CRIMINOLOGY AND SYNERGETICS: SOME METHODOLOGICAL ASPECTS

Abstract

The article analyzes the methodological aspects of the use of synergetics in criminology. The essence of the synergetic paradigm in natural and social sciences is characterized, the main approaches of scientists regarding the prospects and directions of application of synergetic ideas and concepts for solving key problems of criminology are given. Predominantly synergetics is considered as the science of self-organization and self-organizing systems, the theory of evolution of open-type systems with nonlinear feedbacks. The focus of synergetics is on the processes of selforganization in complex systems. From the use of synergetics in the social sciences (including criminology), its proponents expect significant positive effects in the form of new scientific theories. Over the past 20 years, synergetic ideas have gained significant popularity in Ukrainian criminology, however, until now, it is mainly about posing the problem in general terms, stating the importance / timeliness / prospects of using synergetics to solve traditional criminological issues, for example, the determination of crime, the mechanism of criminal behavior, study of organized crime, crime prevention. In some cases, criminological concepts and problems are artificially “adjusted” to synergistic categories. The views of some scientists on synergetics as the only or universal method, the application of which will allow to solve all traditional criminological issues in a new way, are critically assessed. It is emphasized that there are few concrete examples of the actual application of synergetics in criminological research, allowing us to see its real advantages over other “traditional” methods. At the same time, synergetics has prospects, since over time, as other social sciences (primarily sociology) develop, provided that synergetic ideas are effectively used in them, this method will be able to find its application in the field of criminology.