Criminal behaviour

Question	Answer
Characteristics of criminal behaviour	Characteristics= difficult to define-many different types of crime/criminal behaviour which is bound to the types of society- Andrews and Bonta offer insight into what criminal behaviour is- includes an act prohibited by law and punished by the state,that has harmful effects on a victim,and perpetrator knew what they were doing was illegal
General characteristics of CAREER criminals- Rationalisation	Rationalise behaviour by diverting blame- questioning motive of others to try and justify behaviour/avoid responsibility- doesn't evaluate consequences of behaviour- or may downplay them (minimalisation)
General characteristics of CAREER criminals- Entitlement	Feel they're above law- can commit any act they want-because everything is about them- if crime benefits them- is justified
General characteristics of CAREER criminals-Antisocial values	Many suffer from antisocial personality disorder-manipulative, violent- disregard- for law- don't display any remorse for their actions or empathy toward others.
General characteristics of CAREER criminals- impulsivity	Inability to control behaviour or temperament by acting on impulses- don't think before about behaviour or consequences
General characteristics of CAREER criminals-Family dysfunction	Family unable to effectively problem solve/ provide emotional and psychological stability- can lead to problems for a person already predisposed to antisocial behaviour- substance abuse issues often seen in dysfunctional environment- further problems with poor decision making
General characteristics of CAREER criminals-Invincibility	Inflated sense of optimism- thinks they'll never get caught- fact that many crimes go undetected reinforces this thinking- Often believe that because certain strategy worked in the past- will continue to be successful
General characteristics of CAREER criminals-Power centric	See people and situations as a power struggle-each encounter is a battle between strong and weak- once the criminal has decided they hold the strength- will not exploit weaker opponent- often dominated to counteract feelings of powerlessness
General characteristics of CAREER criminals-Easily distracted	Often lose focus on their goals and commitments and give up- inability to remain focussed on their socially acceptable targets-often causes them to fall back on their old habits of crime- even after rehabilitation and prison-can't commit to change
General characteristics of CAREER criminals- cognitively lazy-	Lazy in both thought and behaviour- choose the path of least resistance- lack of ambition results in poor choices that are not thought out- get bored easily may pursue crime to compensate for under stimulation
Bio exp intro	Little research to suggest there's a specific gene for specific crimes- but been shown some inherit bio predisposition for criminal behaviour-eg personality type or a gene that makes them more aggressive- more likely to commit crime
Genes linked crime- bio exp1- inherited criminality	2 genes linked to criminal activity- Monoamine oxidase A - MAOA production controlled by MAOA gene- low activity variant of this gene MAOA-L is linked to violent behaviour as serotonin is responsible for stabilising mood/ calming- MAOA-L variation means serotonin is not being recycled properly- contributing to low serotonin levels and consequently anger and crime
Research support- Brunner- genes	Analysed DNA of 28 males of a dutch family of violent crime-men showed MAOA-L gene- had abnormally low serotonin-could account for aggressive behaviour
bio exp1-inherited criminality- twin studies	Raine compared concordance rates of MZ and DZ twins 52% concordance rates for MZ and 21% for DZ- MZ twins share 100% genes-DZ share 50%- so higher concordance rate suggests genetic component- share more genes-both twins more likely tobe criminals
bio exp1-inherited criminality- family studies	Obson and West- surveyed 411 males aged 24-25- fathers all in their 40s- found 40% of sons with criminal fathers also had criminal conviction compared to only 13% of sons w/ non criminal fathers
bio exp1-inherited criminality- adoption studies	Crowe- adopted children w/bio criminal parent- had 38% had criminal record by 18- compared to 6% of those without bio criminal parent- shows influence of nature over nurture in criminal behaviour- even though children don't share environment w/criminal parent- still at increased risk of becoming a criminal due to shared genes
supporting evidence	Evidence of behaviour being at least partly genetic comes from studies finding high concordance rates between genetically close family members- Raine 52 vs 21- mz vs dz- increased genetics shared - more likely to commit crime- but not 100% concordance rate for mz- other factors
