Criminology
in the
A. The Roots
It
has been often said, that the Czech criminology was constituted in sixties of
the twentieth century. It is truth that at that time an institutional basis was
established and criminology was constituted as a self-standing science. But the
roots of the Czech criminology are much deeper and we find them since the
beginning of the XX. century. Similarly as in some other countries they grew up
from law and sociological thinking of that time - from jurisprudence and
sociological reflections of social problems and social pathological phenomena.
The development of Czech criminological thinking conduced from these two
sources to the interest in the personality of offender while the classical
criminological works of Lombroso, Ferri,
Garofalo etc. were oriented rather in the contrary.
In
the year 1900 Josef Prusak, lawyer, judge and professor of penal law at Charles
University spoke on so-called „criminal science“ which studies crime as a
social phenomenon caused by individual, social and natural factors. He
differentiated between so called „criminal anthropology“ which studies the
personality of offender and „criminal sociology“ which studies social roots of
crime.[1]
In the same time he made a reference to the European criminology (Lombroso,
Garofalo) but he criticised its anthropological approach. In twenties, the term
„criminology“ was already commonly used as the designation of science studying
crime; simultaneously the internal difference between two above mentioned
traditional approaches - the study of offender and the study of social
conditions of crime was still kept.[2]
We
should suppose that criminology which was cultivated in the frame of
jurisprudence would be closer to the first approach, i.e. to the problem of
offenders and their prosecution, but in fact Czech lawyers being at the roots
of the Czech criminological science manifested a good sense for the broader
view on crime as social phenomenon - above mentioned doyen of Czech criminology
Prusak published in 1899 a study „The beginnings of criminal ethiology“, in
1904 „Criminal noetics“; another outstanding Czech lawyer and co-creator of
Czech criminology Prof. Solnar published in 1931 a study „Criminality in the Czech
country from 1914 to 1922 from the point of view of criminal ethiology and the
reform of penal law“. Of course, the
direct at problems of offender’s personality was also represented, for example
by the study of lawyer Prof. Prochazka from 1925 „The discourse on criminals as
an introduction to criminal psychology and sociology“.
It
means that criminology was developed mostly inside the law thinking inclining
to the broader view on crime problems. This mainstream was supported by the
treatises of some outstanding Czech sociologists interested in study of social
pathological phenomena. At the first place we should mention Prof. Masaryk,
sociologist, philosopher and first president of the independent
It is
possible to say that in the first half of the XX. century Czech criminology was
not represented by the „pure“ criminologists but criminological approach to the problems of
crime was developed both by lawyers and sociologists. Criminology of that time
was developed predominantly in the shape of theoretical reflections; empirical
approach was usually represented by the use of statistical data only. Speaking
of the theory we may observe that the works of European criminological classics
(Beccaria, Lombroso, Garofalo, von Liszt, Bonger, etc.) were known namely among
lawyers interested in criminological approach. This promising development was
enhanced also by the progress in forensic psychology and criminalistics. Foe example, the classical
works of the Czech forensic psychology and criminalistics written by Josef
Sejnoha (Criminal psychology and System
of criminalistic education) and
published in thirties included very interesting criminological views on
the matters.
B. The Decline
The
World War Two and following years brutally interrupted this development for a
long time. Criminological thinking was cultivated mostly at universities; after
Nazi occupation Czech universities were closed and, generally, times under Nazi
occupation were not favourable for the development of humanities. Moreover, the
unfavourable conditions for social sciences outlasted after 1948 when communist
regime came to power. Social disciplines were distorted by vulgarised Marxism
and some of them were totally rejected as so-called bourgeois pseudo-sciences
(e.g. sociology, psychoanalysis, cybernetics). There were hard times also for
criminology. Criminology was understood
as a useless science due to the official ideology that proclaimed the specific
character of crime in socialist society. Crime in the period of socialism was
officially interpreted by two factors : firstly as a political phenomenon – a
consequence of sharpened class struggle in time of building socialist society
when any real or seeming resistance to socialist order was interpreted as
political criminal offence of defeated exploitative classes; secondly crime was
interpreted as temporary phenomenon, as a survival inherited from the society
divided into opposite classes; crime originates from the nature of exploitative
social system and after destruction of this system crime will vanish
automatically, step by step, therefore is no need to study its causes. The
development of criminology was interrupted,
lessons on criminology at law faculties were stopped; even the
statistical data on crime were secret during fifties.
