Classic research- Raine et al. (1997)

Question 1

What was the aim of the Raine et al (1997) research?

Answer 1

To investigate whether criminals who had committed murder and pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity had brain structures different to those who have not committed murder

Question 2

What type of experiment was the Raine et al (1997)

Answer 2

A quasi-experemnt

Question 3

What was the method and procedure of the Raine et al (1997) experiment?

Answer 3

• 41 criminals (39 males and 2 females) who had
  committed murder pleading NGRI
  -The control group was matched by age, sex and
  diagnosis but none had committed murder
  -Participants had to stop taking any prescribed medicine
  two weeks before the study began to rule out
  medication on the brain
  -On the day of the PET scan all participants were injected
  with a glucose tracker and completed a target-
  recognition task for 32 minutes
  -Participants were then given a PET scan

Question 4

What are the findings of the Raine et al (1997) experiment?

Answer 4

Compared to the control group the NGRI were found to have

• Less activity in their prefrontal and occipital areas
• No difference in their temporal areas
• Less activity in the corpus callosum
• An imbalance between the two hemispheres in terms of activity in the amygdala

Question 5

What did Raine et al conclude from their experiment?

Answer 5

Individuals who have committed murder but pleading guilty NGRI did have significantly different levels of activity in various areas of the brain

Question 6

What are the issues with valid consent with the Raine et al experiment?

Answer 6

-May not have been mentally competent to give valid
consent
-Participants may not have fully understood what they
would be required to do, may have caused
psychological harm
-May not have known what a PET scan was and caused a
distressing experience
-They may not have understood their right to withdraw

Question 7

What is an issue with cause and effect with the Raine et al experiment?

Answer 7

-We will never know if the brain activity caused the
violent behaviour or if the violent behaviour caused the
brain activity
-There may also be other variables involved that were
not controlled for in this study

Question 8

What is an ethical issue with the Raine et al experiment?

Answer 8

The medication of all participants were stopped, may have caused harm to participants or those around them

Question 9

What is a social implication with the Raine et al study?

Answer 9

-Criminals may be able to argue for diminished
responsibility because of their biology
-Individuals may be labelled as criminals regardless of whether they do actually commit further crimes