biology and crime 4

8/12/2019 Biology and Crime 4

1/42

CHAT:

BIOLOGY AND CRIME


2/42

EARLY BIOLOGICAL THEORIES (1 OF 2)

Early history of criminology (many earlycriminologists were physicians)

Theory: the presence of certain physical traits

makes criminal behavior more likely


3/42

EARLY BIOLOGICAL THEORIES (2 OF 2)

1. Phrenology

2. Lombrosos born criminal

3. Physical deficiencies

4. The XYY supermale

5. Somatotype theory


4/42

PHRENOLOGY

Exterior of the skull reflects the mind

Bumps on the head indicate criminal tendencies


5/42

LOMBROSOS BORN CRIMINAL (1

OF 3)

Cesare Lombroso

19th-century Italian physician

Led the movement from classical school to

scientific positivism

Major contributions

Study of the individual offender and crime conditions

Application of statistical methods to data collection

and analysis, as well as multiple-factor analysis Use of typological methods to classify and study

criminals and examine criminological phenomena


6/42


OF 3)

Atavism

Criminals as amoral, not fully evolved

Physical traits

Low foreheads Broad noses

Small cranial capacities


7/42


OF 3)

Types of criminals

Insane

Idiots, drug addicts, moral degenerates

Criminaloids Those who have physical stigmatas and whose moral

degeneracy is less pronounced

Criminals by passion

Passion (like love, hate, honor) fueled their criminal rage


8/42

PHYSICAL DEFICIENCIES

Charles Goring

Criminal behavior related to defective intelligence

Earnest Hooten

Criminals physiologically inferior

Physical traits

Low foreheads

Pinched noses

Compressed faces

Narrow jaws


9/42

SOMATOTYPE THEORY (1 OF 3)

Developed by William Sheldon (supported by theGluecks at Harvard)

Body build (somatotype) linked to:

Behavioral tendencies

Temperament

Life expectancy

Susceptibility to disease


10/42


Basic body types Endomorph

Fat, soft, and round

Tend to be extroverts

Ectomorph Thin and wiry

Easily worried, sensitive, and introverted

Mesomorph (most criminals) Muscular

Gregarious, aggressive, assertive, and action oriented


11/42


Explanations

Those with muscular builds tend to enjoy the physicalactivity involved in crime.

Mesomorphic body type may have an advantage in therough-and-tumble activities of street crime.

Mesomorph is perceived as a threat and is thereforemore likely to be arrested and/or incarcerated.


12/42

THE XYY SUPERMALE

Chromosomal abnormality (extra Y chromosome)

May be more likely to engage in criminalbehavior (but not violent behavior)

Extremely rare chromosome structure (less than0.1% of total male population)


13/42

POLICY IMPLICATIONS OF EARLYBIOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Focuses on single factors that cannot bechanged

Policy solution: remove these individuals from

society Eugenicsforced sterilization


14/42

MODERN BIOLOGICAL APPROACH(1 OF 2)

Despite the tarnished legacy, there has been acomeback in biological research in recent years.


15/42

MODERN BIOLOGICAL APPROACH(2 OF 2)

1. Behavioral genetics

2. Biological correlates of criminal behavior

3. Biosocial theory

4. Evolutionary theory (sociobiology)


16/42

BEHAVIORAL GENETICS (1 OF 5)

Can criminality be inherited?

Family studies

Twin studies

Adoption studies

Molecular genetics


17/42


Family studies

Early studies traced family history (Jukes)

Modern studies look at parents crime (Sampson

and Laub) Findings: Parental crime consistently predicts

childrens criminal behavior.

Criticism: Environment could easily explain this

finding.


18/42


Twin studies

Compare monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ)twins

Findings: MZ twins have higher concordance ratesthan DZ twins.

Criticism:

People may treat MZ twins more similarly

MZ twins more likely to share friends (including delinquentpeers)


19/42


Adoption studies

Compare criminal record of adopted children withtheir biological and adoptive parents.

Findings: Childrens criminal behavior relates moreto biological parents.

Criticism: Adoption agencies might have biasedplacements.


20/42


Molecular genetics

Isolates particular genes that may be related tocriminal disposition

Helped by Human Genome Project Findings: Some potential genes have been

identified (e.g., predisposition for antisocialbehavior).

Criticism: Any particular gene will have only minimaleffect on human behavior.


21/42

BIOLOGICAL CORRELATES (1 OF 2)

Physiological differences exist between criminalsand noncriminals.

A wide range of factors potentially contribute to

criminal behavior.


