NCJ Number
91318
Date Published
1983
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Criminology in Chile is a science that studies the factual aspects of crime and establishes a basis for a reasonable degree of control of criminality through prevention and treatment measures.
Abstract
Chile's Parliament has shown little scientific or practical concern about the crime problem. The country has an archaic penal code which emphasizes retribution and imprisonment, a faulty criminal justice system with delayed decisions, impossible workloads, a very limited treatment program, and high levels of recidivism. As a result, the criminal statistics are hardly reliable, and different official data sources use varied definitions and recordkeeping methods. Criminology is more an academic than a professional activity, has not gained increased personnel or independent research resources, and has not attained the status of an autonomous branch of learning. The first criminological studies were aimed toward social, penal, and correctional reforms. The first field investigations rested on the clinical orientation. Thus, Chile's criminology includes both etiological and penological investigations, basic research, and program evaluations. Notes and 10 references are provided.