Atavistic form Flashcards
What does atavistic mean?
- ancient or ancestral
What did Lombroso suggest about criminals?
- they are genetic throwbacks
- less developed and primitive
- lack evolutionary development
- difficulty adapting to the norms of society
Describe the features of Lombroso’s criminal
- narrow sloping brows
- high cheekbones
- dark skin
- curly hair
- facial asymmetry
Outline Lombroso’s research
- studied the facial and cranial features of hundreds of Italian convicts
- 385 dead, 3839 living
- 40% had atavistic features
What are the features of murderers?
- bloodshot eyes
- curly hair
- large ears
What are the features of sexual deviants?
- glinting eyes
- swollen fleshy lips
- projecting ears
What are the features of fraudsters?
- thin lips
Lombroso’s legacy - strength of Atavistic form
P: Lombroso has changed the face of the study of crime
E: coined the term criminology. People originally believed offenders were wicked and weak minded. Lombroso suggests there may be genetic/evolutionary predisposition
E: scientific research - tried to be objective
L: major contribution to criminology
No control group - weakness of Atavistic form
P: no control group
E: only studies the convicts. There may have been other factors in play such as upbringing and peer pressure
E: could have matched pairs
L: lacks internal validity
Racism as a weakness of Atavistic form
P: has racist undertones
E: targets dark skinned individuals, calling their features ‘primitive’
E: can have negative implications and potentially supports eugenics
L: socially sensitive and leads to prejudice
Contradictory evidence as a weakness of atavistic form
P: evidence contradicts the link between atavism and crime
E: Goring compared 3000 offenders and 3000 nonoffenders
E: no evidence of unusual facial/cranial characteristics
L: challenges the idea that offenders can be physically distinguished
