Raine et al

Question 1

Aim

Answer 1

1. To investigate that murderers do have poorer brain functioning than normal (brain dysfunction in murders)
2. to identify whether people who are pleading not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI) to a charge of murderer have different patterns of brain function from those of non- murders

Question 2

controlled variables?

Answer 2

(matched or independent design) Matching each murderer with a normal subject of the same sex and age who had been tested using identical PET imaging procedures in the same laboratory.

Medication free (2 weeks) = unchanged neurotransmission/ brain activity when the test started (control extraneous variables)

Urine screening to check (control extraneous variables)
Control group = was fit and healthy no brain trauma

Question 3

procedure

Answer 3

PET scans (follow the basics)
10 minutes before the FDG (feurodoxyglucose) injection, subjects were
given practice trials on the CPT (continuous performance task). Thirty seconds before
injection, the task was started so that initial task novelty
would not be FDG labeled.
32 min of FDG uptake, transferred to the adjacent PET scanner room.
(total 42 mins total)
Molding of the brain (thermosetting plastic) Ten
slices at 10-mm intervals parallel to the canthomeatal line were obtained.
Surface cortical used peel technique to measure
Medial cortical/subcortical used box technique to measure cortical and subcortical analyses, values were
averaged across slices

Question 4

results

Answer 4

hypothalamus is HIGHER in the RIGHT hemisphere

amygdala LOWER activity on the LEFT & HIGHER activity on the RIGHT

hippocampus LOWER in LEFT but HIGHER in the RIGHT

parietal lobe LOWER activity

occipital lobe HIGHER activity

corpus collosum LOWER activity 65 vs 56

Question 5

conclusion

Answer 5

Violence can’t be determined by biology alone

Data doesn’t demonstrate that murderers pleading NGRI are not responsible for their actions nor do they demonstrate that PET can be used as a diagnostic technique

Findings can’t speak to the issue of the cause (genetics or environmental) of the brain dysfunctions nor do the establish casual directions

Cant be generalized at the present date from the cases set date to other types of violent offenders