Problems of Criminological Determination and Causation in the Scientific Doctrine of Professor Vitaliy Anatolyevich Nomokonov

Abstract

A famous Russian criminologist, Doctor of Law, Professor, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, Vice-President of the Russian Criminological Association, author of over 400 research works and textbooks Vitaliy Anatolyevich Nomokonov has celebrated his 75th birthday. He is a well-known figure in both Russian and foreign criminology famous for his works, his conceptual and fundamental scientific views and approaches, unfailing principles and loyalty to universal human values when developing the strategy and tactics of corruption counteraction. Being one of the founders of a highly complex problem area in the field of criminology — the theory of crime determination and causation — he also consistently studies the modern aspects of this theory. The Professor was also one of the first scientists who researched the mechanisms of counteracting organized crime and corruption. He has been studying the regional aspects of these interconnected forms of crime over a long period of time, as well as promoting the ideas of its prevention at the political and public levels. Advocating the proactive development of criminology and its methodological basis along the lines of the transforming society, the Professor has been developing new directions in criminology stressing the anticriminal and anticorruption policy. Positive criminology is a trend in his works, he argues for the humane-personal approach in the theory of the criminal’s personality and proves the importance of understanding the regularities of positive law-abiding behavior and identifying the anti-criminogenic factors underlying it. The number of his students and followers is constantly growing. Over 15 researcher, who wrote their dissertation thesis under V.A. Nomokonov’s supervision, have become the founders of the theory of cybercrime, they promote his ideas regarding anticorruption policy, drug abuse, human trafficking, etc., and have the law enforcement experience that they successfully use in their current work. The Professor’s approaches to understanding organized crime and corruption, as well as the basic and special measures of counteracting these dangerous phenomena, are a safe basis for the corresponding criminological theory, they reflect his forward-thinking and astute attitude. His scientific intuition allows the Professor to be ahead of other research in the sphere of counteracting corruption and provide highly professional predictions on the future regularities of criminal behavior, thus contributing to the development and enriching the theory of criminology and its practical significance.