C. Situation
before 1989
Ideology
of fifties was simple and clear; the reality was of course different. The
ideological schemes began quickly to be insufficient to solve the real problems
of crime as for example the big deal of recidivism. The demand for practical
tools based on adequate knowledge lead to growing interest in the criminal
science, penology, forensic psychology. At the beginning of sixties the
institutional basis for these disciplines was established. Analogous process took place in other
socialist countries.
In
1960 a research institute was
established and submitted under three state authorities - Ministry of Justice,
Ministry of Interior and General Attorney Office. Its beginnings were
characterised by theoretical and methodological uncertainty manifested even in
the name because this institute was
called Research Institute of Criminalistics. But after this initial period of
certain search for theoretical basis, roots and orientation, criminological
aspects clearly prevailed in the work of Institute, multidisciplinary
criminological research was fostered and
this was expressed also by the change of name - since 1966 it was Research
Institute of Criminology submitted only under the General Attorney Office.
Despite
the outlasting general survival theory of crime the pieces of knowledge from
the Western criminology were gradually adopted. and the end of sixties brought
the expansion of empirical research aimed at the juvenile delinquency,
recidivism and trends in crime. Institute had an important role taking part in
creating the postpenitentiary system and its work helped to establish the
governmental committee for pre-delinquent youth. During sixties also the
Research Penological Institute was established, focused mainly at the research
on offenders.
Soviet
occupation in 1968 and following period of so-called normalisation badly
damaged the restored promising development of Czech criminology. Criminological
institute was criticised for non-Marxist deviations; as a consequence some of
research fellows had to leave and the
scientific work fell again under ideological pressure. The isolation from the
development of criminology in Western world was deepened for a long time.
Nevertheless,
the remained staff tried to keep the tradition of empirical research and some
interesting findings on juvenile delinquency, personality of juvenile offender,
criminal activity committed in group etc. were produced. On the other hand,
official authorities showed very little interest in this results. The first textbook of criminology made mostly
by authors from Institute was published; of course some parts were
ideologically influenced and simplified.[3]
Criminology was lectured again at the law faculties in the frame of penal law
and regular meetings of criminologists from former socialist countries took
place.
D. Recent
situation
The profound
change in 1989 opened the space to develop criminological science in the frame
of new social conditions. We may even say that the criminology faced a
challenge as never before; our society represented due to the fundamental
changes in social, political and economic system a kind of laboratory sui
generis to study the development and forms of crime under such changed and new
conditions. Ideological barriers of course fell down and it was possible to
start new period of the history of Czech criminology.
But
to tell the truth, the scope of urgent crime problems has been much broader
than the capacity to research and solve them. Criminological Research Institute
- which was renamed in 1990 as Institute of Criminology and Social Prevention
and passed in 1994 under the authority of the Czech Ministry of Justice - has
still remained the only one specialised criminological workplace that develops
empirical research with the capacity about 20 research workers (this capacity
was recently enlarged to 25 research workers but some of them are of course
young people only starting their professional carrier and only very few of
research fellows worked in Institute before 1989). Institute also serves as an
expert workplace for the Governmental Committee for Crime Prevention.
The
urgent need to discover and describe new trends and forms of crime in our
changing society resulted in fostering empirical, mostly short-term and inter-mediate research
projects targeted at the issues of penal policy and functioning of justice
system (e.g. research on alternative measures, problems of judge profession
etc.), serious forms of crime (e.g. organised crime, economic crime, drugs
among youngsters), juvenile delinquency,
trends in crime in the CR, possibilities of crime prevention etc. Due to the
fact that above mentioned penological
institute went down in eighties,
This
empirical orientation which originates from the practical need has left of
course only a limited space for development of criminological theory and
theoretical reflections of collected
research results; the substantial part of this work remains before the Czech criminologists. Nevertheless, the
Criminology
is not taught as a self-standing specialisation in the
There
is not a special criminological society in the CR but there has been the
section of social pathology of the Masaryk´ Czech Sociological Society that has
been active for years and it still serves as a place to bring together
criminologists with other professionals interested in crime problems.
