What makes a criminal?

Question 1

What are the two types of explanations of criminal behavior?

Answer 1

Non- physiological explanations and physiological explanations

Question 2

What is a non- physiological explanation?

Answer 2

Self-fulfilling prophecy

Question 3

What is a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Answer 3

Based on the assumption that criminal behaviors are acquired through the social environment.

Question 4

What does a SFP suggest about labeling?

Answer 4

Society labels the deviant as a criminal

Question 5

What happens when a criminal is labelled?

Answer 5

The individual is treated by society as a criminal and it becomes a part of their identity.

Question 6

Who researched into a SFP?

Answer 6

Jahoda

Question 7

Who did Jahoda research into?

Answer 7

Ashanti tribe in West Africa.

Question 8

What did the tribe believe believe?

Answer 8

The day the child is born on is thought to determine the boy’s temperament.

Question 9

Example of names?

Answer 9

Boys born on Monday are expected to be placid (not easily upset) and boys born on Wednesday are suppose to be aggressive.

Question 10

Findings of Jahoda’s study?

Answer 10

police records show there are higher numbers of arrests of boys born on Wednesday compared to a low number for those born on a Monday.

Question 11

Another non-physiological explanation is…

Answer 11

Social cognition.

Question 12

What is a key concept of social cognition and what does it mean?

Answer 12

Attribution- explanation of behavior.

Question 13

What is a self-serving Bias?

Answer 13

A persons tendency to attribute their successes to themselves and their failings to something else.

Question 14

What are criminals therefore more likely to make and what is this?

Answer 14

Make situational attributions for their own behavior like blaming rape on what a women was wearing.

Question 15

Who researched into a self serving bias?

Answer 15

Scully and Marolla.

Question 16

Who did Scully and Marolla research?

Answer 16

Interviewed 114 convicted rapists

Question 17

What did Scully and Marolla found?

Answer 17

40% of offenders blamed the victim, portraying her as a willing seductress. 60% blamed it on alcohol or drugs, shifting the blame elsewhere.

Question 18

What is a Physiological explanation of Criminal Behavior?

Answer 18

Chemical imbalances.

Question 19

What was there a link between? (chemically)

Answer 19

A link between hormones such as testosterone and offending behavior.

Question 20

Who looked into chemical imbalances?

Answer 20

Dabbs

Question 21

Who did Dabbs study?

Answer 21

692 adult male prison inmates, who had their testosterone levels measured by a saliva sample.

Question 22

What did Dabbs find?

Answer 22

Inmates who had committed personal crimes of sex and violence had higher levels of testosterone than inmates who committed property crimes of theft, burglary or drugs. They also violated more rules in prison.

Question 23

What is another physiological explanation of criminal behaviors?

Answer 23

Brain dysfunctions.

Question 24

What is brain dysfunction?

Answer 24

Where there is an abnormality within the brain that encourages criminal behaviors.

Question 25

Who researched into brain abnormalities and is the key piece of research?

Answer 25

Raine

Question 26

What was the aim of Raine's research?

Answer 26

To use PET scans to investigate whether there are brain abnormalities in murderers who plead NGRI in comparison to non murderers.

Question 27

What was Raine's sample?

Answer 27

41(39 males and 2 females) charged with murder in the state of California who are pleading guilty due to reasons of insanity.

Question 28

Who were Raine's sample compared to?

Answer 28

A control group of 41, matched on age, gender and mental illness who had no criminal history. 6 had schizophrenia in the both the control group and the sample.

Question 29

Why were Raine's sample referred to the imaging centre?

Answer 29

For legal reasons to obtain evidence for defense that they did not have the capacity to understand the judicial process.

Question 30

What was a control and standardised prior to the scan? (Raine)

Answer 30

Kept medication free for two weeks before

Question 31

What happened during Raine's investigation?

Answer 31

Ppts were injected with a glucose tracer and worked in continuous performance tasks based around target recognition for 32 minuets.

Question 32

What was found about the Prefrontal and Parietal areas?

Answer 32

NGRI had low levels of activity in these areas.

Question 33

What are the prefrontal and parietal areas associated with?

Answer 33

Having a loss of self-control and altered emotions as well as lower verbal ability leading to educational failures earlier on in life.

Question 34

What was found in the Limbic system ( amygdala and hippocampus)

Answer 34

NGRI had less activity on the left side and more activity on the right side, compared to the control group.

Question 35

What is the Limbic system associated with?

Answer 35

Causes a lack of inhibition for violent behaviors, fearlessness and a failure to learn the negative effects of violence.

Question 36

What conclusions can be made from Raine's findings?

Answer 36

Some specific physiological processes may pre-dispose some criminals to violent behaviors. Although, it is not biology alone that causes criminal behaviors and it can be considered as part of an upbringing or an experience.

Question 37

What is the medication used which is used to treat sex offenders and prevent recidivism?

Answer 37

Pharmacotherapy.

Question 38

What does pharmacotherapy chemically do?

Answer 38

Chemically it castrates someone which is not permanent and less invasive.

Question 39

What do the drugs do? (pharmacotherapy)

Answer 39

They reduce abnormally excessive sex drives and sexual desires which affects levels of testosterone.

Question 40

An example of a Pharmacotherapy and what it does?

Answer 40

MPA, it prevents the production of testosterone, which leads to a reduction in sexual arousal and prevents sexual assaults or rapes.

Question 41

What does MPA's also impact which can lead to the benefit of further treatment down the line.

Answer 41

The medication reduces anger levels making the criminals more likely to concentrate and take part in CBT or psychotherapy.

Question 42

Who was the researcher into pharmacotherapy?

Answer 42

Maletzky.

Question 43

What did Maletzky investigate into?

Answer 43

The first 4 years of a program involving the use of MPA with sexual offenders.

Question 44

Who was Maletzky's sample?

Answer 44

Of 134 sexual offenders from Oregan USA, 79 were deemed as suitable to have the treatment.

Question 45

What was found in Maletzky's study?

Answer 45

Those receiving the treatment were significantly less likely to re offend sexually and non of the 79 men returned to prison.

Question 46

What is a second biological strategy to prevent criminal behavior?

Answer 46

Using Pet scans and Omega 3 supplements.

Question 47

Why is Omega 3 so important for criminals to take especially?

Answer 47

Our body cannot produce our own essential fatty acids and O3 helps with the elasticity of the nerve cell membranes to help signals pass through, which can reduce anger and aggression levels.

Question 48

Who looked into Omega 3 and the effects it has on prisoners?

Answer 48

Aylesbury Youth Offends Prison.

Question 49

Who did Aylesbury youth offenders prison study?

Answer 49

231 prisoners taking a supplement for 3 months or a placebo, which was blind for all.

Question 50

What were the prisons findings?

Answer 50

Saw violence within the prison fall by 37%, whereas those in the placebo group remained substantially unchanged.