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A 5 page research paper that discusses and explains the three principal divisions in criminological theory – functionalist, interactionist, and Marxist. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
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5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khcrithe.rtf
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previous centuries for what, today, are considered to be minor offenses. As this indicates, what is considered deviant or criminal behavior by a society will differ over time as perceptions
and the societal understanding of the mechanisms behind criminal behavior change. Criminological theory informs public policymakers, as well as law enforcement professionals, as to the possible causes behind what modern
society considers to be criminal behavior. It is through the use of criminological theory that modern legal and justice professionals endeavor to shape laws and their punishments so as
to suppress the causes of criminality, as well as provide deterrents to encourage its proliferation. The following discussion will examine three prominent perspectives in modern criminological theory - functionalist, interactionist,
and Marxist. Functionalism Long (2001) points out that functionalist theories generally stress public policy that maintains and preserves the social order. For instance, sociology pioneer Emile Durkheim emphasized
the role that deviance plays in a society as a productive tool for maintaining social boundaries (Long, 2001). When an individual deviants from the accepted social norms, i.e. commits what
is considered a criminal act, the local media offers coverage of that individuals behavior and also alerts the public to the accompanying punishment. While the overt purpose of this media
activity is to inform the public, it also services as an educational device to remind the citizenry of the rules of that particular society (Long, 2001). Through the mechanism of
punishment, criminal behavior provides a very real function within the confines of that particular society, which serves to reaffirm the "rightness" of societal rules and regulations (Long, 2001). Henslin
(1988) substantiates Longs position by also asserting that criminal behavior functions as a mechanism for maintaining social boundaries. In other words, it helps to define who is and who
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