Biological Theories

Objectives:
 Know the importance of biological theories in explaining the causes of crime;
 Distinguish the early biological theories and modern biological theories;
 Elaborate the study of Lombroso in biological theories;

Deadline: January 22, 2021

Introduction:
Welcome to last Module! This lesson introduces to you the biological theories in explanation
of crime causation. Biological theories of crime asserted a linkage between certain biological
conditions and an increased tendency to engage in criminal behavior. Crime is a highly complex
phenomenon that changes across cultures and across time. Activities that are legal in one country
are sometimes illegal in others. As cultures change over time, behaviors that once were not
criminalized may become criminalized. As you go far for this lesson you will know the explanations
of biological theories in explanation of crime causation.
Positivism emphasizes the techniques of observation, the comparative method, and
experimentation in the development of knowledge concerning human behavior and the nature of
society. It also stressed the idea that much of our behavior is a function of external social forces
beyond individual control, as well as internal social forces such as our mental capabilities and
biological makeup. This theory further argued that human behavior is pre-disposed and fully
determined by individual differences and biological traits meaning it is not freewill that drives
people to commit crimes.
In positivism it highlights the relevance of empirical or scientific study of crime, criminals
and criminal behavior. In this study presumed that scientific study of criminal behavior should find
the “causes” of such behavior believing that the causes of crime are beyond the control of the
individual. In short positivist theory shows a deterministic explanation. It played an important role
in the development of modern criminology.
So prepare yourself for the exciting topics inside this lesson. Enjoy the activities and keep
reading!

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Activity
Through-Bubble!
List 3 traits that you get from your father and mother in the bubble thought. Select
the best trait that do you think it is your best asset from the list in the bubble
thought and explain on the space provided below. Make it in 5 sentences.

Father side: Mother side:

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 

Explain your best asset here!

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Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (5pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 10pts.

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Analysis
Answer the following questions below. Each answer must be composed of 50 words and
maximum of 100 words. Write your answer on boxes below.

Why is it that the biological theory is important in explaining the causes of crime?

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How it is important of the study of Lombroso in explaining the causes of crime?

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Distinguish the views of the traditional biological theories to the modern biological
theories.
 Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (10pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 15pts.

Abstraction
Biological Theory
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 Biological explanations of crime assume that some people are ‘born criminals’, who are
physiologically distinct from non-criminals. According to biological positivists the basic cause of
crime is biological inferiority, which is indicated by physical or genetic characteristics that
distinguish criminals from non-criminals. Biological theorists also advocate brain surgery, chemical
treatment, improved diets, and better mother and child care.
Early Biological Theories vs. Modern Biological Theories
Early biological theories viewed that structure determines function that is, individuals
behave differently because of the fundamental fact that they are somehow structurally different. It
focus strongly on inherited characteristics.
Modern biological theories examine the entire range of biological characteristics, including
those that result from genetic defects (and thus are not inherited) and those that are
environmentally induced.
What was the study of Lombroso?
Cesare Lombroso (1836-1909)
The Italian leader of the positivist school of criminology, was criticized for his methodology
and his attention to the biological characteristics of offenders, but his emphasis on the need to
study offenders scientifically earned him the “father of modern criminology.” His major contribution
is the development of a scientific approach to the study of criminal behavior and to reform the
criminal law. He wrote the essay entitled “CRIME: Its Causes and Remedies” that contains his key
ideas and the classifications of criminals.
Classification of Criminals by Lombroso:
1. Born Criminals – there are born criminals according to Lombroso, the belief that being
criminal behavior is inherited.
2. Criminal by Passion – are individuals who are easily influenced by great emotions like fit
of anger.
3. Insane Criminals – are those who commit crime due to abnormalities or psychological
disorders. They should be exempted from criminal liability.
4. Criminoloid – a person who commits crime due to less physical stamina/self, self-control.
5. Occasional Criminal –are those who commit crime due to insignificant reasons that
pushed them to do at a given occasion.
6. Pseudo-criminals – are those who kill in self-defense.
Atavism- Latin ’atavus” mean ancestor, claimed a return to a primitive or subhuman type of man,
characterized physically by a variety of inferior morphological features reminiscent of apes and
lower primates, occurring in the more simian fossil men and, to some extent, preserved in modern
“savages”.
Stigmata related to an atavistic criminal
• Chin preceding, or excessively long, or short and flat, as in apes.
• Abnormal dentition.
• Abundance, variety, and precocity of wrinkles.
• Anomalies of the hair, marked by characteristics of the opposite sex.
• Defects of the thorax, such as too many or too few ribs, or supernumerary nipples.
• Inversion of sex characters in the pelvic organs.
• Excessive length of arms.
• Supernumerary fingers and toes.
• Imbalance of the hemisphere of the brain (asymmetry of the cranium).
• Deviation in head size and shape from type common to race and region from which the
criminal came.
• Asymmetry of the face.
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 • Eye defects and peculiarities.
• Excessive dimensions of the jaw and cheek bones.
• Ears of unusual size, or occasionally very small, or standing out from the head as to those
of a chimpanzee.
• Nose twisted, upturned, or flattened in thieves, or aquiline or breaks like in murderers, or
with a tip rising like a peak from swollen nostrils.
• Lips fleshy, swollen, and protruding.
• Pouch in the cheek like those of some animals.