Similarly, there is not a specialised criminological periodical but
criminological papers are regularly published in Czech periodicals as
Criminalistics, Penal Law, Czech Prisons, Legal Practice etc.
Many
efforts were made to overcome the isolation from the development of European
and world criminology. Institute of Criminology
has been a member of International Criminological Society and
International Association of Penal Law and keeps close contacts with other
international professional organisations as e.g. ISPAC - International
Scientific and Professional Advisory Council of UN, Penal Reform International,
CEP - Conférence Permanente Européene de Probation, Transparency International
etc., as well as with the institutes of UN (UNICRI, HEUNI) and now also with
the newly established European Criminological Society.
Apart
from that Institute is involved in international co-operation having a share in
international research projects (as e.g. the UN project ICVS on victims of
crime) and in processing of documents and information required from the Czech
Republic by authorities of the UN, EU
and Council of Europe - for example the Czech part of European Sourcebook of
Crime, of the Report on organised crime in Europe etc.
What
we see as major tasks of Czech criminology ?
It is of course an effort to keep and deepen the contacts with the
criminology and criminologists from other European countries, to broaden our
involvement in international research co-operation depending to our capacity,
to maintain the traditional good professional level of empirical research in
order to provide respective authorities by valid criminological pieces of knowledge
and to deepen, step by step, the theoretical reflections of the development of
crime in our society in transition.
Cirtkova,L., Cervinka,F.,
Forenzni psychologie (Forensic
Psychology), Prague 1994
Chalupny,E., O trestu smrti (On the Capital Punishment), 1923
Kuchta,J. a kol.,
Kriminologie,
Masaryk,T.G., Sebevrazda (The
Suicide), 1878
Masaryk,T.,.G., Otazka socialni (Social Question), 1898
Masaryk´s encyclopaedia, Vol.
IV.,
Nezkusil,J. a kol.,
Ceskoslovenska kriminologie
(Czechoslovak Criminolog[6]y), Prague 1978
Novotny,O., Zapletal,J. a
kol., Zaklady kriminologie (Introduction to Criminology), Charles
University,
Novotny,O., Zapletal,J. a kol. Kriminologie,
Prague 2002
Otto´s encyclopaedia, Vol. XV.,
Prochazka,F.,V., Rozpravy o zlocincich jako uvod do kriminalni psychologie a
sociologie
(Discours on
Criminals as an Introduction to Criminal Psychology and Sociology),
Prusak,J., Pocatky kriminalni
aetiologie (The Beginnings of Criminal Ethiology), 1899
Sejnoha,J.,Kriminalni
psychologie (Criminal Psychology),
1930
Sejnoha,J., System
kriminalistickeho vzdelavani (System of Criminalistic Education), 1936
Solnar,V., Trestni pravo
hmotne (Substantive Penal Law),
Zapletal,J,. a kol.,
Kriminologie, Vol. I.,II.,
By
Miroslav Scheinost,
Professor at
[1] Ottův slovník naučný (Otto´s encyclopaedia), item „kriminalita“ and „kriminální antropologie“ (criminal anthropology), volume XV., Prague 1900, pp. 169, 172, author Prusak, Joseph
[2] Masarykův slovník naučný (Masaryk´s encyclopeadia), item „kriminologie“ (criminology), volume IV., Prague 1929, p. 174, author Prochazka, Frantisek V.
[3] Nezkusil,J. a kol., Československá kriminologie (Czechoslovak criminology), Prague 1978
[4] Novotný,O., Zapletal,J. a kol., Kriminologie, Praha 2002
[5] Kuchta,J. a kol., Kriminologie, Brno 1993; Novotný,O., Zapletal J. a kol., Základy kriminologie (Introduction to Criminology), UK Prague, 1993; Zapletal,J. a kol., Kriminologie I.,II., Police Academy, Prague 1998, 1999