Theorists from the ________ school believed law breaking occurs when people freely choose to behave wrongly when faced with a choice between right and wrong.

Theorists from the ________ school believed law breaking occurs when people freely choose to behave wrongly when faced with a choice between right and wrong.

• A. Moral
• B. Classical
• C. Forensic
• D. Positivist

Answer: (B)

The question tests the idea that crime results from rational, freely made choices when a person weighs alternatives. The Classical school holds that individuals have free will and will choose to commit a crime when the perceived benefits exceed the costs. This view centers on rational decision-making and deterrence: laws should be certain, swift, and proportionate to deter future offending, because people will weigh consequences before acting. The other options don’t fit as well: the positivist approach emphasizes factors outside free will that cause crime, Forensic isn’t a criminological theory, and the moral perspective isn’t the formal school described here.

The question tests the idea that crime results from rational, freely made choices when a person weighs alternatives. The Classical school holds that individuals have free will and will choose to commit a crime when the perceived benefits exceed the costs. This view centers on rational decision-making and deterrence: laws should be certain, swift, and proportionate to deter future offending, because people will weigh consequences before acting. The other options don’t fit as well: the positivist approach emphasizes factors outside free will that cause crime, Forensic isn’t a criminological theory, and the moral perspective isn’t the formal school described here.