The Atavistic Form Flashcards
A historical approach
Lombroso- book-the criminal man
Suggested criminals were genetic throwbacks, primitive subspecies,
biologically different from non criminal
Biological approach
Criminals lack evolutionary development
Savage and untamed so couldn’t adjust a society which led to crime
Rooted in their genes - innate so the offender is not to blame
The atavistic form
Criminals had certain physiological markers which linked them to particular crimes
Mainly features of the face and head
Characteristics
Sloping brows, strong jaw, high cheek bones, facial asymmetry
Dark skin , curly hair, extra toes nipples or fingers
Insensitivity to pain, use of slang, tattoos, unemployment
Offender types-categorising
Lombroso categorised offenders in terms of their characteristics
Murderer —> bloodshot eyes, curly hair, long ears
Sexual deviance —> glinting eyes, swollen, fleshy lips, projecting ears
Fraudsters —> thin reedy lips
Lombroso research
Studied facial and cranial features of Italian convicts
383 dead and almost 4000 alive
Concluded there was a atavistic form and were indicators of criminality
40% of criminal acts are committed by people with atavistic characteristics
Strength- father of criminology
Shifted weak and evil view of criminals to a more scientific realm
Describes how specific people are likely to turn to crime -brought around offender profiling
Major contribution to science of criminology
Counterpoint-racist undertones
DeLisi- many characteristics are those with African descent suggesting that more likely to be criminals
Some aspects were subjective and influenced prejudice
Limitation-contradictory evidence
Goring-compared 3000 defenders to 3000 nonoffenders
No evidence that offenders are distinct group ; can’t be subspecied
Limitation-poor control
Didn’t control for variables
Didn’t compare to control group
Does not meet modern scientific standards
