Albo Nazionale Criminologi
Istituto UNINTESS — Registration and protection of criminology professionals in Italy.
What is Criminology
Criminology has its roots in the eighteenth century, when the jurist Cesare Beccaria published his historic work "Dei delitti e delle pene" ("On Crimes and Punishments", 1764), laying the foundations of a scientific approach to the study of crime. The year 1846 marks a turning point: the discipline consolidated itself as an autonomous science. In 1843, in England, the M'Naghten case established the first psychiatric assessment in the history of modern justice. Cesare Lombroso, with his work "Un delinquente" ("The Criminal Man"), became its modern founding father.
Criminology is an empirical science that analyses criminal phenomena, victims, offenders, the social perception of crime and forms of prevention. It draws on two major research traditions: the medical-biological and the sociological, integrating psychology, law, anthropology, biology, statistics and medicine.
As an interdisciplinary field, criminology makes use of statistical and scientific methods, sample surveys, clinical cases, documentation and scientific research. Complementary investigative techniques include ballistics, forensic genetics, forensic medicine and toxicology. While criminalistics answers the "where" and the "how", criminological inquiry answers the "who".
The Criminologist's Profession
The profession of criminologist has, in Italy, spread only to a limited extent compared with the international context. Law no. 397 of 7 December 2000 nevertheless significantly broadened professional opportunities: defence counsel may make use of private investigators and specialists in criminology to carry out psychiatric and criminological assessments.
The criminologist works with statistical and scientific methods, sample surveys, the analysis of clinical cases and documentary research. The National Register of Criminologists, established and managed by Istituto UNINTESS, guarantees the qualification and professional recognition of criminologists in Italy, safeguarding their dignity and promoting their continuing professional development.
Penitentiary institutions (observation and treatment teams), Supervisory Courts and Juvenile Courts, Forensic psychiatry (expert witness in criminal proceedings), Local authorities (security planning and urban management), Public bodies (prevention and citizen safety), Private companies (security manager)