Criminal personality nowadays: change, study and understanding

Introduction: the author examines a criminal personality nowadays, analyzes individual social and demographical and criminal and legal characteristics of criminals and their changes over the past twenty years. Gaps in the study of the criminal's personality in criminological research are identified, their causes are determined. Materials and Methods: the universal dialectical method of cognition was the methodological basis for the study. The author also applied general scientific and specific scientific methods of cognition: statistical, historical and legal methods, system and structural analysis, analogy, generalization, comparison, differentiation, observation, analytical examination and other research methods. Results: the most typical properties and qualities of the criminal's personality of a socio and demographic, and criminal and legal nature are considered, the reasons for their changes over the above period are determined. It is noted that, despite the constant appeal of criminologists to the problem of the criminal's identity, many of its problems have not yet been studied. This applies to the identity of a careless criminal, a criminal with personality disorders, a migrant criminal and some other categories of persons who violate criminal law. Discussion and Conclusions: the author determines that the reasons for incomplete study of the criminal personality are related to a lack of research interest in certain categories of criminals, to use the achievements of many other human sciences, incomplete use of psychological methods of studying the criminal. It is noted that due to changes in economic, socio-political, demographic and other relations in society, the characteristics of the criminal personality are changing, which requires a new approach to its study.