Early Biological Positivism 1850-1930 - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Early Biological Positivism 1850-1930

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Title: Biology and Crime Author: Jeff Maahs Last modified by: Jeff Maahs Created Date: 10/16/2001 6:21:42 PM Document presentation format: On-screen Show – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Early Biological Positivism 1850-1930


1
Early Biological Positivism1850-1930
  • Lombrosos Born Criminal
  • Criminals as atavistic throwbacks
  • Identified through presence of stigmata
  • Peaked nose (as bird of prey)
  • Sloped forehead, large jaws
  • Strong canine teeth (as with carnivores)
  • General hairiness of the body
  • Others Phrenology, Body Type, feeblemindedness

2
The XYY supermale
  • An extra Y chromosome
  • Initial discovery in 1961
  • Flurry of activity immediately after
  • Not a supermale
  • Low intelligence, physiological differences
  • More evidence that XXY abnormality related to
    crime
  • Even here, very rare and due to learning disorders

3
The demise of early positivism
  • 1. Poor theory
  • Single biological trait as direct cause of crime.
  • 2. Poor/biased research
  • Crime runs in families (Dugdale)
  • 3. Dangerous policy implications
  • Eugenics movement
  • Largely discredited by Sociologists by 1950.

4
Where does biology stand now?
  • Impression from the Barkan book?
  • Criticizes all biological research on poor
    methodology or shifting definitions of crime
  • Example, Barkan Why dont all aggressive or
    risk-seeking people commit crimes?
  • Football players, sky-divers
  • Response But, why dont most people who face
    poverty and inequality commit crime?
  • Get a job at MacDonalds, muddle through life

5
Is Criminality Inherited?
  • KEY IS SEPARATING NATURE AND NURTURE
  • Parental Deviance (Crime runs in family)
  • Twin Studies
  • Adoption Studies

6
Parental Deviance
  • Parents crime and deviance is a robust predictor
    of the childs delinquency
  • Due to genetics, or other factors?
  • Deviant parents more likely to use harsh/erratic
    discipline, less supervision?
  • Deviant parents live in bad neighborhoods?
  • Deviant parents abuse children/each other?

7
Twin Studies
  • Compare MZ twins with DZ twins
  • Concordance rates if one twin is criminal, is
    the other?
  • Danish Study (Christiansen, 1979)
  • MZ52
  • DZ22

8
Adoption Studies
  • Compare the two sets of parents that an adopted
    youth has.
  • Biological parents?genetics
  • Adoptive parents?social circumstance

9
Cross Fostering AnalysisMednick et al. (1984)
CRITICISMS OF THIS?
10
Modern Biosocial Theories
  • Biochemical Conditions
  • Nutrition, exposure to toxins, hormonal,
    excessive sugar
  • Direct cause sugar?attention/impulsive
  • Indirect causs
  • exposure to lead?impaired learning, cognition?
    school failure?delinquency

11
Neurophysiological Factors
  • What factors can determine brain functioning?
  • How do we measure brain functioning?
  • How does brain functioning relate to criminal or
    deviant behavior?

12
Barkans Critique of Biology and Crime
  • The relativity of deviance
  • Methodological problems
  • Inadequate control, small sample sizes, etc
  • Group rate differences
  • Social/policy implications
  • Cant change biology?

13
Terrie Moffits Biosocial Theory
  • Biology
  • Some children have slight neurophysiological
    deficits
  • Causes of NPD? Perinatal, genetic
  • Results of NPD? Difficult temperament, Slow to
    learn, difficult to parent
  • Environments
  • Some parents are poorly equipped to handle such a
    child
  • Lack of resources, lack of parenting skills

14
SUMMARY OF BIOLOGY
  • All modern biological theories incorporate
    sociological or psychological concepts.
  • Biology related in an indirect fashion--and with
    the environment.
  • Example Caspis research on female criminality
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