unicri

United NationsInterregional Crime and Justice

Research Institute

The electronic version (PDF) of this publication was scanned by theUNICRI Documentation Centre from an original paper document in theUNICRI Library.

La version electronique (PDF) de cette publication a été numérisée par lecentre de Documentation d'UNJCRI a partir du document papier originalde la Biblioteque d'UNICRT.

Esta version electrónica (PDF) ha sido escaneada por el Centro deDocumentation de UNICRI a partir de un documento impreso originalperteneciente a la Biblioteca de UNICRI.

3JJeKTpOHHa5I Bepcni (PDF) ,LaHHoIi rly6irnKawm 6MJIa OTCKHHOBHUeHTPOM AoKymeHTanHi4UN1CRI c opHdHHaJTbHOfi 6yMaHo'I BepdHH,HaxoIWefcM B 6146Ju4oTeKe UNICRI.

UNITED NATIONS

SOCIAL DEFENCE

RESEARCH INSTITUTE

CRIMINOLOGICA

RESEARCH TRENDS

IN LATIN AMERICA

Prepared by:Franco FERRACUTI

andRoberto BERGALLI

Excerpt from Publication n. I4np UNSDRL Rome, 1970

Criminological research trends in Latin America*THE PROBLEM OF RESEARCH IN CRIMINOLOGY

The problems of criminological research are of greatimportance in both developed and developing societies.Criminology in general has advanced to a sufficientlevel of maturity for methodological questions relevantto research to be the order of the day throughout theworld. In a survey of existing criminological research,the analysis of trends and needs is of paramount im-portance.'

The type of criminological investigation with whichthis paper is concerned is focused on the specific prob-lems of the Latin American area. Broad considerationsrelating to over-all theoretical issues" have been keptin reserve in order to facilitate evaluation, particularlyof "demonstration projects" and "action research".3

In the present paper, the task is to indicate thosetrends which can be gleaned from the available litera-ture concerning some of the key problems of researchin criminology in the Latin American area. There wasparticular interest in ascertaining which of the disci-plines relevant to criminological research might be saidto dominate the Latin American research scene. 4 Ingeneral terms, a predominantly sociological criminologyhas developed in Anglo-Saxon countries, as well as insome centrally planned economies; a predominantlybiological criminology, in the Federal Republic ofGermany and Italy; and a juridical criminology inmany othersP Africa and Asia do not possess auto-nomous schools; their criminological researches to datehave been tributaries of trends transplanted from Euro-pean and North American schools, with limited excep-tions, for example, those carried out by Boehringer andHouchon in Africa, 0 and by various investigators inJapan.

* Summary of the paper prepared by the United NationsSocial Defence Research Institute (UNSDRI), Rome, Italy.

I E Lloyd Ohlin and G. 0. W. Mueller. Some specula-tive investments in American criminology and their chancesof return", New York: Ford Foundation, 1969 (mimeo-accrued) : F. Ferracuti and M. E. Wolfaana. It Co,nvorta-

Comparative Criminology, voL 1 (London, Routledge andIccgan Paul Ltd., 1965), p. 7!.

2 L. Radzinowicz, Ideology and Crime (London, Heine-mann Educational Books, 1966).

G. Fairweather, Methods for Experimental Social In-novation (New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 1967).

4 G. Vassalli, 'Criminologia e giustizia penale", Quadernidi Criminologia C/mica, No. 1 (1959), pp. 26-87.

5 L. Radzinowicz, In Search of Criminology (LondonHeinemann Educational Books, 1961).

0. H. Boehringer, 'Some preliminary thoughts on a so-cialist penology", 1966 (mimeographed); C. None hon, "Lesmécanismes criminogènes drn,s one société urbaine africaine",Revue internationale de criminotogie It police technique,21, 4 (1967); G. Houchon, Les statistiques pénitentiairescongolaises", Revue juridiquc du Congo, vol.XLII, 4 (1966);A. Dc Boeck and G. Houchon, 'Prolegomèncs a one statis-tique criminelle congolaise", in Mouton & Cie., ed. Cahierseconotniqucs of soclaux, vol. VI (Kinshasa, Paris Press, 1968).

Furthermore, it was important to determine theextent to which research in Latin America had pursuedwhat some regard as an illusory goal, i.e., the "single-cause" explanation in criminality. The single-causeexplanation has lost impetus as statistical techniquesof research have sharpened8 and as programmes ofsocial action have broadened into the sociology ofdeviance and social pathology.0

No methodological specificity exists in criminology.The methodologies vary according to the goal that thespecific research sets for itself, and they feed fromvarious behavioural disciplines in their social and bio-logical realities.'° The object of research is, in general,defined in strictly juridical terms; and although manycriminological schools have tried to substitute sociolog-ical definitions for juridical normative definitions," thelatter stilt prevail. The criminal entity thus has nocorrespondent in biological reality, and its social simi-larity is linked with the acceptance and the immanenceof a normative system. The transposition of differentialcharacteristics of a population whose biological iden-tification is non-existent and whose social identificationis only normative is at least dubious.

One way out of such a dilemma was suggested by aseries of meetings on interdisciplinary team methodssponsored by the National Training Laboratories.1'What was described as a fusion' approach, in whichdiscipline loyalties are discarded and researchers sub-scribe to an over-all theoretical system, was favoured.

