F4. Biological Explanations: Atavistic Form

Question 1

What is Atavistic Form?

Answer 1

Suggested by Lombroso. Criminals are ‘genetic throwbacks’ who weren’t accustomed to social norms of a civilised society. Criminals could be identified by signature atavistic characteristics.

Question 2

Atavistic Characteristics

Answer 2

Long ears, dark skin, extra toes and nipples, curly hair.

Question 3

Characteristic and Crime associations

Answer 3

• murderers: bloodshot eyes
• fraudsters: reedy lips
• sexual deviants: glinting eyes

Question 4

Base of Lombroso’s theory

Answer 4

Studied Cranial Features of 383 dead criminals, 3839 alive criminals. 40% of crimes could be explained using offender profiles based upon certain atavistic characteristics.

Question 5

• Eval: Lombroso

Answer 5

Racist. Characteristics don’t make you destined to be a criminal. Following his logic, African-Americans would be more likely to become criminals due to darker skin and curly hair being a more common characteristic among them. Therefore, this may have given a scientific justification to discriminatory practices and eugenics.

Question 6

• Eval: Atavistic Form

Answer 6

UNSCIENTIFIC. Methodology did not use statistical analysis or a control group from another culture. Entire sample was ITALIAN - limited generalisability. Comparison with a control group needed to establish statistical significance - use of Random Allocation to avoid individual variables.

Question 7

+ Eval: Lombroso

Answer 7

‘Father of Criminology’. Modern criminal profiling based upon atavistic form. Although lack of control group, the original sample size makes Lombroso’s findings credible.