Positivism had an effect on rational choice thought that permeated the opinions of early criminologists, in that it changed the focus of crime from personal choice and decision making to and .

Positivism had an effect on rational choice thought that permeated the opinions of early criminologists, in that it changed the focus of crime from personal choice and decision making to social and personal factors.

Explanation:

Positivism is an approach to the study of society that relies specifically on scientific evidence, such as experiments and statistics, to reveal a true nature of how society operates.

Society shapes the individual -society consists of social facts which exercise coercive control over individuals. People's actions can generally be explained by the social norms they have been exposed to through their socialisation, and their social class,gender and background.

The point of research is to uncover the laws that govern human behaviour, just as scientists have discovered the laws that govern the physical world.