Nature nurture- reductionist	MZ concordance rates not being 100% suggest other factors eg environment play a role- - but genetic exp ignores these nurture factors- diathesis stress model can explain why MZ share 100% genes but only one will become criminal- Frazzeto found link between MAOA-L gene and aggression but only in those who experienced childhood sexual or physical abuse- suggest crim behaviour is genetic AND environmental- for more comprehensive- genes should be considered alongside individual and social factors
Cause or effect	In order for genes to cause crim behaviour- must be linked to a physical or psychological effect eg MAOA-L variant leading to low serotonin-common observation criminals had same head injury- 8.5% of US population have had a brain injury compared w/ 60% in US prisons- therefore brain injuries may be due to nurture rather than nature- maybe low serotonin from head injury rather than shared genes
Methodological issues	Relies on heritability studies, family and twin studies(non- experimental)- twin- may be a confounding variable perhaps MZ twins have higher concordance rate not because of greater genetic similarity but because people treat them more similarly than MZ twins Family- can't rule out influence of environment- difficult to separate influence of nature and nurture- counter- can separate nature/ nurture- adoption- Crowe
Bio exp amygdyla- intro	Criminals have functional or structural brain differences compared to non criminals- Raine found no. functional differences in several areas- 1 area of interest= amygdyla- linked to aggression
Amygdyla- P1structure and function	Located in medial temporal lobe- part of wider set of brain structures called the limbic system-amygdala takes info from thalamus - interprets if it's a threat or not - produces fear (flight) or aggression (fight) - responsible for emotions-/ urges - so
Amygdala and aggression	Evidence for the role of the amygdala in aggression comes from research on people with Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED)- characterised by sudden episodes of impulsive, aggressive, violent behaviour- more likely to engage in crime-
amygdala and aggression- evidence study	Showed IED and non-IED ppts images of faces while having fMRI scan. IED show higher levels of amygdala activity when viewing angry faces compared to controls. Shows the link between amygdala activity and processing of aggressive emotions - high levels of amygdala activity may cause IED. High realism - angry facial expression is an everyday signal of threat.
Amygdala and fear conditioning	How does crime start? One argument is that amygdala dysfunction might lead to problems with processing fear. Gao et al (2010) - children inhibit aggression through fear conditioning - learn that aggressive behaviour leads to punishment. Amygdala dysfunction - don't link punishment to aggressive behaviour - continue to behave in this bay.
Fear conditioning- research support	Longitudinal study, 1795 ppts.- Tested for fear conditioning at age 3- Measure was physiological arousal (indicated by sweating) in response to painful noise. 20 years later -looked at which ppts were involved in criminal behaviour. Those who committed crime at age 23 showed no fear conditioning at 3 years old - they were fearless.
Amygdala eval- supporting evidence	COCCARO ET AL. (2007) - studied people with IED- Viewed images of faces while having a fMRI scan- IED ppts showed high amygdala activity when viewing angry faces compared to controls- Association between amygdala dysfunction and processing of aggression. Evaluation - High validity - angry facial expressions area every day signal of threat High vadlity - use of brain scans (fMRI)
Amygdala- nature, nurture- reductionist	Amygdala is part of limbic system - doesn’t operate on its own. Raine et al (1997) - murderers showed high activity in amygdala but low activity in prefrontal cortex (self control, regulates impulsive behaviour). Amygdala alone over simplified - neurology is complex.- CB likely to an outcome of many brain structures - amygdala alone too simplistic.
Amygdala- cause and effect	Is it that the defects in amygdala function occur first, and this causes the criminal behaviour? Or is it that the criminal behaviour causes changes to the amygdala? Coccaro et al (2007) - differences in amygdala activity in IED - were these high levels because of amygdala damage or effect of being criminal? If due to amygdala alone - why does it run in families? What causes amygdala damage in the first place? Genetics? Prenatal factors?
Amygdala- methodological issues	Objective and scientific explanation - use of brain scans (e.g. Coccaro et al., 2007 used fMRI scan). High validity - compare brain activity using scientific measurements. Evidence from longitudinal studies. Gao et al (2010) - Those with no fear conditioning due to amygdala dysfunction at age 3 had committed crime at age 23.- Suggesting that it is amygdala dysfunction that leads to crime and not vice versa, allowing us to establish cause and effect (COUNTER CAUSE&EFFECT) Powerful support for role of amygdala in aggression - especially due to its predictive validity.

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	Created by Darcey Griffiths 19 days ago