The place of rationality in microeconomic theories from a criminological perspective

Subject Areas : International Legal Research

abbas karimnejad ¹ , mahdi esmaeili ² , hassan haji tabar firozjaei ³

1 - PhD Student in Criminal Law and Criminology, Ayatollah Amoli Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mazandaran, Iran
2 - Assistant Professor of Law, Ghaemshahr Branch of Islamic Azad University, Mazandaran, Iran (Corresponding Author)
3 - Assistant Professor of Law, Ghaemshahr Branch of Islamic Azad University, Mazandaran, Iran

Received: 2021-09-18 Accepted : 2021-10-21 Published : 2021-08-23

Keywords: criminology, Rationality, theories of microeconomics,

Abstract :

Background and Aim: Although rational choice theorists have acknowledged that criminals do not always perform best in assessing the situation to commit a crime, their ideas, especially when it comes to preventing crime, are based on the premise that Criminals make rational decisions. The aim of the present study is to study the foundations of the position of rationality from various aspects such as "philosophical" and "positivist" in microeconomic theories from a criminological perspective by referring to the roots and backgrounds of the theory of rational choice.Methodology: The method of conducting research according to the nature of the subject, objectives and method of data collection is library and descriptive-analytical.Findings and Results: Rationality is considered as a basic premise in studying the behavior of economic agents in a conventional economy. This rationality or the science of rational choice (Hodgson 1998), formed from the foundations of Western anthropology after the Renaissance, has different meanings. In classical economics, rationality is used as a tool to maximize utility and profit, which is derived from the philosophical ideas of scientists such as Bentham. Adherents of the theory of rational choice in criminology believe that there are many potential criminals in society and say that there are special circumstances that make the perpetrator decide to commit a crime and believe that by identifying these conditions and opportunities and reducing them, The power of theft and crime in general has become irrational for these people.