Psychological Explanations (Eyesenck) Flashcards
What did eysenck do?
eyesenck proposed his theory of the criminal personality as an explanation of offending behaviour
what did eyesenck believe?
believed that a person with a criminal personality would have a high score on extroversion, neuroticism and psychoticism.
what do people with high scores on extraversion neuroticism and psychoticism therefore do and what does this mean?
Consequently, they do not associate anxiety with antisocial behaviour (as we are socialised to do from childhood) and are more likely to engage in criminal behaviour.
What did eyesenck believe each trait had?
a biological basis which is mainly innate and comes about through the type of nervous system we inherit (even though it is a psychological theory of personality)
What did eyesenck develop and what does it do?
-the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) which is a psychological test to assess an individual’s personality.
-The test locates respondents along the different dimensions to determine their personality type.
What is extroversion (vs introversion)?
-Extraverts are characterised as sociable, impulsive, expressive and risk taking.
• People with high levels of extraversion are under-aroused in their central and autonomic nervous
system and therefore need more external stimulation compared to an introvert.
How does extroversion link to offending behaviour?
In terms of the criminal personality extraverts seek external stimulation to increase their cortisol arousal. They will often take risks and engage in dangerous thrill-seeking behaviour
e.g. joy riding
what is neuroticism (vs stability)?
•characterised by nervousness and
obsessiveness. A neurotic person is someone who is slightly unstable, and is prone to overreacting
making their behaviour often difficult to predict.
• They have an autonomic nervous system that responds quickly to stress.
How does neuroticism link to offending behaviour?
In terms of the criminal personality neurotics are therefore prone to over react to situations of threat which could explain criminal activity especially in an emotionally charged situation
e.g. road rage, spontaneous violence
What is psychoticism (vs normality)?
-This trait was added later to Eysenck’s theory
• Psychoticism is characterised by egocentric, cold and aggressive behaviour. They lack empathy as
generally they are not concerned about the welfare of other people.
• This has been related to high levels of testost
How does psychoticism linked to offending behaviour?
In terms of the criminal personality psychotics can be easily linked to criminality as this type is characterised as lacking in empathy,
unemotional and prone to aggression e.g. murder, domestic violence