'stock Publications, 1964); and William P. Mc-concept of crime", Issues in Criminology, vol. 3,

8 Leslie 1. Wilkins, "The concept of cause in criminology",Issues in Critninolog', vol. 3, No. 2 (1968); R. W. Burnham,"Further thoughts on the concept of cause", Issues in Crimi-nology, vol. 3, No. 2 (1968) M. E. Wolfgang, "Mathematicalmethods in criminology", International Social Science Jour-'nil (UNESCO), vol. 18, No. 2 (1966).

M. 8. CUnard, Sociology of Deviant Behavior, 3rd ed.New York, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1968); Albert

K. Cohen, Deviance and Control (Englewood Cliffs, New Jer-sey, Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1966); F. S. Feldman and F. S.

LU Vision, op. cit.; Paul W. Tappan, Crime, Justice andCorrection (New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1960).

11 Thorstori Sellin, Culture, Conflict and Crime, bulletinNo. 41 (New York, Social Science Research Council, 1938),pp. 17-32; E. H. Sutherland and D. R. Cressey, Principlesof Criminology, 6th ed. (Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Co.,1960).

12 Ferracuti and Wolfgang, op. cit.; M. Barron Luszki,Interdisciplinary Team Research Methods and Problems, Re-search Training Series, No. 3 (New York, National Train-ing laboratories, 1958).

105

In the fusion approach, each team member must ex-pand and accept the injection of concepts theoriesand findings of others into his own set of ideas so thatmeaningful integration can be achieved.

As the fusion approach diminishes interdisciplinaryschisms in criminological research, so the variety andingenuity of current cross-cultural studiespresa?ebreakthroughs that will facilitate genuine transferabil-ity of ideas in the future'3 Further cause for optimismis the gradual abandonment of the rigid distinctionbetween applied and theoretical studies, 14 in favour of"problem-oriented"5 research, in which the socialscholar formulates viable alternative decisions,'°

Difficulties of criminological research include 'hid-den criminality";' -- the variability of the definitions inrelation to the general juridical structures of a country;the unavailability of valid social indicators, 18 parti-cularly in developing countries; and the scarce predic-tability of general criminological phenomenological be-cause of the number and range of the social factorswhich enter the predictive matrix.

BACKGROUND FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH IN LATIN AMERICA

In many Latin American countries, elements of thecolonial past are still preserved in the social structureand frequently, many different structures coexist inthe same country. 19 This is illustrated by the differences

13 For discussions of comparative criminology, see SheldonGlueck, in Proceedings of the Fourth International Crimino-logical Congress, The Hague, 1960, pp. 534 .537; and Mann-heirson air Recent studies include Thorston Sellin and

conducted at New York Univ(ler. A seminar on comparativin 1969; among the works toon comparative research in crj

ernment Operations, Inc Use of Social Research in teaeralDomestic Programs; Vol. 1: Federally Financed Social Re-search, Expenditures, Status and Objectives; Vol. 2: The Ade-quacy and Usefulness of Federally Financed Research onMo!nr Nn;in,,a! .cnriaj Prnhlpm.r: VoL 4: Current Lcsues on

15 Radzinowicz, Ideology and Crime; United Nations Edu-cational, Scientific and Cultural Organization InternationalStudies on 'Main Trends of Research in the Science of Man",Report of the Director .General. Paris, 23 September 1966(14 C 14 C119): Harry Gold and Frank R. Scarpitti, eds.,Combatting Social Problems: Techniques of Intervention(New York, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1967).

1 Leslie J. Wilkins, Social Deviance (London, TavistockPublications, 1964).

' P. H. McClintock, 'Criminological and penological as-pects of the dark figure of crime and criminality, paper sub-mitted to the Sixth European Conference of Directors ofCriminological Research Institutes, Strasbourg, November

A. Bauer, ed., Social Indicators

Russell Sage Foundation, 1968); me contents and measure-ments of development', Research Notes: A Review of Recentand Current Studies Conducted at the United Nations Re-search Institute for Social Development (Geneva, June 1968).

10 For a review of social change in Latin America, seeJ. M. Echavarria, "A sociologist's view', Social Aspects ofEconomic Development in Latin America. nart I. vol. 2

UNESCO, 1963), p. 30; Fraen America Latina (Freiburg,

between the developmental level in urban sections andthat in rural areas.

In the matter of social distinctions, the inheritancefrom colonial times is quite apparent, particularly inthe Andean countries and in some countries of CentralAmerica, where a very small upper class is contrastedwith a very large lower one, and where the latter isemployed at levels of deprivation. In many countries,a middle class is still in the process of formation. Onlythe countries of the southern cone of Latin Americaoffer a social panorama of three social classes withsignificant upward mobility. These countries have largeurban concentrations and are characterized by constantinternal migration and, in general, by greater economicdevelopment. Urbanization, social mobility and migra-tion are, of course, phenomena that must be studied,because of their links with criminal behaviour.

In Latin America, as in many other developingareas, the process of economic development has beenaccompanied by social changes, whose differences ofrhythm and intensity have created a number of prob-lems, In Venezuela, the rapid growth of the oil indus-try has caused increasing unevenness in incomes andliving conditions between city and country. In Brazil,principally in the State of São Paulo, large industrialconcerns operate in strong contrast to the rural andeconomically under-developed northern areas. Ruralmigrants find precarious employment in the city, oftenin marginal activities.

