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City University of Hong Kong Department of Applied Social Studies Criminology SS3300 Biological and Psychological Theories on Crime

I. Biological Theory Biological explanations of crime propose that offenders differ from non-offenders in some physiological way. Scholars studied facial features or difference in skull and sought a correlation between criminal behavior and characteristics such as the shape of the ears and the eyes. 1. Atavism (C. Lombroso, 1835-1909) 1.1 Criminal is a biological degenerate, a throwback to an earlier evolutionary stage, more ape-like than human. 1.2 Lombroso called this degeneracy atavism (born criminal). Atavism manifested itself in certain characteristics that he called stigmata. 1.3 He presented a long list of stigmata, eg. ears of unusual size, or occasionally very small, or standing out from the head; fleshy and swollen lips; receding or protruding chin; premature and abundant wrinkling of the skin; supernumerary fingers, toes, or nipples; greater strength in the left limbs. 1.4 After examining 383 Italian men convicted of various crimes, he reported that 21 % has just one of these traits, but 43 percent has five or more. 1.5 He concluded that the presence of five or more stigmata indicated atavism. 2. Mistakes of Lombroso He failed to select in a careful way a control group from the general population with which to compare criminals. Many of the differences between criminals and non-criminals that he documented were small enough to have occurred by chance.

3. Contributions of Lombroso

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Lombrosos most important contributions to modern criminology were the application of measurement and the testing of hypotheses. As a result of this positivist method, his ideas on crime causation were revised, and he increasingly took social and environmental factors into account.

4. The study of Twin criminals (Conklin, p.105). Identical twins develop from a single female egg and have no inherited differences. Fraternal twins develop from two eggs and do have inherited differences. Evidence for genetic factors would take the form of a higher concordance rate (similarity of criminal behavior), between identical twins than between fraternal twins. The results of twin studies conducted in the US, Japan, and Europe between 1929 and 1962 are consistent with the idea that inherited factors influence criminal behavior. It is found that if one identical twin had a criminal conviction, the other twin also had a conviction in 35%; however, for fraternal twin, the percentage is 12%

5. Biochemical Factors and Temperament Some violent behavior seems to be associated with defects in the neurotransmitters serotonin () and dopamine() . Serotonin reduces aggressiveness by inhibiting behavioral responses to emotional stimuli; violent and impulsive behavior seems to be more common among people with lower level of serotonin.

6. Brain Dysfunctions Studies suggest that impaired function of the brain's frontal lobes contributes to a host of pathological behaviors ranging from hyperactivity to homicide. Wallace Deckel et al. report evidence that frontal lobe dysfunction also is a risk factor for destructive drinking and that this dysfunction may be detectable in at-risk individuals before they become problem drinkers. In addition, Deckel et al.'s research offers clues as to why alcoholism and sociopathic behavior often go hand-in-hand.

7. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) A study (Laetitia Thompson and colleagues) report that boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had significantly worse conduct disorder and substance abuse problems than those without ADHD. The researchers studied 171 boys, ranging in age from 13 to 19, in a residential program for substance abusers with behavioral disorders. The results of the study suggest that conduct-disordered boys with ADHD are "particularly troubled individuals."

II. Psychological Theories 1. Intelligence and crime (A. Binet, late 1800s; Goddard, 1914)
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1.1 Intelligence tests were developed by Binet and subsequently used to explain criminality through the concept of inherited feeblemindedness, or lack of intelligence. 1.2 Goddard modified Binets test to develop a unilinear scale of intelligence. He administered the test to the residents of boys and girls institutions and found that none scored above the mental age of twelve (or IQ75). (He assumed that full mental capacity is achieved by chronological age 16). 1.3 He considered that the high-grade defectives (morons) were potentially dangerous because , even though they could be trained to function in society, their stupidity would very likely get them into trouble. 1.4 The segregation of the feebleminded in special institutions as well as sterilization were proposed solutions to the problem. 1.5 Until US army agreed to allow the testing of the degree of feeblemindedness, the idea that most offenders were feebleminded had fallen into disfavor. It was found that more than half the US was considered as feebleminded. 2. Self-concept and crime (Reckless et al, 1956; 1957, containment theorists) 2.1 Self-concept is the persons perception of himself in reference to significant others in his immediate word. 2.2 A good self-concept veers slum boys away from delinquency. 2.3 A poor self-concept gives the slum boy no resistance to deviancy, delinquent companions, or delinquent subcultures. 2.4 The self-concept is viewed as one factor which might insulate adolescents from the adversities of family, class position, and neighbourhood. Explanation of the relationship between self-concept and crime 1. People with low self-concept tend to become offender because they dont value themselves, don't care what happens to them. 2. Criminal activity is another route to the success, by succeeding at crime they can recover some of their lost self-respect. 3. Some people - adolescents in particular - may commit offenses because they will lose status in the eyes of their friends. 4. Poor self-image of some offenders is product of the fact that they have been identified as such (effect of labeling).

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3. Criminal personality (S. Freud, 1856-1939) 3.1 Id: drives and instincts - sex and aggression 3.2 Ego: reality principle, balance between id and superego 3.3 Superego: conscience, produces feelings of guilt 3.4 The ego of a healthy individual successfully represses id impulses or channels them to some acceptable outlet (a process of sublimation). 3.5 Criminal behavior arises from Weak (underdeveloped) ego eg. fixed in a particular psychosexual stage castration anxiety (the Oedipus complex) penis envy Underdeveloped superego eg. lack of parental care or love Overdeveloped superego eg. too harsh and rigid, generate a desire of punishment, unconsciously wishing to be caught to allay the guilt feelings Reference: Conklin, John E. (2004). Criminology (Eighth Edition). Boston: Allyn and Bacan. Glick, L. (2005) Criminology, NY: Pearson Education. Schmalleger, F. (2006) Criminology Today: An Integrative Introduction , NJ: Prentice Hall. Siegel, L.J. (2003) Criminology (Eighth Edition), CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning (2007) 2004