Ac2.1 Describe biological theories of criminality Flashcards
What features did Lombroso argue all criminals had?
“Atavistic” features.
How did Lombroso argue that criminals were different to us?
Lombroso argued that criminals were a different species all together. A mix of modern man and primitive human.
Did Lombroso’s theory argue that criminality could be inheritable or not?
Lombroso’s theory argued criminality could be inheritable.
What reasons did Lombroso give for why criminals commit crimes?
Lombroso argued that the primitive human part of them made them pre-social, unable to control their impulses and had reduced sensitivity towards other people.
What were some features that made it easy to identify criminals according to Lombroso’s theory?
Low sloping foreheads, large jaws, forward projection of jaw, receding chin, twisted nose, long arms relative to lower limbs, excessive cheekbones, large ears and excessive wrinkles.
What is a somatype?
A somatype refers to a person’s body shape.
What are the three somatypes?
Endomorph.
Ectomorph.
Mesomorph.
What are the body types and personalities of the three somatypes?
Endomorph- Endomorphs are fat, soft and lack muscle tone. They are relaxed and socially outgoing.
Ectomorph- Ectomorphs are thin and fragile. They are introverted and emotionally restrained.
Mesomorph- Mesomorphs are muscular and hard bodied, with very little fat and are strong. They are adventurous and aggressive.
What study did Sheldon do to research his somatypes theory?
Sheldon used a correlation study of 4,000 inmates and found many convicts were mesomorphic and least likely to be ectomorphic.
What did Sheldon’s somatypes theory argue?
Mesomorphs were most likely to engage in criminal activity as they will be attracted to the risky nature of crime and their physical advantage would be an asset when conducting crimes.
What did Lombroso’s theory argue?
Criminals were a mix of modern man and primitive human and committed crimes due to reduced sensitivity and their inability to control their impulses.
What did the twin studies theory argue?
Genetics or nature may play a role in criminality.
What are monozygotic twins?
Identical twins who are from one egg and share 100% of their DNA.
What are dizygotic twins?
Non-identical twins who are from 2 separate eggs and share 50% of their DNA.
Who was a key researcher (1) in the twin studies theory and what study did he do?
German physician Johannes Lang- He found that 10 of the 13 monozygotic twins, in a study of 30 pairs of twins, had served time in prison. The concordance rate for dizygotic twins was 2 of 17 twins studied.
Who was a key researcher (2) in the twin studies theory and what study did he do?
Christiansen (1977)- He found that criminality concordance rates for monozygotic twins was 35% and for dizygotic twins it was 13%.
What is the principle of the adoption study?
To explain if criminal behaviour is the comparison of criminals with both their biological and adoptive parents. If the child is more like their biological parents whilst with their adoptive parents this suggests a genetic basis of criminality.
Who was Mednick et al and what study did he hold for the adoption studies?
Mednick et al (1987)- He looked at the court convictions in a small European country and found 14,000 adoptees amongst them. Many of the adoptees had biological parents who were criminals.
What did Jacob’s XYY study suggest?
Criminality can be attributed to a chromosomal abnormality.
How often is a baby born with XYY chromosomes?
1 in 1,000 male births.
What did Jacobs et al (1965) suggest about men with XYY syndrome?
Men with the XYY syndrome were more aggressive than normal XY men. XYY men are over- represented in the prison population with 15 per 1,000 in the male prison population.
What was Jacob et al’s study based on?
His study was based on studies of imprisoned criminals, such as those in secure hospitals, where a higher-than-average proportion of inmates were found to have XYY syndrome. Many had histories of aggression and violent assaults.
Price and Whatmore alleged what in Jacob’s XYY study?
Price and Whatmore alleged that XYY males tend to be immature and unstable with a tendency to commit motiveless property crimes.