Those who migrate from rural areas to the city aredeprived of stable employment from the beginning.They are introduced into the suburbs of an unstable,badly integrated population, poorly prepared for em-ployment and living in marginal conditions. Such mi-grants flow into the 'belts" of deviant groups knownas "pobiaciones callampas, ranchos", 'villas mise-rias" etc.

By way of caution, the following observation shouldbe made:

"The venerable conflict-burdened image of thecity needs to be considerably modified. Cities areno longer necessarily the foci, the arenas of theoriginators of drastic social change and revolu-tion. . . The classic notion of a sharp urban-ruraldichotomy is also no longer necessarily valid.Social disorganization in the course of urban expan-sion need not take the same form, nor be as severein developing countries as in the West."2°

By way of example, the same author cites the cases ofAfrica, Asia and Latin America, where many migrantsmove to the town and back to the village at frequentintervals, observing that the rural migrant who comesto the city has not necessarily ". . fallen out of hisworld. He is not totally a stranger, bereft of familiarties: his urban milieu may well be rather similar to hisprevious habitat." Opportunity to study this hypothesisexists in the Latin American context.

1964); Report on the World Social Situation (United Nationspublication, Sales No.: E.68.I11.9).

20 Ruth Glass, "Conflict in cities", in Anthony Dc Reucksand Julie Knight, eds., Conflict in Society, CIBA FoundationSymposium (London, Little, Brown and Co., 1966).

106

SURVEY OF EXISTING RESEARCH IN LATIN AMERICA

A list was drawn up of the institutes and/or centresof sociological and criminological investigation, bothpublic and private, in Latin America, which undertakeresearch in the field of criminology and in related dis-ciplines.

Eighty-six organizations in twenty countries wereselected for the survey. The organizations were thensent a questionnaire, which covered such topics asprojects completed in the past five years, research inprogress, and administrative structure of the institutesand their financial resources.

Slightly more than one-fourth of the organizationsreplied. Of these, 25 per cent reported that they didnot carry out relevant investigations in the field orhad no financial resources for research in criminology.Highlights of the positive replies to the questionnaireare given below.

In Argentina, research is being conducted by severalorganizations. The Centre for Criminological Studies ofMendoza, which was created under a provincial lawand is financed by the government of Mendoza, has aresearch budget equivalent to $U.S. 30,000 per annum.The most recent research projects of the Centre havebeen carried out in co-operation with the ProvincialPenitentiary, the Prisoners' Aid and the ProvincialMinistry of Social Welfare. A study on the prisonpopulation of this province and on programmes fortheir readaptation is currently under way, as is a studyon problems concerning the institutional adjustmentof prisoners in the institutions of Mendoza.

The federally supported Classification Institute ofthe Federal Service of Penal Institutions is devoted toresearch on bio-criminology.

The Criminological Research and Teaching Instituteof La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, is provinciallysupported. Its staff consists mainly of social workersspecialized in criminology, whose recent studies includethe reintegration of the offender in society; the incidenceof socio-economic, family, work and endogenous fac-tors in primary adult offenders; and the relationshipbetween school 'drop-outs" and juvenile delinquency.The last-named study was suggested to the Instituteby the Juvenile Courts of the Province of BuenosAires. As a consequence, a number of guiding prin-ciples have been established to orient the educationalpolicy of the province, in order to encourage the useof primary schools as a preventive measure againstjuvenile delinquency. The subjects of all these studiesare prisoners in correctional institutes in the Provinceof Buenos Aires.

The Federal Service for Juveniles has undertaken aresearch project whose aim is the assessment of thereasons that female minors engage in prostitution. Thesources of the research data are personal files, repeatedinterviews, psychometric and projective test results, andreports from social workers. Minors from various insti-tutes in the Federal Service for Juveniles are the sub-jects.

Other responding Argentine institutes or researchcentres reportedly do not carry out criminological re-search, but do undertake studies concerning criminallaw and criminal law procedure. Among the organiza-tions engaged in such research are the Institute of

Criminal Law and Criminology of the Faculty ofJuridical and Social Sciences, National University ofLa Plata; and the Institute of Penal Sciences andCriminology of the Faculty of Juridical and SocialSciences, National University of the Literal (SantaFe). The latter institute reported that in 1968, itorganized a National Meeting on Criminal Law andCriminology, during which there were discussions ofsubjects related to criminology: criminological trainingof criminal court judges; criminogenic factors in con-temporary life; conditional sentence (probation); con-ditional liberty (parole) and the moral personality ofconvicts.

In Brazil, the Latin American Institute of Crimi-nology, São Paulo, has completed three research proj-ects and has one in progress. The first of the completedstudies concerns juvenile delinquency in So Paulo.Data were collected for those areas in which minorsfrom eight to thirteen years of age committed most oftheir delinquent acts. The sample included 300 minorsarrested in 1964 and 1965, in the State of São Paulo.A structured schedule was used to investigate the trialrecords at the Court of Justice for Minors. This re-search activity was conducted by the Institute for Socialand Economic Studies. The preliminary study for thesecond project, research on abortion, an analysis ofsocial, economic and cultural data of patients in theHospital of the University of SAO Paulo, has beencompleted. The third completed project is a study ofprostitutes detained in the Avenida Tiradentcs Centre.Examination was made of their psychological and socio-logical attributes, and of the disintegrating factors thatwere present in their families. This work was carried outwith the co-operation of the Brazilian Institute ofStudies and Inquiries into Gastroenterology, and ofthe National Mental Health Service.

