What is a Criminologist?
A criminologist is a person who analyzes crime and criminal behaviors and attempts to provide explanations as to who commits crime and why they do it. A criminologist analyzes a criminal’s behavior and the methods he or she employs. Criminologists may work independently, or they may be employed by public law enforcement agencies, private universities or security companies. A criminologist develops profiles of criminals and criminal behavior using research and studies that examine psychological behavior, social issues, environmental factors, education levels and biological factors. Criminologists also help make crime statistics into usable tools for law enforcement agencies. By developing profiles and organizing statistics into meaningful information, a criminologist strives to develop strategies to help prevent criminal behavior. Not all criminologists have the “glamorous” job of profiling famous criminals or being commentators on news programs, but most do the difficult and tedious wo
Criminologists study crime and criminal law. They analyze criminal behavior patterns and criminal laws, and provide theoretical explanations for criminal and delinquent behavior. What do criminologists do? Primarily involved in research and teaching, criminologists supply a great deal of knowledge to the study of policing, police administration and policy, juvenile justice and delinquency, corrections, correctional administration and policy, drug addiction, criminal ethnography, macro-level models of criminal behavior, radical criminology, theoretical criminology, and victimology. In addition, they evaluate various biological, sociological, and psychological factors related to criminology. Some criminologists may also engage themselves in community initiatives and evaluation and policy projects with local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies. Where do criminologists work? Some criminologists may conduct their own research while teaching legal studies, criminology, sociology, a
