The Atavistic Approach to Offender Profiling Flashcards
What are some of the atavistic features?
-Prominent jaw.
-High cheekbones.
-Dark skin.
-Curly hair.
Outline Lombroso’s research.
-Examined 3839 Italian criminals.
-21 percent of criminals had at least one atavistic feature.
-43 percent had at least 5.
-Did not use a control group.
What did Lombroso propose?
Inherited atavistic form interacts with a persons physical and social environment leading to criminality.
What are some examples of things which can interact with a persons atavistic form?
Alcohol, being part of a gang, poverty, diet etc.
What is meant by anthropometry?
The measurement of skulls and other physiological characteristics.
What did Kretschmer propose with regards to somatotypes? (Not atavistic form)
Criminals fall into 4 somatotyes:
Leptosome - tall and thin, petty thieves.
Athletic - tall and muscular, violent.
Pyknic - short and fat, deceiving.
Dysplastic - more than one type, crimes against morality.
What did Sheldon propose with regards to body type? (Not atavistic form)
Criminals fall into 3 body types:
Endomorph - fat , soft
Ectomorph - thin
Mesomorph - hard athletic
Does Lombroso’s theory support eugenics philosophy?
Yes, atavism shows that some people are born with atavistic form and so will inevitably commit crime - these individuals should be eliminated from society (according to eugenics).
What are 2 limitations of the atavistic explanation to criminality?
- Internal validity - Lombroso did not compare his sample with a control group.
- Goring replicated study and found no difference between criminals and non criminals. - Scientific Racism as well as determinism - Identified dark skin and curly hair to be part of atavistic form.
What is one strength of the atavistic explanation to criminality?
- Support for somatotypes as proposed by Sheldon
- Glueck and Glueck found that 60 percent of delinquents were mesomorphs
- Kretchsmer also created a similar set of somatotypes.