The research project currently in progress concernsthe rehabilitation of juvenile delinquents. This is astudy of the criminological careers of 100 minors whowere in the Temporary Home of São Paulo in 1958.The results of this research will be used as a basis fora future study on adult criminality, it is being carriedout on behalf of the Secretariat of Justice of SãoPaulo.

For Colombia, information was received from theBureau for Socio-Juridical Research, Colombian Min-istry of Justice; and from the Institute of Criminology,Universidad Externado de Colombia.

The Bureau supplied copies of an annual cataloguewhich has been published since 1961. Juridical studieson Colombian problems predominated, but some crimi-nological, biological and sociological studies werelisted. In addition, information was given on a currentresearch project on crime in Colombia. This is abroadly conceived comparative statistical examinationof legislation and judicial systems for the period 1955-19

The Institute provided information on two researchprojects: a questionnaire survey of the causes and thedynamics of prostitution in Bogota, emphasizing thatthe "violencia" phenomenon was at its origin; and astudy on the problem of "street boys" in Bogota, asociological analysis of juvenile delinquency.

107

From Chile, replies were received from the Instituteof Criminology, Prison Service, and from the LatinAmerican Faculty of Social Sciences.

The Institute of Criminology has worked intensivelyin clinical criminology and on treatment programmes.The work of the Institute shows that it has permitteda wide application of non-institutional treatment mea-sures. Small descriptive studies have been completedin such areas as criminological characteristics of juve-nile delinquents, bibliographical analyses, and some pre-diction tables of criminal behaviour. The activity ofthe Institute is described as being limited by lack offinancial resources and personnel. The Latin AmericanFaculty reported on a study of lower-class urban fami-lies in transition and juvenile delinquency in Santiago,and on an attitude survey regarding the delinquent andthe criminal marginal populations.

In Ecuador, the Institute of Criminology of the Cen-tral University has carried out research on the popu-lation of the Municipal Prison of Quito and the Peni-tentiary of Garcia Moreno. This study on crimi-nogenic factors has a permanent character, havingbeen initiated when the institute was created in 1936.Because of lack of financial resources, complete sta-tistical studies have not been undertaken, the subjectsbeing studied along clinical lines.

Mexico reported on a continuing study on econo-mic crimes connected with the introduction or a newtype of crime in the Mexican Penal Law. Conductedby the institute for Social and Economic Research,AC., the research is based on the purely economicviewpoint that the establishment of economic crimes iscontrary to the liberty of commerce as guaranteed bythe Constitution of the United States of Mexico andby the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

From Venezuela, three replies were received. Thefirst came from the Institute of Penal and Criminolog-ical Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela.The Institute began publication of its Anuario del Insti-two in 1968 and has also issued a series of monographsand translations on criminological topics. An Institutestudy on deviant conduct of juveniles led to the draftof a new code for minors. A study on crimes againstthe national economy, a theoretical bibliographical re-search with an estimate of the losses which these crimescause to the country, culminated in a draft bill tocontrol and prevent this type of crime. A study ofdrugs sold in pharmacies at Caracas, and their evalua-tion by a group of physicians, was undertaken to:(a) determine the dangers attached to the various pro-ducts; and (b) evaluate the discrepancies betweenlegislative norms and practice in the important area ofconsumer protection. Another project, a theoreticalstudy on adaptation of criminological theories to thesocio-economic and cultural milieu of a developingcountry, was undertaken to establish terms of referencefor criminological action in such a country. A studyon the Caracas municipal police, which emphasizes thecauses and effects of problems of interaction betweenthe police and the public, was designed to arrive atthe diagnostic identification of problem areas andways of potential reform, and to provide training indifferent forms and phases of research. The Instituteemphasizes social and behavioural research and hasintroduced a strong social planning emphasis in its

projected research programmes. There are, of course,budgetary limitations.

The Institute of Penal and Criminological Researchof the Faculty of Law of the University of Carabobo,Valencia, reported on five research studies in progress.In the first study,an =clanthe psychopathologicalcharacteristics of the Venezuelan delinquent, 4,000 in-mates were examined in the Observation Centre of thePenitentiary of Valencia. The second study aims toascertain the motives in the crime of rape, consideredin its social, psychological, or psychopathological as-pect, through the examination of a group of sixty-sixcases. The third study, which relates to the irregularsituation of juveniles in the State of Carabobo, is aresearch project on the causes and effects of the prob-lem, as well as on new procedures for its solution.The fourth project, known as 'Tocuyito research" isa study of the causes of antisocial behaviour engagedin by the population of the Tocuyito Penitentiary. Thefifth study concerns causal factors in antisocial be-haviour of abandoned children.

The Venezuelan Council for the Child, an officialagency of the Venezuelan Government, reported thatthe intellectual and emotional aspects of deviant be-haviour of juveniles had been assessed in two studies.Two other research projects are in progress: (a) anevaluation of the programme of supervised freedom,which is a study of the measures that can be appliedin the re-education of juveniles; and (b) a study on thefamily and the abandonment of minors, which willpermit planning of future social action in Venezuela,based on a critique of the related existing legislation.

ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH TRENDS AND NEEDS

Analysis of the replies to the questionnaire has beensupplemented by a search through the relevant litera-ture, including bibliographical material, internationaldocuments and scientific journals. The following emer-gent trends were traced.

In Latin America, there exist very few national andno international criminological research institutes. Theabsence of any international facility impedes the in-corporation of available data into the mainstream ofworld-wide research. When the Latin American investi-gator does expand his work beyond his national setting,he directs his attention not towards another LatinAmerican country. but towards Europe or the UnitedStates of America?' In Latin American libraries, withfew exceptions, European and North American workspredominate. The Latin American researcher thusappears to be moving towards a position of dependencyand cultural isolation.

Although there is, in general, an absence of com-parative investigations which would permit Latin Amer-ican social scientists to gain a better knowledge of theLatin American reality, the situation may be changing.One opinion is that Latin America is gradually be-coming the promised land" because the sociologist isasked not only to account for and explain crisis, but to

21 See, for example. P. David, Sociologia Criminal Juvenil(Buenos Aires, Depalma. 1968): and V. 1. Lnirzun, En Ensayosabre la Sociologla de In Conducta Desviada ( Buenos AiresTroquel, 1966).

108

deal with it. 22 Furthermore, in Latin America, thesocial sciences are not merely tolerated; they are re-portedly welcomed.

Criminologists, however, are not yet welcomed ascontributors to the planning process. The latest na-tional development plans of Latin American countriesavailable for consultation do not take into accountany of the criminological problems. it seems that theinclusion of social planning in economic planning, asrequired by modern development planning techniques,has not reached the level of acceptance evident in otherareas, not even in those aspects concerning the "pre-vention of social pathology", which are so costly todeveloping nations. Regretfully, attention must bedrawn again to the harmful repetition of measuresdesigned to increase repressive policies, based on theerroneous belief that they offer a solution towards thecontrol of criminality, and the consequent waste oflarge sums which could be more usefully directed to-wards research and preventive efforts.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SOCIAL DEFENCE RESEARCHN LATIN AMERICA

A principal recommendation—that autonomous re-search agencies should be created to encourage moreand better criminological research—has already beenmade by one author. 23 Concepts of administrative andpolitical autonomy are not too strong in many coun-tries of Latin America. Problems of administrativeautonomy are especially serious in universities modelledafter the European continental system. Research pro-posals and research funds must pass through manylevels of control, any of which are capable of delayingor vetoing a research programme.

The wide field of general prevention, within thearea of social development, must move from a thoroughknowledge of social, economic and political structuresin such a way that any measure for the control ofcrime can be applied at the correct chronological andinstitutional point. It can be observed that in manyLatin American countries dynamic, organic institutionalchange does not take place. Some social groups, mo-tivated by particular interests, have not emphasizedseveral factors conductive to crime prevention. Anexample of this is unplanned industrialization, whichcontributes to unco-ordinated urbanization. In con-nexion with a recent theoretical model of study ofpolitical instability,24 it should be mentioned that asimilar pattern may be operative in many Latin Amer-ican countries. This model should be tested in theregion. It must not be forgotten that the concentrationof the population in large centres does not in itselfconstitute a problem. In a wider sense, "urbanization"is a simultaneous process of concentration of popula-tion contributing to the transformation or "moderniza-

22 Jean Labbens, The role of the sociologist and thegrowth of sociology in Latin America", International SocialScience Journal (Paris, UNESCO), vol. XXI, No, 3, 1969.

28 Robert B. Mitchell, 'Barriers to survey research in Asiaand Latin America", Tire American Behavioural Scientist,vol. IX, No. 3 (November 1965).

24 Douglas Davy, 'Dimensions of social conflict in LatinAmerica", The American Behavioural Scientist, vol. H, No. 4(March/April 1968).

lion" of pre-existing urban models, es which has a longhistory in Latin America.

The transformation taking place in Latin Americais extremely rapid and is destroying the existing orderof relatively large countries, which are characterizedby recent and rapid industrial growth, abundant re-serves of rural population and sharp contrasts betweeninternal regions. In this connexion, mention should bemade of a study offering an economic theory of dis-turbances, using a mathematical approach. 2° Indus-trialization has come to countries that were entirelyrural, without an established plan and without gov-ernmental preparation, following only the private in-terests of the investors. As a consequence, conflictsand social division have developed, which, for lackof appropriate preventive action, have contributed tothe increase of delinquency, and imply a global processof social transformation of customs, beliefs and values.A direct relationship seems to exist between the processof unplanned industrialization and an increase of delin-quency.27

These social phenomena, and the related changes inlevels and types of criminality, provide an importantfield for investigation, which is available to, and thusfar utilized only in part by, Latin American crimi-nologists.

