Unit 2 Biological Theories Flashcards
Physiological Theories
What is a biological theory of crime?
a theory that emphasises internal inherited traits as the most important factors that cause crime.
Physiological Theories
Who is known as the ‘father of Criminology’?
Lombroso
Physiological Theories
What part of the body did Lombroso study?
Phrenology and Physiognomy
Physiological Theories
What is Phrenology?
the study of the shape and size of the skull
Physiological Theories
What is physiognomy
the study of facial features
Physiological Theories
What was the main conclusion that came from Lombroso’s 1876 study?
That criminals are physiologically different to non-criminals
Physiological Theories
In what 3 ways did he find they were different?
atavistic,stigmata’s, and pathological
Physiological Theories
What does atavistic mean?
less evolved - features of primitive men
Physiological Theories
What is a stigmata?
brain ‘blemishes’ which indicate biological inferiority
Physiological Theories
What does pathological mean?
offenders that suffer from sickness of the body and mind
Physiological Theories
Where did Lombroso get the data for his study?
data from prisoners and autopsies on convicted criminals
Physiological Theories
What were two features that Lombroso found the ‘criminal man’ had?
large jaw, hawk-like noses
Physiological Theories
What features did Lombroso find sex offenders had?
thick lips and protruding ears
Physiological Theories
What features did Lombroso find thieves had?
an aquiline face with eyes close together
Physiological Theories
List the five criticisms of Lombroso:
-ignored social context/environmental factors
-control group did not represent any non-criminals, made assumptions of non-criminals
-deterministic(saying the criminals committing crime is completely out of their control)
-stigmatisation of criminals by saying they are ‘sick’ implying they need a cure
-old study which has been discredited by recent genetic studies
Physiological Theories
What are eugenics?
the practice or advocacy of improving the human species by selectively mating people with specific desirable hereditary traits - aims to reduce human suffering by ‘breeding out’ disease, disabilities, and undesirable characteristics
Physiological Theories
What did Lombroso say about the criminal woman compared to the criminal man?
-had a lower crime rate than men
-were less evolved than men
Physiological Theories
What did Lombroso say about the criminal woman compared to a non-criminal woman?
-they had smaller brains and skulls
-had a larger hip to waist ratio
Physiological Theories
What was Sheldon’s key theory about criminals?
that criminals are physically different from non-criminals (based on somatotypes)
Physiological Theories
What is a somatotype?
underlying physique that is not changed by overeating or training
Physiological Theories
What are the 3 body types Sheldon linked to criminal behaviour?
ectomorph,endomorph,mesomorph
Physiological Theories
How did Sheldon get the data for his study?
he studied 400 boys in a residential rehabilitation home, gathered data from family backgrounds and monitored their growth for 8 years
Physiological Theories
What body type is the most likely to be criminal based on Sheldon’s theory?
mesomorph
Physiological Theories
How can an endomorph body be described?
fat
Physiological Theories
How can a mesomorph body be described?
athletic
Physiological Theories
How can an ectomorph body be described?
slim
Physiological Theories
What are the percentages of what body types make up criminals according to Sheldon?
30% - endomorph
10% - ectomorph
60% - mesomorph
Physiological Theories
Are Sheldon’s theories correctional or causational?
correlational
Physiological Theories
List 2 problems with Sheldon’s theory?
-the conclusions correlate rather than the body types being the cause
-other factors are likely to be involved (age,gender,environment)
Physiological Theories
List 4 positives of physiological theories overall:
-scientific, first time quantitative data was used for criminals(rather than religious and moral reasons for crime)
-medical, links medical reasons to crime, showing it may not always be a rational choice
-treatment, born criminals could have a cure
-somewhat reliable, mesomorphic body types are still criminal in recent studies
Physiological Theories
List 4 negatives of physiological theories of crime overall:
-out of date research, crude ways of measuring and categorising offenders
-lacking objectivity, conducted in a time of overt racial and gender profiling
-correlational problems, criminal lifestyle may have caused the physiological issues
-environmental problems, other factors of body and physical factors ignored (working class labourers will have particular body shape)
Genetic Theories
What is a genetic theory?
The theory that inherited traits are the most significant factors that cause crime
Genetic Theories
What are the two types of twins?
monozygotic, dizygotic
Genetic Theories
What are monozygotic twins and how many genes do they share?
identical twins - all of their genes are the same
Genetic Theories
What are dizygotic twins and how many genes do they share?
fraternal twins - half of their genes are the same
Genetic Theories
What did the Christiansen study find about twins?
Studied 3586 sets of twins, found that 52% of Monozygotic twins and 22% of dizygotic twins both had criminal convictions
Genetic Theories
What did the Crowe study find about adoption?
that if a biological mother had a conviction they had a 50% chance of having had a conviction
Genetic Theories
what are 2 limits of twin and adoption studies?
-whether the environment can be accurately measured (monozygotic twins may be treated more similarly to dizygotic twins)
-adoption studies may have ethical issues, offenders will be very less likely to adopt children
Genetic Theories
What chromosomes apply for Jacob syndrome?
XYY
Genetic Theories
What chromosome syndrome links the most to criminal behaviour?
Jacob Syndrome XYY
Genetic Theories
Where was the study for Jacob Syndrome XYY?
Scotland
Genetic Theories
What was found in the study for Jacob’s Syndrome XYY which was conducted in Scotland?
Jacobs Syndrome XYY occurred 20 times more among inmates in the scottish prison than it occurred in the general population.
Genetic Theories
When was the Scottish Jacob Syndrome XYY study conducted?
1967-1972
Genetic Theories
What are 3 common traits of Jacob’s Syndrome XYY?
-increased aggression
-slower learning speed
-taller than average height
Genetic Theories
What did James Fallon accidentally find out?
that there were patterns in his own brain that correlated with psychopathic tendencies - showing that the physchopathic tendencies do not automatically mean they will become a criminal
