The Interdisciplinarity of Criminology in the Context of the Methodological and Structural Transformation of Science

Abstract

Interdisciplinarity is a research paradigm whose significance is increasing as the science and the society are experiencing intensive transformations. The traditional mechanisms of interdisciplinarity in criminology - the «zones of interdisciplinarity» - are developing alongside the active emergence of their new types: acquisition of new knowledge about the object as a result of synthesis, convergence of research disciplines, establishment of technoscience at the intersection of fundamental and applied research, of natural sciences and the humanities. The goal of this research is critical reflection and substantiation of innovative approaches to the development of the «zones of interdisciplinarity» in criminology as a new type of phenomena brought about by the rapid technological progress. The integration of the humanities and natural sciences in the paradigm of complexity, the emergence of technoscience uniting many aspects of natural sciences and technology with its society- and practice-oriented knowledge set task and goals for criminology whose achievement should be methodologically and practically embedded in the general framework of the development of the humanities and transdisciplinary cognition in an «innovative» way. The development of the functioning principles of the innovative «zones of interdisciplinarity» is undoubtedly valuable for modern research, for implementing the prediction functions of criminology and for the creation of a stable theoretical and methodological basis that corresponds to the topical trends and needs of research. It is connected not only with the growing volume of interdisciplinary research, but also with changes in the very strategy of cognitive activities in general, where interdisciplinarity is viewed as an intra-science phenomenon, while trans-disciplinarity presupposes crossing the boundaries of natural sciences and the humanities and entering the sphere of practically relevant problems. Critical reflection is required for two important aspects of the development of interdisciplinarity - further integration of criminology and mathematics that reached a new level and defined the innovative «zone of interdisciplinarity», and the synthesis of criminology and cognitive neuroscience. The development of information technologies and the emergence of new or transformed «zones of interdisciplinarity» in the research of criminal processes contributes to the establishment of digital criminology, information criminology, and criminometrics. The methodology of mathematical modeling is developing rapidly, it acts as an integrative language of many sciences because interdisciplinary synthesis solves the tasks of methodological support for the conducted research. There is some rationale behind treating criminology, and jurisprudence as a whole, as exact sciences. Certain attempts are being made to develop a new integrative methodology using mathematical modeling which, however, are only prospective is the philosophical and methodological principles of cognition are preserved. The study of conscience and its evolution by modern neuroscience gained momentum due to the development of cognitive neurobiology and highly informative neurophysiological methods of researching the brain. They widen the opportunities for using conscience restoration methods and make human mind and conscience control technologies more realistic. Due to this, the fundamental research of the mechanism of regulating conscience and its protection mechanisms become an important aspect of ensuring criminological security. This is the area of high potential criminogenic danger that poses considerable risks. Criminal (criminological) riskology should be developed rapidly.