Physiological theories of criminality
- Created by: StarrWinchester
- Created on: 13-02-20 16:26
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- Physiological explanations of criminality
- Cesare Lombroso
- Lombroso was a physician and professor of criminal psychiatry born in 1835. He was known as the "father of criminology!
- CONCLUSIONS: Criminals are a evolutionary throwback and have reverted to a more primitive stage of human evolution. This is known as atavism.
- Criminals show a higher percentage of physical and mental anomalies than non-criminals
- Criminals may not be responsible for their behaviour as it is predetermined by forces outside their control. The stigmata are symptoms not causes.
- Sheldon
- Sheldon developed a theory similar to Lombroso's that criminal behaviour is linked to a person's physical body type
- he examined 4000 photographs of college age men and rated each one on a scale of 1 to 7 on their resemblance to mesomorphy
- He put forward the idea that there are three body types known as Somatotypes.
- Ectomorph
- Thin and fragile, lean, lightly muscled, small shouldered, thin.
- Restrained, sensitive, introverted, least likely to be a criminal
- Thin and fragile, lean, lightly muscled, small shouldered, thin.
- Endomorph
- Soft and fat, underdeveloped muscles, round physique, difficulty losing weight
- Tolerant, relaxed, sociable, pleasant, extraverted
- Soft and fat, underdeveloped muscles, round physique, difficulty losing weight
- Mesomorph
- Muscular, athletic, excellent physique, gain muscle easily
- Courageous, energetic, active, assertive, aggressive, risk taker, adventurous, most likely to be a criminal
- Muscular, athletic, excellent physique, gain muscle easily
- Ectomorph
- Backed up by Hartl et al (1982)
- Excludes the possibility that nurture could play apart in someone becoming a criminal
- Sheldon developed a theory similar to Lombroso's that criminal behaviour is linked to a person's physical body type
- Raine 1997
- Aimed to find out if there is a difference in the structure of brain activity between people who have murdered and those who haven't
- 41 offenders pleading NGRI to the crime of murder and 41 controls
- Participants completed a CPT task to get their brain working them had a PET scan to look into their brains
- FINDINGS: Murderers showed less activity in the frontal lobe and prefrontal cortex which is associated with rational thinking, self restraint and memory.
- Less activity in the parietal lobe which is associated with abstract thinking such as morality and justice
- FINDINGS: Murderers showed less activity in the frontal lobe and prefrontal cortex which is associated with rational thinking, self restraint and memory.
- Participants completed a CPT task to get their brain working them had a PET scan to look into their brains
- 41 offenders pleading NGRI to the crime of murder and 41 controls
- CONCLUSION: Prefrontal deficits might make someone more impulsive. Deficits in the limbic system could make someone aggressive. There IS a link between brain structure and aggression
- Aimed to find out if there is a difference in the structure of brain activity between people who have murdered and those who haven't
- Assumes that criminality is a result of the criminal's biological functioning
- Cesare Lombroso
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