Applying Classical Criminological Theories to Cyberspace: A Scoping Review of Limits and Convergences
Isadora Barbosa Coelho , Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Brazil
Bráulio Figueiredo Alves da Silva , Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Brazil
Abstract
The accelerated growth of cybercrime in recent decades has established itself as one of the main contemporary challenges to public security, driven by the expansion of digital technology use, the anonymity of cyberspace, and the fragility of traditional social control mechanisms. Despite the increasing complexity of cybercrimes, it is noted that predominant approaches remain anchored in technical-legal responses, which reveals a gap in the analysis of the social, cultural, and behavioral dimensions that sustain these practices. Given this scenario, the present article aims to analyze to what extent classical criminological theories remain capable of explaining cybercrimes, highlighting their potential and limits when applied to the digital environment. Methodologically, the study adopts a qualitative approach of a theoretical nature, based on a scoping analysis and a narrative literature review, with a temporal scope between 2010 and 2024. Routine Activity Theory, Anomie Theory, Social Learning Theory, and Deterrence Theory are mobilized in a comparative manner. The results suggest that understanding cybercrime requires the articulation between the expansion of opportunities, normative deregulation, learning processes in digital subcultures, and the reduced perception of risk. It is concluded that classical criminology remains relevant for understanding cybercrimes, provided it is reinterpreted in light of the specificities of the contemporary digital context.
Keywords:
Cybercrime, Classical Criminology, Theoretical Criminology, Sociology of Crime, Cyberspace, Cybercrime and Technology