22/42

BIOLOGICAL CORRELATES (2 OF 2)

1. Neurological factors

2. Autonomic nervous system

3. Biological harms

4. Hormones


23/42

NEUROLOGICAL FACTORS (1 OF 3)

Direct measures of the brain

Prefrontal cortex

Executive functions (e.g., cognition, attention, impulsivity)

MRI and PET scans analyze brain structure and activity

Differences in the frontal lobe exist between criminalsand noncriminal control groups


24/42


Neurochemical measures

Neurotransmitters (like serotonin) allow cells tocommunicate with each other.

Low levels of serotonin are linked with impulsive andaggressive behavior.


25/42


Indirect measures

Use IQ and other neuropsychological tests to predictdelinquency

Test executive functions (which reflect differences inbrain functioning)

Potentially reflect underlying neurological deficits


26/42

AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM

Controls how the body reacts to stimuli (heartrate, gland secretions)

Some criminals have lower resting heart rates than

noncriminals. Studies of skin conductance (sweat) yield mixed

results.

Criminals potentially have low levels of arousal.


27/42

BIOLOGICAL HARMS (1 OF 3)

Perinatal risks linked with criminality

Smoking (cigarettes, marijuana)

Alcohol consumption (fetal alcohol syndrome)

Delivery complications

Low birth-weight children

More pronounced effect in unstable families


28/42


Environmental toxins

Lead exposure

Highly toxic substance (especially for young children)

Found in lead paint and leaded gasoline Can cause serious health and behavioral problems

Linked to delinquent behavior


29/42


Nutrition and diet

Focus on high levels of sugar and junk food intake

Relates to antisocial behavior, irritability

Some studies showed that hypoglycemia is linked withviolent, impulsive behavior

Not well supported by research


30/42

HORMONES

Testosterone (male androgen)

Higher levels linked to antisocial, aggressive behavior

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)

Relationship to female offending unsupported byresearch


31/42

BIOSOCIAL THEORY

Combinations of environmental and biological riskcause criminal behavior

1. Life-course-persistent offending2. Personality-based theory

3. Female delinquency


32/42

LIFE-COURSE-PERSISTENTOFFENDING

Developed by Terrie Moffitt

Adolescent-limited (AL) offenders

Criminal behavior limited to adolescence

Life-course-persistent (LCP) offenders Chronic offending starts early in life

Caused by neurological deficits and ineffectiveparenting


33/42

PERSONALITY-BASED THEORY

Developed by Hans Eysenck

Personality traits driven by underlying biologycause crime.

Children with low arousal will be difficult tosocialize.

In criminal families, low arousal might preventchildren from learning criminal behavior.


34/42

FEMALE DELINQUENCY

Early onset of puberty is linked to criminalbehavior.

This is true for girls in coed schools, but not for

those in all-girls schools. Conclusion: Girls who start puberty early attract

the attention of older, crime-prone males, whichmay lead to delinquency.


35/42

EVOLUTIONARY THEORY (1 OF 2)

Uses principles of evolution to explain modernhuman behavior

Research

Rape Cads and dads theory

Criticism

Difficult if not impossible to test

Evidence sometimes runs counter to predictions


36/42

EVOLUTIONARY THEORY (2 OF 2)

Rape

Evolutionary processes allow males who are pushy andaggressive in the pursuit of sex to pass on their genessuccessfully.

Cads and dads theory

Alternative strategies for reproductive success

Cadspretend caregivers who really want to reproducewith as many females as possible

Dadsinvest time and energy to help nurture and raiseoffspring


37/42

SUMMARY

Many biological factors involved in criminalbehavior:

Inherited

Results of biological harm

Biological factors contribute to criminality in certainenvironmental circumstances.

Humans may be partially driven toward crime bynatural forces beyond their control.


38/42

BIOLOGICAL THEORIESCRITICISMS (1 OF 2)

Lombrosian fallacy

Incarcerated persons not representative of criminals ingeneral population

Bias from social structure and criminal justice system


39/42

BIOLOGICAL THEORIESCRITICISMS (2 OF 2)

Ignores some types of crimes

White-collar

Organized

Political crime

Focuses on aggression or antisocial behavior inchildren and street crime in adults


40/42

POLICY IMPLICATIONS (1 OF 2)

Fears ethical problems

Biology not necessarily destiny

Provide unsound justifications for the control of minoritypopulations

New eugenics

Gene therapy

Discrimination based on presence of biological riskindicators


41/42

POLICY IMPLICATIONS (2 OF 2)

Criminality as a public health problem

Prenatal care for at-risk mothers

Strengthen environmental counterbalances for childrenwith biological risk indicators


42/42

CONCLUSION

Lessons from the biological school are limited tocertain crimes and offenders.

More research is needed.

Nature vs. nurture relationship Interdisciplinary study with criminologists and physical and

medical scientists

biology and crime 4

Documents