Which framework links crime causation to rational choice and suggests punishment should deter future crime?

Which framework links crime causation to rational choice and suggests punishment should deter future crime?

• A. Classical School
• B. Positive School
• C. Biological School
• D. Phrenology

Answer: (A)

Crime is viewed as a rational calculation in the Classical School: people weigh potential rewards and costs before acting, and if the penalties are set so that the costs outweigh the benefits, they will be deterred from committing crime. This framework treats punishment as a tool to prevent future offenses by creating a certain, swift, and proportionate consequence for criminal acts, which lowers the perceived value of crime relative to abiding by the law. The focus here is on choice and deterrence, rather than on what causes someone to crime through factors like environment or biology. The Positive School emphasizes social and environmental influences, the Biological School looks at biological factors, and Phrenology is an outdated, debunked approach, none of which center on rational calculation and deterrence as the main mechanism for crime causation and prevention.

Crime is viewed as a rational calculation in the Classical School: people weigh potential rewards and costs before acting, and if the penalties are set so that the costs outweigh the benefits, they will be deterred from committing crime. This framework treats punishment as a tool to prevent future offenses by creating a certain, swift, and proportionate consequence for criminal acts, which lowers the perceived value of crime relative to abiding by the law. The focus here is on choice and deterrence, rather than on what causes someone to crime through factors like environment or biology. The Positive School emphasizes social and environmental influences, the Biological School looks at biological factors, and Phrenology is an outdated, debunked approach, none of which center on rational calculation and deterrence as the main mechanism for crime causation and prevention.