Anthropological Approaches to Criminal Justice Research (Essay Sample)

Anthropological Approaches to Criminal Justice
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Anthropological Approaches to Criminal Justice
Introduction
Anthropology is the study of different aspects of human culture. Anthropologists base their studies on the past and present elements of culture to make inferences. As a discipline, anthropology may focus on specific aspects of communities rather than using holistic approaches and methods. Therefore, anthropologists may study crime or criminal behavior within a particular group of people. Anthropological methods, concepts, and frameworks may help in understanding the cultural causes of criminal behaviors and occurrences. Even though criminal justice is a discipline on its own, anthropological approaches and methods may help scholars understand social constructions and cultural causes of criminality. An analysis of different research sources is important to determine the importance of using anthropological concepts and approaches in criminal justice.
Jeroslow, Phyllis. 2011. “Anthropological theories of crime and delinquency.” Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 21(3), 255–269.
The research article presents the findings of a survey conducted by the author. The article focuses on the use of anthropological concepts and theories in the study of crime and delinquent behaviors. According to the author, anthropology investigates crime and delinquency by studying the historical and cultural contexts. It is, therefore, possible to understand criminals and their behavior by studying their culture. Anthropologists may help criminal justice experts understand the causes of criminal behaviors within and without certain societies. Moreover, the earliest anthropological theories explained crime and delinquency by studying the behavior of individuals in relation to their genetics. However, the development of anthropology as a discipline led to the development of theories which viewed crime as a product or manifestation of social constructions and interactions. In other words, anthropology considers crime as a learned behavior which can be passed from one person to another through the processes of social interactions. Anthropology introduces theories that are specific to populations making it possible to understand crime in relation to culture and cultural values. Furthermore, it would not be possible to understand why different communities embrace different cultural values without the application of anthropological approaches.
According to Jeroslow (2011), it is possible to analyze and study the mafia by focusing on the Sicilian communities. The author analyzes an anthropological research that had been conducted by Blok to examine the rise and organization of mafia. The study revealed that the political and social crisis in the villages of Sicily forced entrepreneurial peasants, majorly youths to form criminal gangs. Consequently, anthropologists may consider the historical and cultural context when studying the criminal gang. The research article is relevant to the study of the application of anthropological concepts and theories in criminal justice.
O'Brien, Martin. 2004. “What is cultural about cultural criminology?” British Journal of Criminology, 45(5), 599–612.
O'Brien (2004) presents the findings of research conducted to analyze the significance of culture when studying criminality and delinquency. The study used anthropological approaches to understand the cultural aspects of criminality. The author argues that it is difficult to identify the roles of culture in the creation of criminals or deviants in the society. However, he acknowledges the importance of understanding the cultural and historical backgrounds of criminals during investigations. O’Brien (2004) states that cultural criminology emphasizes on culture as the most important determinant of criminal behavior. It is, therefore, important to note that anthropological theories and concepts are important during investigations. Moreover, ethnographic studies must be used when studying criminals in groups. Even though the author focuses on cultural criminology, he explains the role of anthropologists in developing criminology theories and frameworks that can be used to investigate criminality within different societies.
According to O’Brien (2014), scholars find themselves in a personal and method...