Adequate preventive measures require rapid, com-plete, organic international information. Criminologicalresearch efforts and their results must be presentedadequately and quickly to all other interested re-searchers and to the potential users of the data. Al-though various international organizations attempt toco-ordinate information obtained in social defenceinvestigations, full co-ordination is far from beingachieved on a world-wide scale. The Council of Eu-rope, through its Division of Crime Problems, hasundertaken the task of the gathering and exchange ofrelevant information in Europe. Efforts of this typedo not yet exist in Latin America. Some nationalpublications have recently tried, however, to makeavailable the results of research carried out in theregion. Among these publications are: Archivos deCriminologia, Neuro-Psiqulairia y Disciplinas Conexas,published by the Institute of Criminology (Faculty ofJurisprudence), Chair of Clinical Psychiatry (Facultyof Medical Sciences), and the Psychological So-ciety of Ecuador; Revista Brasileira de Criminologia eDerej&, Penale, the Institute of Criminology of theUniversity of the State of Guanabara, Brazil; RelacidnCrirninolOgica, the Institute of Penal and CriminologicalResearch, Faculty of Law, University of Carabobo,Valencia, Venezuela; the publications of the Instituteof Penal and Criminological Sciences, Faculty of Law,

2 Marshall B, Clinard, Slu,ns and Community Develop-""it: Experiments in Self-Help (New York, The Free Press;London, Macmillan Limited, 1966); A. Quijano, 'Urbaniza-don y tendencias its cambia en Is sociedad rural en Latino-america", paper submitted to the Seminar on Urbanizationas a Field of Tnvestiaatinn in .Snrini Srpn(c

of Chile, April 1967.11

A and R. Quiroz Courtin, "An economic theory of dis-•.._I____,__,,

Paper was originally submitted to the ten:Congress of Sociology, Cordoba, Argentina,

109

Central University of Venezuela; Reviski de DerechoPenal y Criminologia, Buenos Aires; Revista del Centrode Estudios Crimino!dgicos - José Ingenieros, Córdo-ba, Argentina; Revista del Centro de Estudios Crimi-nológicos de Mendoza (Argentina); Crirninalia, theMexican Academy of Penal Sciences.

The supra-national organizations with responsibilitiesin the region have not effectively approached crimi-nological problems with a transnational and inter-disciplinary outlook. However, the co-ordination andplanning of regional action, with the aim of studyingthe criminological problems that affect the social de-velopment of Latin America, should now begin.

PREVIOUS EFFORTS TO UNIFY LATIN AMERICANCRIMINOLOGICAL RESEARCH

On various occasions, calls have been made for theunification of the scattered efforts of Latin Americancriminologists. 28 José Tngenieros attempted to transposeEuropean concepts to Latin America, when scientificcriminology began. Despite the fact that he had theideological force to give rise to a school, his pioneerefforts and those of his pupils did not evolve.

The Latin American Seminar on the Prevention ofCrime and the Treatment of Offenders, organized bythe United Nations in collaboration with the Govern-ment of Brazil, was held at Rio de Janeiro, in April1953 . 30 Recommendations relating to the treatmentof prisoners, to the recruitment and training of peni-tentiary personnel and to open institutions, wereadopted. Less progress has been observed in otherfields to which some of the recommendations of theSeminar were directed. Few changes have been made,apart from action concerning the prevention and treat-ment of juvenile delinquency, undertaken by suchagencies as the Venezuelan Council for the Child, theInterministerial Commission for the Protection of Mi-nors (Chile), and the Federal Service for Juveniles(Argentina), which were encouraged in their effortsby that Seminar. During the meeting of the LatinAmerican Working Group of Experts on the Preven-tion of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders—con-vened by the United Nations and hosted by the Gov-ernment of Venezuela at La Guaira in 1963—intensi-fled research efforts were also advocated. 30 The re-search projects recommended at that meeting wereclosely related to each of the special themes consideredat the meeting and, consequently, no call was made forintegrated interdisciplinary and comparative research.Of particular importance is the fact that all the docu-ments presented at that meeting gave, priority to in-tegral planning of activities aimed at the protectionof children and social assistance, which are alreadycarried out in some countries through programmes forthe prevention and control of juvenile delinquency.

28 Sce Israel Drapkin, Criminological research in LatinAmerica", Inlernationa! Review of Criminal Policy, No, 23(United Nations publication, Sales No.: 651V4), p. 25.

20 Latin American Seminar co Pretentio,t of Crime andTreatment of Offenders. 1953 (United Nations publication,Sales No.: 54.1V3).

30 "Reunión tie Trabajo de an Grupo de Expertos Latino-americanos serve Ia Prevencidn del Delito y Tratamiento delDelincuente", La Guaira, Venezuela, 9-18 September 1963(ST/TAO/SER.C/68).

Any discussion of efforts by Latin American coun-tries to co-ordinate their criminological investigationsshould include the interregional Meeting on Researchin Criminology, convened in 1965 by the UnitedNations in collaboration with the Governments of Den-mark, Norway and Sweden, 3 ' At that meeting, partici-pants from Argentina, Brazil and Chile discussed someof the research projects that were under way in theirrespective countries. This permitted an interchange ofideas and provided a most desirable opportunity forLatin American criminologists to discuss with col-leagues from other regions the best techniques to beutilized in social defence research.

The countries in the Latin American region, throughthe agencies engaged in criminological investigation,have repeatedly expressed the intention to join theirefforts in an integrated approach to the preventionand control of crime. Up to now, this concerted actionhas been advocated by some supra-national organiza-tions. The time has come for the development of na-tional efforts. A beginning was made when the Centrefor Criminological Studies, Mendoza, Argentina, organ-ized the international Seminar on Criminology, heldfrom 22 to 28 June 1969. in the course of the Seminar,the Creation of a Latin American Association forCriminological Research was proposed and accepted.

