Crime: A Disease or An Art?

“Crime is common. Logic is rare. Therefore, it's upon the logic instead of upon the crime that you simply should dwell.”?-Sir Arthur Canon Doyle

Crime is typically defined as “the violation of criminal law.” Laws are rules that are codified into the status of law by our government to secure the orderly functioning of society. They plan to reduce, control, or eliminate behaviors that are believed to threaten the social order. This is why criminal cases are viewed as the states versus the defendant, instead of the individual victim(s) versus the defendant – the offense in question is legally viewed as an action against the greater social order (as represented by the government), rather than the individual. Every crime must be considered in two parts: -

1. Actus rea – the physical act of crime, and
2. Mens rea – the mental intent to do the crime

?Why People Commit the Crime?

Few people by circumstances, few by choice, few by force, few by passion, few to defend, commits the crime. Biological approaches to crime causation mainly focus on all and everything related to our body formation, may it be our genes, our neurochemical activity, hormones, any deformity in the brain or its parts, etc. Intake of Toxins also plays a vital role in crime causation, may it be alcohol or any kind of drugs that affects normal brain activity. Nearly 38-40% of prisoners self-report being under toxin influence while committing the crime. Psychology is one such major aspect of crime causation as no human can do any work without cognition! It focuses on the role of the ‘human mind’ in crime causation like feelings, cognitive functions, personality traits. Then there come the Psychopaths which are a classic example of how psychological perspective is a dominant one and how any dysfunction in the human mind can give birth to a criminal mind. Mental illness in which the person is unaware of the outer world, unable to decide what is right and what is wrong can be one reason for crime causation. Social factors like peer influences, disturbing family environment, a toxic upbringing, violent and toxic neighborhood, unfaithful and even dominant partner, socio-economic status, rebellious religious teachings, etc. are the factors we never pay attention to because we think they are so minimal that how can they contribute in making a person commit the crime. But these are the factors that do play a role!

Nature Vs Nurture

Yes, the question is still unsolved, but it’s tough to ignore this aspect when it comes to approaches for crime causation. Nature is the way we are born - our genetic makeup and Nurture is the way we are brought up in, the environment we are raised in. According to me, both nature and nurture are equal contributors in the way a human mind works and a human behaves. I say if a person is aggressive in nature (genetic) and is brought up in an environment where gangs and mafias are common neighborhood, he is more likely to be the same but even with a violent temperament, but at the same time if the same person is brought up in a normal functioning family, that aggression will be limited to some mood swings and family issues, but never into a violent crime. Nature is what we have got. Nurture is how it’s shaped and used or implemented! As we know, with the development of technology and the human mind, of course, the pattern, the way, the nature of crime has changed with the course, even the crime rates are going on increasing day

Final Note

Criminal psychology investigates not just what motivates someone to commit a crime, but also how they react afterward. Criminal psychologists have a variety of responsibilities in the legal system, including testifying as witnesses in court proceedings to help the jury understand the criminal's mentality. Aspects of criminal conduct are also addressed by some types of psychotherapy. Criminal behavior is defined as "any sort of antisocial activity that is punishable by law but can also be punished by community norms." As a result, defining criminal activity is difficult since there is a small line between what is acceptable and what is not. What was once considered a violation may now be accepted by the community.?

The question of an offender's ability to stand trial is a reflection of his or her current mental state. This evaluates the offender's ability to comprehend the charges leveled against them, the possible consequences of being convicted or acquitted of these charges, and their willingness to cooperate with their attorney in their defense. The issue of sanity/insanity, often known as criminal responsibility, is a determination of the offender's mental condition at the time of the crime. This relates to their ability to distinguish between right and wrong, as well as what is illegal. Because it is so difficult to show, the insanity defense is rarely utilized. If a criminal is declared insane, they may be confined to a secure hospital facility for a period of time that could be substantially longer than they would have served in prison. So whatever the cause or reason of committing a crime or whatever the psychological theory behind that criminal behavior but if that criminal act has violated the law and harmed the balance of society then there is always a predefined punishment made by the law which always tries to bring the balance of society back into normal.

Source- Science ABC, Elsevier

By- Anuraj K. Khandelwal??