based on his physical characteristics.

Question 12

Which of the following can be considered a limitation of the Classical School?

A) Due process safeguards were never built into the legal system.
B) Characteristics of the offender and the circumstances of the offence could not be considered at sentencing.
C) Judicial and legislative functions could not be separated,with the result that politicians often decided who should be executed.
D) Fixed penalties could be set for only minor offences.

Question 13

In which of the following periods of European history did the classical school emerge and hence was most influenced by?

A) Medieval times
B) the Resistance
C) the Enlightenment
D) the Middle Ages

Question 14

Which of the following was a principal critique of the Classical School of criminology by the neoclassical theorists?

A) Classical theorists did not consider inequalities and other factors that may influence decisions to commit a crime.
B) Classical theorists did not base findings on subjects who were representative of the criminal population as a whole.
C) Classical theorists overemphasized the role of supernatural forces or demonic possession as causes of criminal behaviour.
D) Classical theorists ignored the importance of punitive sentencing as a deterrent to would-be criminals.

Question 15

Which of the following categories of people were most likely to be executed for witchcraft in Europe?

A) unwanted wives of powerful men
B) the elderly,the infirm,and children
C) economically independent men
D) economically independent single women

Question 16

According to the Classical School,which of the following should punishment be proportionate with?

A) the state
B) the crime
C) the Lord
D) the criminal

Question 17

Which of the following was the focus of Beccaria's "An Essay on Crime and Punishments" published in 1764?

A) the rationales for the death penalty
B) the use of imprisonment as punishment for crime
C) the theoretical and practical underpinnings of rehabilitation
D) the cruelty and inhumanity of the criminal justice system of his time

Question 18

Prior to the 18th century,theories about crime causation were largely based on which of the following?

A) superstition and religious beliefs
B) biology and heredity
C) heredity and religious beliefs
D) natural causes and the environment

Question 19

Which of the following best represents the contribution of the Neoclassical school of criminology?

A) It used classical Greek philosophy to inform theories of criminality and criminal justice.
B) It helped usher in greater flexibility in the justice system,especially in sentencing offenders.
C) It introduced the use of statistical data gathering and analysis into criminology.
D) It demonstrated how biological factors can interact with social factors to produce criminals.

Question 20

In pre-18th-century Europe,which of the following steps was often taken against individuals perceived as threatening the existing political authority?

A) They were charged with vandalism.
B) They were charged with sedition.
C) They were charged with treason.
D) They were charged with witchcraft.

Question 21

The Statistical School of criminology is said to have great influence on a future discipline that itself would greatly influence the study of crime.Which of the following disciplinary approaches to the study of crime was influenced by the Statistical School?

A) medical
B) biological
C) psychological
D) sociological

Question 22

According to Sheldon and the Gluecks,which body type is most closely associated with delinquency?

A) the psychomorph
B) the ectomorph
C) the endomorph
D) the mesomorph

Question 23

Which of the following best represents Lombroso's recommendation on how born criminals should be treated by the judicial system?

A) They should be incarcerated but treated humanely as they have no control over their behaviour.
B) Stiff penalties should be imposed so as to deter criminals from future crimes.
C) They should be executed or else they may reproduce genetically inferior offspring.
D) They should be treated at mental institutions to correct any psychological defects.

Question 24

Which of the following elements do biological theories of criminality ignore or disregard?

A) variations in heart rate and criminality
B) hormonal variations as precursors to crime
C) chromosomal links to criminality
D) crime is defined differently across societies

Question 25

Which of the following best represents the perspective of the Statistical School of crime?

A) People are not always rational beings; their behaviour is influenced by a number of social structural factors.
B) People are highly rational beings; their decisions are influenced solely by their weighing costs and benefits.
C) People are highly impulsive; they can not be deterred even through tough laws.
D) People's behaviour is highly influenced by biological factors,which can not be altered by social factors.

Question 26

Which of the following aspects of the modern criminal justice system was influenced by Lombroso and the Positive School of criminology?

A) sentencing circles
B) psychiatric treatment
C) indeterminate sentences
D) the adversarial court system

Question 27

Which of the following best represents Lombroso and colleagues' conclusions regarding criminal behaviour?

A) Crime is caused by biological factors beyond the individual's control.
B) Crime is caused by social factors beyond the individual's control.
C) Crime is caused by supernatural factors beyond the individual's control.
D) Crime is caused by personality factors beyond the individual's control.

Question 28

Which of the following statements characterizes the work of the Statistical school of crime?

A) They employed statistical methods to determine the relationship between certain factors and crime.
B) They felt that crime was the result of common individual motivations.
C) They noted the chaotic distribution of criminal behaviour over time and across areas.
D) They argued that criminals were the product of genetic defects

Question 29

Cesare Lombroso,Raffaelo Garofolo,and Enrico Ferri were all associated with which of the following criminological schools?

A) the Classical School
B) the Enlightenment School
C) the Statistical School
D) the Positive School

Question 30

According to the Positive School,punishment should fit which of the following?

A) the criminal
B) the crime
C) the prison
D) the state

Question 31

Which of the following scientific theories had the greatest impact on Lombroso's theories of criminality?

A) Einstein's theory of relativity
B) the Bible's theory of creation
C) Darwin's theory of evolution
D) Beccaria's theory of crime and punishment

Question 32

Which Canadian province was successfully sued for sterilizing an individual mistakenly labelled as mentally retarded?

A) Ontario
B) Alberta
C) British Columbia
D) Quebec

Question 33

Lombroso used the term "atavism" to characterize what type of criminals?