SOCIAL DEFENCE AND SOCIAL PLANNING

One of the major developments in the period sincethe Second World War has been the recognition bymany governmental, non-governmental and internationalbodies of the compelling need for including in theprocess of planning for national development, socialelements in close conjunction with economic andphysical elements of planning. In view of the LatinAmerican social reality, with its self-evident develop-mental priorities, the areas of integration of socialdefence research with social planning seem worthy ofparticular consideration. Experience in many countriesbears witness to the fact that economic planning aloneappears to be inadequate for orderly progress. Thegains brought about by economic planning and thematerial improvements that physical planning mayachieve can be drastically offset by losses, gaps anddiscontinuities in social development brought about byimbalances between social planning, on one side, andphysical and economic planning, on the other.

The fact that social, economic and physical planningmust move together and must be considered comple-mentary instruments of the over-all process of nationaldevelopment, does not emerge only from these nega-tive considerations. Positive elements are also involvedin the fact that planning must be considered a globalprocess involving many aspects of human behaviourand of societal and governmental organizations. Thewelfare effect" of economic development and the

"productivity effect" of social development 82 are well-

31 'Report of the Interregional Meeting on Research inCriminology: Denmark, Norway, Sweden', 18 July-7 August1965 (ST/TAO/SER.C/87).

2 United Nations Research Institute for Social Develop..cut, Social and Economic Factors in Development: Intro-ductory Considerations on Their Meaning. Measurement andInterdependence, report No. 3, prepared by Jan Drewnowski(Geneva, February 1966).

110

known expressions of the close correlation that existsbetween the rather arbitrary and academic fractionali-zations of the planning process. Social planning fornational development fits naturally within the broaderarea of social development, but must in turn reconcileits goals and expectations with economic and physicalplanning. 3 Social defence planning, however, has spe-cific characteristics of its own, which warrant someelucidation.

Social defence, as part of the more generalsocialtexture of a country, must obviously be part of socialplanning.34 Social planning, because of its subject mat-ter, involves not only planning for 'hard" realities, butmodifying the social values system of a given societyto fit revised social goals. In the case of social defence,the values involved are not limited to social realities,but are also expressed in legal norms, which crystallizethe ethical minimum that a society deems necessaryfor its orderly existence. Close interaction and com-munication take place between social values systemsand legal structures. This is a two-way process, throughwhich changing values modify legal norms and are inturn modified by changes in legislation. Because ofthe formality and the complexity of the legal structure,however, the changes are slow and wide gaps can openbetween public values and statutory laws. These gapsrepresent serious handicaps to the maximum utiliza-tion of public resources and hamper, or make ineffec-tive, the legislative tools.

While in economic and physical planning the cost-benefit approach can be applied to alternative goals, inthe field of social defence relatively little has beendone in the way of quantification or in cost-effective-ness studies. It is generally agreed that special difficultiesface the social defence field in this regard. Nevertheless,as these techniques are increasingly being employed inother social fields to good advantage, the social defencefield should devote more attention to this area ofresearch.

In any case, even limiting social defence efforts tothe better utilization of existing machinery, to thenarrowing of gaps between public opinion and legalstructures, or to expanding the information basis avail-able to legislators for their decisions, can increase theimpact of social planning. The integration of socialdefence into social planning will sharpen the tools ofprevention and remedial work for different sociopatho-logical phenomenologies and this, in turn, will reducethe waste of human lives, as well as financial losses.The close links between social defence and the legisla-tive process make generalizations impossible, as normsand procedures differ from country to country, and thisdifference alters drastically the tools and resources opento the social planner. Broad trends exist, of course, andsome transferability is possible, but this can only follow

Millard Hansen, ed., Social Change and Publicport on a seminar at the University of Puerto Riccbruary 1967 (Rio Piedras, Social Science Research

approaches

tune, Rome, June, 1969.

111

careful comparative scrutiny of the legislations involved.This scrutiny has been carried out thus far within thenarrow framework of comparative criminal law. Itsexpansion to include comparative scrutiny of the effec-tiveness of social defence tools within the frame ofreference of social planning might constitute a profit-able course for future work. In Latin America, thistask should be made comparatively easy by the rela-tive uniformity of language and of legal philosophy.

THE NEED FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY ACTION-ORIENTEDRESEARCH

In social defence, disciplinary boundaries have cased,and this has fostered interdisciplinary work and constantmutual interchange between different methodologiesand disciplinary philosophies. The largely academic andtheoretical discussions about the definition of the fieldand the validity of theoretical constructs have givenway to a more pragmatical approach to the search forviable solutions to specific, often serious and urgentsocial problems. Descriptive analytical accounts of thestate of crime have replaced discussion about legalphilosophies. Applied research and problem-orientedresearch efforts have taken the place of academicdebates. These alterations are not starkly evident inmost developing countries, and particularly not inLatin America. International and regional action isrequired to reorient research policies towards moreprofitable areas.

