Download Chapter 5 Biological Explanations

Biological Explanations
“Heredity is one of the reasons that
parents with problems often have
children with problems” J. Harris
98:294
Quick facts…
• Chronic young offenders suffer twice the
rate of psychiatric disorders
• Offenders tend to have lower levels of
glucose uptake in prefrontal cortex
• Offenders tend to have abnormally high
levels of seretonin in brain
• … suffer dietary imbalances
Introduction
• Limited attention among
criminologists in N.A.
• .. a “positivistic-deterministic” framework
• … Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel
• … early dominance of sociology (Ch. 7)
• ! J.Q. Wilson and R.J. Herrnstein Crime and
Human Nature
• “….without a more interdisciplinary approach
“sociological explanations incomplete, and
inadequate as explanatory models” (p. 141)
• EARLY THEORIES
• Socrates and physiognomy
• Somatotyping
• … Jekyll and Hyde
• … atavism
• Francis Gall and phrenology
• Charles Goring and crime =
heredity X environment
Body Types and Criminal Behaviour
• William Sheldon’s constitutional theory
– Endomorph
– Mesomorph
– Ectomorph
• … body types and temperament
• Today life course theory
Chromosomes and Criminal Behaviour
• Biological defect either inherited or result
of genetic mutation
• XX vs. XY ‘normal’
• XXY (karotype) Klinefelter’s
syndrome… R. Speck, D. Hugan, Sean
Farley
– Work of Sarnoff Mednick
• Incidence rare but…
Twins and Adoption Studies
• Why?
• Attempt to delineate role of biological
influence(s) vs. environment
• Monozygotic vs. dizygotic twins
• … concordance rates (26-93%
!predisposition)
• Adoption studies…
• Heredity link impressive but not conclusive
• Points to possible environmental triggers
• Intelligence:
• “how a person behaves is determined by
how he thinks. Criminals think
differently” S. Samenow, ’84.
• R. Herrnstein ’89: The Bell Curve
• Gordon ’87: lower verbal IQ risk
delinquency
• Radcliffe ’97: IQ and pH levels in cortex
• Personality:
• How do we acquire our personality?
• Lenneberg ’67: possible biological
foundation
• Numerous studies demonstrating a
personality-crime association
• Herrnstein… “may have a heritable link”
• Alcohol and Illicit Drugs:
• Man twice as likely to be treated for
alcohol/drug abuse… crime
• Over half incarcerated in the ’90s consumed
alcohol/drugs day of offence
• Caboret & Wesner ’90: genetic link to alcohol
abuse
• Ethanol key link to aggression
• J. Axelrod ’89: cocaine fries neurotransmitter
• … drugs/alcohol act on but ? role of
environment
• Nutrition & Environmental Toxins:
• Dr. Rice ’95: “spend it feeding good food
to young mothers-to-be”
• Crime and hypoglycemia
– (low blood sugar)
• K. Smith ’97: low tryptophan diet
• Lo nsdale & Shamberger ’80: junk food
and delinquency linked
• Walsh ’97: crime and excess zinc &
copper
• Manganese (voodoo metal) and violence
– Groote Eyland
• pH levels and crime
• Acidifying diet and crime
Summary
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Emerged era of social control
Humanitarian and utilitarian concerns..?
Positivistic
Biological predisposition with
environmental influences
• “born criminal”
• Environment and genetic >
neurochemical > behaviour
Another chapter done…