Modern Biological and Psychological Theories of Crime Criminology Genetics and Criminal Behavior Twin Studies Researchers examine both fraternal and identical twins and examine concordance rate for criminal activity Concordance Rate The of pairs of twins sharing the same behavior Dizygotic Twins Fraternal Twins Monozygotic Twins Identical Twins Discordant Monozygotic Twins Identical Twins who were raised apart Genetics and Criminal Behavior DiLalla and Gorresman 1990 meta analysis of 4 decades of twin research into criminality Concluded the average concordance rate for fraternal twins was 22 and for identical twins 51 Gottesman 1987 XYY Influence of heredity is higher for property crime than it is for violent crime Cloninger Adoption Study of Cloninger et al 1982 Examining children whose biological parents were criminals crime rate for children was 4 times greater if bio parents were criminals 2 times greater if adopted parents were criminals 12 and 6 respectively Jacob s Syndrome A genetic disorder which pretty much has no symptoms The VAST majority of criminals do not have XYY not even at a higher than general population This theory has been discredited Normal vs Abnormal Male Intelligence and Crime The impact of IQ on crime continues to generate a significant amount of scientific research even though not much support Bell Curve Herrnstein Murray Criminals have average IQ of 92 However other studies suggest psychopaths have high IQs Could be that low IQ criminals more likely to get caught IQ and Crime Low IQ as a cause of criminality Feebleminded unable to cope with complex social conditions Compared WWI recruits with prisoners 47 of recruits vs 20 of prisoners IQ is not a very strong indicator of criminal behavior The Jukes and the Kallikaks Richard Dugdale 1841 1883 researched a family the Jukes for several generations and found a large number of family members who had been either criminals or paupers Henry Goddard 1866 1957 researched the Kallikak family and found results similar to Dugdale The arguments were used to bolster advocacy of eugenics by demonstrating that traits deemed socially inferior could be passed down from generation to generation Biochemical Conditions Genetics and diet environment Other correlates with criminal behavior vitamin deficiencies low high blood sugar food allergies environmental contaminants etc Examples ingestion of food dyes and lead exposure to radiation brain dysfunctions Biochemical Conditions National attention in 1979 Criminal trial of Dan White for murder of Harvey Milk Found guilty of a lesser offense diminished capacity manslaughter Now infamous Twinkie Defense White s behavior was precipitated by his addiction to sugar laden junk foods Neurophysiological Factors Study of brain activity abnormalities Who is Charles Whitman Neurophysiological Factors Whitman killed his wife and mother and then barricaded himself in a tower at the University of TX where he killed 14 people and wounded 24 others with a high powered rifle Whitman was shot and killed by police Autopsy revealed a large malignant tumor in his brain Tumor may have caused criminal behavior He had sought psychiatric help Kept a diary in which he described his uncontrollable urges to kill and had willed his estate to any mental institution that would study mental problems such as his own Hormones and Crime Testosterone varied results not a lot of support Estrogen Greek word means frenzy menstruating or during their cycle Hormones and Crime PMS study of female prisoners over committed their offenses in the week prior to As a criminal defense 1980 England woman drove her car into her boyfriend pinning him to a telephone poll killing him PMS defense successful diminished capacity manslaughter 1991 American woman had charges of drunken driving dismissed allegedly kicked and cursed a trooper her gynecologist claimed it was due to PMS Hormones and Crime Postpartum Depression Syndrome Many cases Andrea Yates 5 children 1989 Tanya Dacri 20 told police her 7 week old baby had been kidnapped by 2 men at a shopping center later she was charged with murder had drowned him in a bathtub and dismembered the body disposed of the parts in area rivers 25 similar cases in US courts at the same time about successful defenses In England and Canada a woman charged with killing her infant within one year of birth cannot be found guilty of murder if it is determined she was suffering from PPDS Psychological Theories Freud thought criminal behavior is representative of an ID that operates unchecked by the ego and the super ego Freud states that improper resolution of the Oedipal conflict in which the son must learn to identify with the father instead of having sex with his mother Criminals suffer from enormous guilt and perform criminal acts in order to get punished which will temporarily relieve them of their guilt feelings Alexander Criminals ignore the reality principle which is responsible for the delaying of gratification Bowlby 1953 Criminal activity is a substitute for love and affection disruptions in the mother son bond were at the root of most criminal careers Psychological Theories Sociopaths people who engage in frequent repetitive criminal activity manipulative and deceitful seem to lack any social conscience show little remorse when caught superficial arrogant and seem unable to learn from experience Antisocial Personality Disorder a psychopathic diagnosis much more commonly assigned to Sociopaths commit only a small percentage of all crime but a disproportionate amount of men violent crime Biosocial and Psychological Theories of Crime Criminologists fearful of policy implications Aren t great predictors of crime usually determined after the fact Difficult to determine and isolate Group Activity You are a biological theorist From a biological standpoint why do men commit more crimes than women On the flip side why don t women commit more crimes Group Activity Just recently a crime gene has been discovered Individuals who possess this gene are 10 times more likely to commit a crime than individuals without this gene Discuss the good the bad and the ugly associated with knowledge of the crime gene Discuss possible reactions from various individuals and groups in society politicians corporations lawmakers criminologists doctors religious organizations etc What do we do with people who have this gene