A) "morons" or people with very low intellectual functioning
B) overly greedy individuals who only seek personal gain
C) throwbacks to an earlier stage of human evolution
D) individuals with little or no self-control

Question 34

According to Lombroso,which of these groups would be expected to exhibit the greatest number of stigmata?

A) the criminally insane
B) criminaloids
C) born criminals
D) mesomorphs

Question 35

Which of the following was the first to use scientific methods to study crime and criminality?

A) the Classical School
B) the Neo-classical School
C) the Positive School
D) the Biological School

Question 36

According to Goring,which of the following was the most important correlate of criminality?

A) low intelligence
B) social deprivation
C) lack of self-control
D) physique or body type

Question 37

Which of the following traits is associated with Sheldon's mesomorph body type?

A) easygoing personality
B) sensitivity to pain
C) introversion
D) aggression

Question 38

Which of the following statements best describes the nature of the relationship between low IQ and criminality?

A) there is a strong positive relationship that has resulted in long-standing sterilization policies
B) it is controversial and any relationship points more to testing bias than criminality
C) the negative relationship between IQ and criminality has resulted in severe penalties for those who abuse people with low IQs
D) the nature of the relationship is unclear but those with low IQs are now provided with optional sterilization

Question 39

Which of the following best represents Sheldon's somatotype theory?

A) Someone's body type could predict criminal behaviour.
B) Someone's intellect could predict criminal behaviour.
C) The shape of someone's head could predict criminal behaviour.
D) The social environment in which one lives could predict criminal behaviour.

Question 40

What was Goddard's main research finding into the legitimate and illegitimate offspring of Martin Kallikak?

A) Feeble-mindedness and criminality were inherited.
B) Body type and criminally were inherited.
C) Social factors were highly influential in criminal behaviour.
D) Atavism and criminality was inherited.

Question 41

Positive theorists claimed that crime could be controlled if society designed punishments to fit the crime.

Question 42

What can we learn from studying the science conducted by the Nazi regime in Germany?

A) It was based on highly questionable research methods and should be completely disregarded.
B) There was a similarity between Nazi science and modern science to the extent that large subject pools were used.
C) It did nothing to advance our understanding of criminal behaviour given their backward perspectives on behaviour.
D) It was not significantly different from modern science and we must remain critical of scientific methods and results.

Question 43

The Classical School of crime brought about notions of due process and rights that are still reflected in our criminal justice system.

Question 44

In the 15th century,charges of witchcraft served to reassert the authority of male leaders.

Question 45

During the medieval period in Europe,many people who were branded as heretics and criminals and punished by the state were often reformers who were challenging the status quo.

Question 46

According to the Classical theory of crime the most effective and just deterrent was for the punishment to fit the crime.

Question 47

According to the Classical School,the social contract between the state and its citizens meant that punishment should be very harsh as this was necessary to deter criminals and protect citizens.

Question 48

According to the Classical School,crime is considered an irrational behaviour committed by intellectually inferior people.

Question 49

Prior to the 18th century "theories" of criminal behaviour were inspired by religious beliefs and superstition

Question 50

The Neoclassical school was important because it introduced the idea that punishment should take into consideration the circumstances of individual offenders.

Question 51

The Statistical School's focus on biology simply created a resurgence of the challenges that had been present during the era of the Enlightenment.

Question 52

What "humane" approach did the Positive School offer with regard to dealing with crime?

A) Linkages to poverty and social status allowed for indeterminate sentences to be justified.
B) The assurance that social structure factors were the primary causes of crime provided better options for treatment.
C) Knowing that biology was the primary cause of crime gave the public confidence in the justice system.
D) Scientific study could be used to determine the most appropriate treatment for deviant individuals.

Question 53

Positive theorists believed that crime was caused largely by social factors,such as poverty.

Question 54

One of the contributions of the Statistical School was the use of maps to plot out crime,which is still used today.

Question 55

One of the specific reforms that emerged from the Classical School was that judges should be given more independent power to ensure justice is carried out.

Question 56

According to Beccaria,the best way to prevent crime in the long run is through the use of the most severe punishment possible.

Question 57

These reforms brought about by the Classical School provided the foundation for the modern criminal justice system.

Question 58

Tortures used to drive evil spirits from the body were generally successful and those who were deemed innocent went on to live healthy lives.

Question 59

For Classical School theorists,punishments do not need to be severe as long as they are swift and certain.

Question 60

Prior to the 18th century,wrongdoing by human beings was thought to be due to social factors.

Question 61

Indeterminate sentences are a legacy of the Positive School as they were seen as the only option for born criminals.

Question 62

Despite the fact that their theories are now refuted,most of the researchers discussed in thisChapter employed very rigorous research methods.

Question 63

Goddard's research argued that feeble-minded people were more apt to be criminals.

Question 64

On the basis of their height and weight,Hooton argued that criminals were biologically superior organisms.

Question 65

Despite evidence criticizing the link between intelligence and crime,thousands of people in North America with intellectual disabilities were institutionalized and even sterilized.

Question 66

Lombroso's theories focused on a physically distinct type of individual with atavistic qualities who would be most likely to commit crime.

Question 67

A focus on pathological differences between criminals and non-criminals allows for greater attention on social structure issues that contribute to crime.

Question 68

During the 1950s Sheldon advanced a theory that drew a correlation between personality types and criminal behaviour.

Question 69

Today,the evidence supporting a link between biological or intellectual deficiencies and criminal behaviour is very strong.