Collaborative Model of Criminal Justice - Essay Example

Interest in the field hastened in the 20th century with the universal establishment of police force, crime management and control. According to Hirsch and Gottfredson (1990), the study of crime has evolved from being a corollary or application of social science into being a distinct field with the recognition of the impact of crime and victimization to society as well as in consideration of its operation as a social institution in ensuring peace, order and stability. However, the premise that crime as a social construct and individual criminality is not at question, has not been absolute or indistinguishable amongst criminological theories.

As Estrada (2004) points out, perspectives have changed significantly over time, as indicated by changes in policies. The need to understand the similarities and contradictions is not so much to establish distinctions between sets of theories but rather to develop insights on the modes or perceptions regarding crime, society and individuals over time. Before the 20th century the prevailing theories on crime considered individualistic perspective on the development of crime. The motivation to commit criminal acts was considered to be due to the perceived rewards or gains of the acts.

In such a setting, the offender actively and deliberately chooses to commit the crime to fulfill a personal desire, derive reward or to pursue an interest. One of the challenges of such a perspective is that there is limited consideration for the development of criminal behaviors or the factors that contribute to their prevalence or the means preempting crime beyond control measures. Shedler and Westen (2004) believe that there the current perspective on crime, particularly regarding its sociological development still need retooling to accommodate personalities that do not comply with models.

One aspect that they refer to is that though there is recognition of conscious and unconscious mind of an individual as well as collective consciousness with the development of psychoanalytic perspectives, there is till a significant reliance on models or archetypes. This in turn may limit cultural or social sensitivity which is a critic cal component of crime as a social construct. Similarly, there are some studies indicating that though general personality theories utilizing psychoanalysis may be sufficient for assessment purposes, they may not provide the same level of insights for the development of interventions or therapy (Jackson, 2004).

The sociological study of crime developed in the 1940's. Influenced by Freudian psychoanalysis and psychoanalysis, the proposition was that individuals are influenced by their social experience and thus, their desires and motivations can be linked to social developments and issues (Plotnik, 2005). In sociological approaches in the criminology, the perception is that crime is not just individually motivated, going beyond personal choice, motivations, desires or rewards (Brown, 2003). It also diminishes the significance of biological characteristics as precursors of crime.

As strange as it may seem based on contemporary knowledge, a number of studies prior to the development of organized police in Europe were conducted to compile physical characteristics of offenders, one of the earliest efforts in profiling (Plotnik, 2005; Oberwittler & Hfer, 2005). Furthermore,