Biological Theories

Are Criminals Fundamentally Different from Non-criminals?

• Classical School– No

• Biological positivists– Yes

Emergence of Positivism

• Scientific revolution– Optimism about science soars in the1800s

• Empiricism replaces abstract speculation– Knowledge through measurement

• Determinism replaces free will– Search for prior causes, de-emphasize choice

Positivist Criminology in Born• Lombroso’s theory of atavism

– Influenced by Darwin

• Observed physical differences between criminals and non-criminals– Large jaw and cheekbones

– Shifty eyes, “hard” expression

– Hairy

– Ears/head too large or too small

• Criminals are throwbacks, atavists– Too primitive for modern society

Heredity and Crime• Crime runs in families, twins (2x greater)

– Physical and moral deficits are inherited

• Eugenics: goal is to breed better humans– A scientific movement, 1910-1940– To prevent the unfit from breeding

• Can we control the selection process?– “the elimination of crime can be effected only

by the extirpation of the physically, mentally, and morally unfit” (Hooton, 1939)

Sheldon’s Biological Theories

• Sheldon’s (1949): constitutional psychology– Body type and personality are related

• Three somatotypes – separate scores– Endomorph (soft and round)– Mesomorph (muscular)– Ectomorph (lean)

• Delinquents high in mesomorphy, low in ectomorphy

Renewed Interest inBiological Criminology

• Focus on hybrid explanations that combine sociology and biology

• Soft determinism, limited free will

IQ and Crime:A Persistent Finding

• Offenders tend to have lower (verbal) IQ

• To this day, the IQ-crime association remains largely unexplained

• How might we explain the relationship?

Testosterone:Booth and Osgood (1993)

• High testosterone leads children to behave in ways that alienate others (aggression)

• This leads to fewer social bonds, which over time, increase crime (control theory)

• Conclusions: testosterone affects crime indirectly by reducing social bonds

Ethical and Policy Issues

• Blaming the victim

The Shift to Positivism

• Shift from rational choice to prior causes

• Shift from punishment to rehabilitation

• Shift from responsibility to medicalization