...of criminology because he was the first person to write a book devoted exclusively to the causes of criminality (Clinton Community College, n.d.; Sage Publishers, n.d.). Lombroso's book, Criminal Man was published in 1876 (Sage Publishers, n.d.). His theories are categorized under trait theories (Clinton Community College, n.d.). That means people are born with certain traits or characteristics that cause them to behave in certain ways.
Lombroso, an Italian physician, promoted the notion that criminals are born that way (Sage Publishers, n.d.). He reached this conclusion after performing numerous autopsies on criminals (O'Connor, 2006). According to Lombroso, criminals were born criminals and thus, followed the path into which they were born (Sage Publishers, n.d.). Lombroso considered these individuals to be "evolutionary throwbacks to an earlier form of life" (Sage Publishers, n.d.). In other words, they are primitive (Clinton Community College, n.d.). This is true for...