biological explanations of offending behaviour

Question 1

define atavistic form

Answer 1

a historical approach used to explain criminal behaviour, which is based on the biological factors.
proposed by Lombroso in the 1870s
suggests that some people are born with a criminal personality (it is innate) that is a throwback to a previous more primitive ancestor

Question 2

examples of atavistic characteristics

Answer 2

long ears, dark skin, extra toes and nipples and curly hair

Question 3

atavistic characteristics associated with murderers…

Answer 3

bloodshot eyes, strong jaws, long ears and curly hair

Question 4

atavistic characteristics associated with frausters…

Answer 4

thin and reedy lips

Question 5

atavistic characteristics associated with sexual deviants…

Answer 5

glinting eyes, swollen, fleshy lips and projecting ears

Question 6

explain Lombroso’s research

Answer 6

Lombroso based this theory upon studying the cranial features of 383 dead and 3839 alive criminals, whereby approximately 40% of crime could be explained using the offender profiles based upon certain atavistic characteristics

Question 7

explain L’Huomo Delinquente (1876)

Answer 7

Lombroso believed offenders were lacing evolutionary development, their savage and untamed nature meant they found it impossible to adjust to the demands of civilised society and would inevitably turn to crime

Question 8

evaluations of atavistic form

Answer 8

• modern researchers have branded Lombroso’s theory as racist (DeLisi 2012) as certain atavistic characteristics are more likely in people of certain races e.g. curly hair is more common in African-Americans
• atavistic form is considered to be unscientific as it did not use statistical analysis or a control group which is needed to establish statistical significance
  + Lombroso is known as the ‘father of criminology’ -

Question 9

what do genetic explanations of offending focus on?

Answer 9

mainly focuses on the heritability and role of candidate genes in the development of criminal behaviour

Question 10

explain Crowe’s study (1972) - adoption studies

Answer 10

Crowe compared a group of adopted children whose biological mother had a criminal record to a control group of adopted children whose biological mother did not have a criminal record
Results found that if a biological mother had a criminal record, 50% of the adopted children also had one by the age of 18 compared to the control group where only 5% had a criminal record by 18.
This suggests that regardless of the changed environment, children seemed biologically predisposed to criminality

Question 11

explain Brunner et al’s research (1993) - family studies

Answer 11

Investigated genetic links in offending behaviour by conducting an analysis of a large family in the Netherlands, who had members involved in criminal behaviour such as attempted rape and arson.
The researchers found that the males had a genetic condition later known as ‘Brunner syndrome’ (females carry the gene, males are affected as it only affects the MAOA production gene on the single X chromosome in males)
The condition results in lower IQs and causes a deficiency in MAOA (enzyme responsible for the metabolic of neurotransmitters such as serotonin).
The condition produces less MAOA leading to an excess of dopamine meaning an increase in aggression and a decrease in control of brain activity in the prefrontal cortex which controls decision-making thus leading to increased violence
Results concluded that individuals can inherit genetic conditions which make them prone to offending behaviour

Question 12

explain Christiansen’s research (1977) - twin studies

Answer 12

Christiansen examined over 3.500 twin pairs in Denmark and identified concordance rates of criminal behaviour
The findings indicated a degree of inheritance as monozygotic twins had a mean concordance rate of 33% showing that they have shared behaviour compared to dizygotic twins who had a mean concordance rate of 11%
However, the concordance rates of both MZ and DZ twins are low indicating that genetics is not the only factor that plays a part in explanations of offending and that the environment may play a larger part in criminal behaviour.
Also, the difference between male and female twin pairs raises an interesting question about the role of gender in criminal behaviour as male twins (despite being MZ or DZ) had a higher concordance rate compared to female twins

Question 13

Support for Christiansen (1977)

Answer 13

Mednick et al (1984) suggested that there is an interaction between the environment and genetics together which produces the outcome of criminality and so the diathesis-stress model can be used to account for this

Question 14

explain Tiihonen et al’s research (2014)

Answer 14

Analysed almost 900 offenders and found that the MAOA gene (linked to aggressive behaviour) and CDH13 (linked to substance abuse and ADD) were involved in offending behaviour
The diathesis-stress model states that genes are switched on or off by epigenomes which have been affected by the environment.
One factor could be abuse or maltreatment in childhood
Another factor could be having criminal role models in the family

Question 15

what do neural explanations focus on?

Answer 15

neural explanations mainly focus on individuals with antisocial personality disorder (APD) which is common in criminals

Question 16

explain Raine et al’s study (1997)

Answer 16

Found that criminals have a lower volume and activity level by 11% in the prefrontal cortex which is responsible for logical thinking and decision making
Therefore, this supports the idea that criminals may have difficulties in regulating their emotions and so make irrational decisions

Question 17

explain Keysers et al (2011)

Answer 17

found that criminals appear to have a ‘neural switch’ which they can use to turn their capacities for empathy on or off - this may explain why and how criminals lack empathy towards their victims

Question 18

evaluations of genetic and neural explanations of offending

Answer 18

+ support for the diathesis-stress model of crime - Mednick et al (1984) analysed court convictions of over 14,000 adoptees with adoptive and biological parents - researchers concluded that siblings adopted separately into different homes tended to be concordant for convictions especially if the shared biological father had a record of criminal behaviour - supporting the idea that criminality is likely to be an outcome if a genetic susceptibility is paired with environmental stressors
- biological determinism - the idea of a ‘criminal gene’ presents an ethical dilemma for the legal system as it negates free will which presents problems for society and implications for sentencing and may lead to the realisation of self-fulfilling prophecies
- evaluation of Christiansen’s study