The need for practical results and for short-termreturns from limited manpower and financial resourceinvestments is particularly obvious in developing coun-tries. The failure of broad and optimistic programmesin some countries should sharpen interest in demon-stration projects and action programmes aimed at field-testing of the major policy implications of recent so-ciological and criminological thinking. A demonstrationproject on the efficiency of half-way houses forrecidivists stands more chance of long-range usefulnessthan a programme aimed to eradicate all the slums ofa large metropolitan area. Consideration of key issues,such as the criminological implications of addictions,studies of the role of victims and studies of the sen-tencing process, is also recommended. 35 Recent de-velopments in multivariate analysis should forestallreliance on a piecemeal approach and should help thesocial defence practitioner to systematize contributingvariables, thus facilitating the development and im-provement of effective policies and techniques.30

Another obvious research area is that concerning theimprovement of international and comparative criminalstatistics. A better assessment of rates of delinquency,which equates, eliminates or bypasses the strictures oflegal definitions, is required, as is a better approachto the handling of the problem of unreported and un-recorded criminality. Many efforts are under way inthis field, particularly in more developed countries."The developing countries of Latin America could sharein the benefit of these efforts in the process of settingup or improving their criminal statistics services.

85 D. Szabo, ed., Criminology in Action (Montreal, Uni-versity of Montreal Press, 1968).

36 M. Wolfgang, "Mathematical methods in criminology'.81 Councilof Europe, Fourth European Conference o/ Di-

rectors of Criminological Research Institutes, Strasbourg, 22-29 November 1966, vol. 1! (DPC/CDIR (67)4).

Research on such topics as the police image, policediscretionary practices or the deployment of policeforces for preventive programmes would help the plan-ner budget appropriately for optimum utilization ofpolice forces. In some countries, police activities havebeen extended to a variety of odd services, such asassistance to dependent persons, tax collection andhandling of intoxicated persons, which have little ornothing to do with the prevention and control of crim-inal behaviour. There must be a clear recognition ofthe social service elements versus the criminal controlelements of police action.

Correctional systems throughout the world share thecommon characteristics of uncertainty of goals anddubiousness of techniques. New approaches are con-stantly being experimented with and are sometimestransferred without previous attention being paid toproblems of validity and feasibility. Any researchefforts aimed at improving the valuation of the existingtechniques can bring about an improvement in theplanning for correctional approaches to be consideredpart of the planning process.

In the field of manpower and training for socialdefence, a quantitative, common-sense technique canbe advocated, involving the establishment of alter-natives derived front sample field-studies andthen run through simulated programming to enablethe decision-maker to weigh crucial alternatives interms of costs and returns.30

Before makingany real progress in manpower allo-cation for social defence, a problem of obvious re-levance to planners, one must be able to assess, bothin model form and in specific cultural and formalsettings, the crucial question of what these personnelare supposed to do. Many Latin American countrieshave repeatedly advocated improvement of their per-sonnel situation, both in training and selection. Thisis an obvious area for priority action.

Somewhat more generally, and more in the vein ofacademic criminology, the abundant existing literatureon differential characteristics of criminals must be sub-jected to scrutiny in order to extract valid descriptivecategories which can cut across national differences.The suitability of alternative theories of criminalbehaviour to explain the criminality of different anti-social types must be verified to avoid over-indulging incultural transplants of aetiological concepts not war-ranted by cultural realities. A limited comparativetesting of these theories, particularly those most rele-vant to the developmental process, such as anomie,differential opportunity structure and subcultural affilia-tion, could be listed as a relative priority.

One general area for cross-cultural comparison ofobvious interest for developing nations is that of thecontinuing slow transformation of the social conceptof deviance, compared with static juridical definitionsof criminal behaviour. The relationship between so-cially defined proscribed behaviour and behaviourlegally identified as crime is constantly being chal-lenged, by what amounts to an erosion and a modi-fication of traditional juridical concepts by newlyemerging scientific notions and by forces that appearin changing societies. 40 A cultural stock-taking of con-cepts of deviance, similar to the "area file" approachin other social sciences, for purposes of comparisonwith juridical definitions of antisocial behaviour, couldset the basis for profitable inquiry by behavioural andjuridical scholars, and could provide social defence ex-perts with useful information about the direction inwhich social definitions of deviance are likely to change.

In concluding this cursory and incomplete survey ofLatin American research trends in criminology and ofthe possible lines that such research could follow infuture, the urgency of the development of co-ordinatedarea-wide efforts should be emphasized. The tempo ofsocial change in Latin America will not permit muchfurther delay in planning preventive action in the field38 United States of America, President's Commission on of social defence.Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, Th e CM?- Soc a

lenge of Crinze in a Free Society (Washington, D.C., Govern-ment Printing Office, 1967); Task Force Report: Drunkenness 40 M. Wolfgang, The viable future of criminology", in(Washington, DC., Government Printing Office, 1967); Task D. Szabo, ed. Criminology in Action, pp. 109-134; Leslie T.Force Report: 7/ic Police (Washington, D.C., Government Wilkins, Evaluation of Penal Measures (New York, RandomPrinting Office, 1967). House, 1969); 0. Mule y Mille, Dc/lbs contra la Economia

dI P. P. Lejins, "Data on crime and delinquency: Personnel Nacional (Caracas, Institute of Penal and Criminologicalin criminology and corrections", in D. Szabo, Criminology in Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela, 1968);Action (Montreal, University of Montreal Press, 1968), C. J. Rubianes, Dcrec/io Penal Econd,nico (Buenos Aires,pp. 371-396. Depalma, 1967).

112