Somatotype Theory by William Sheldon

William H. Sheldon (1898-1977) – Sheldon is an influence of the Somatotype School of
Criminology, which related body built to behavior. He became popular of his own Somatotyping
Theory. His key ideas are concentrated on the principle of “Survival of the Fittest” as a behavioral
science. He combines the biological and psychological explanation to understand deviant
behavior. Sheldon’s “Somatotyping Theory” maintains the belief of inheritance as the primary
determinants of behavior and the physique is reliable indicator of personality.
Classification of Body Physique by Sheldon
a. Endomorphy – a type with relatively predominance of soft, roundness throughout the
regions of the body. They have low specific gravity. Persons with typically relaxed and
comfortable disposition.
b. Mesomorphy – athletic type, predominance of muscle, bone and connective tissue,
normally heavy, hard and firm, sting and tough. They are the people who are routinely
active and aggressive, and they are the most likely to commit crimes.
c. Ectomorphy – thin physique, flat chest, delicacy through the body, slender, poorly muscled.
They tend to look more fatigue and withdrawn.

Heredity Studies:
The common expression like, “it is in the blood” and “like father like son”, is usually heard
whenever several members in the family is criminal. Accordingly, heredity transmit single trait and
characteristic from parent to offspring.
1. Kallikak Family Tree (1914) by Henry H. Goddard
“The Kallikak Family: A Study in the Heredity of Feeble-Mindedness” Goddard’s
traced six generations of the family (489 members) of a young institutionalized woman and
found “an appalling amount of defectiveness”. Yet there was also information about “a good
family of the same name it emerged that the forebear met “a feeble-minded girl by whom he
become the father of a feeble-minded son”.
Subsequently, the father “married a respectable girl of good family”, by whom he
produced children with “a marked tendency towards professional careers”, who married into
the best families . . . signers of the Declaration of Independence . . . etc.’ The lesson was
clear and dramatic; the study linked medical and moral deviance and fused the new
Mendelian Laws with the old biblical injunction that “the sins of the fathers shall be
visited on the sons”.
2. Juke Family Tree (1877) by Richard Dugdale
This view was expounded in, The Jukes: A Study in Crime, Pauperism, Disease and
Heredity. This study was about a rural clan that “over seven generations produced 1,200
bastards, beggar, murderers, prostitute, thieves and syphilitics.”
Dugdale’s Research Aftermath
The following are Dugdale’s findings from the juke family study
 310 died as paupers,
 150 were criminals,

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  7 were murderers,
 100 were drunkards, and
 More than half of the women were prostitutes.
3. Sir Jonathan Edwards Family Tree
Base on the study, Sir Jonathan Edwards was a famous preacher during the colonial; when
his family tree was traced; none of the descendants was found to be criminal.
Edwards Family Tree Findings
After generations of research, the following were concluded:
a. practically no lawbreakers;
b. more than 100 became lawyers and 30 became judges;
c. there 13 college presidents and hundred and more professors;
d. 60 were physicians;
e. 100 were clergymen, missionaries and theological professors;
f. 80 were elected public office, including 3 mayors, 3 governors, several member of the
congress, 3 senators and 1 vice president
g. 75 became an army and navy officers.

Application
Direction: Base on the study of heredity draw your family tree from your grandfather up to you and
traced back and then determine it whether you came from a good or bad family and make your
remarks below.
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 Paste your family tree here!

Remarks:
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Note: if it is in need to produce another bond paper do it and please attach it her

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 Sociological Theories

Objectives:
 Know the kinds of sociological theories;
 Discuss the importance of sociological theories; and
 Apply the sociological perspective to a scenario and make suggestions to prevent
the occurrence of such problem.

Introduction:
This lesson introduces to you the biological theories in explanation of crime causation. The
sociological approach theorizes that crime is shaped by factors external to the individual: their
experiences within the neighborhood, the peer group, and the family. It means that society
“constructs” criminality. It attempts to connect the issues of the individual’s criminality with the
broader social structures and cultural values of society, familial, or peer group.
It suggest that crime is caused by anomie, or the dissociation of the individual from the
collective conscience; by social disorganization; by anomie resulting from a lack of opportunity to
achieve aspirations; by the learning of criminal values and behaviors; and by the failure to properly
socialize individuals.
So prepare yourself for the exciting topics inside this lesson. Enjoy the activities and
keep reading!

Activity

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 Horizontal
2. Strain
4. anomie
7. cultural deviance
8. subcultural

Vertical
1. disorganization
3. social learning
5. association
6. environment

Select 2 words in the crossword puzzle and explain in your own understanding. Make it 2
sentences each word.
1st word
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Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (5pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 10pts.

Analysis
Direction: Discuss the following theories in your own ideas. Write your answer in 30 to 50 words
on the space provided below. Do not copy the words in the abstraction it should be your own idea.

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 1. Social disorganization
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2. Strain/Anomie Theory
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3. Subcultural Theory
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4. Social Control Theory
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 _________________________________________________________________________
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5. Differential Association Theory
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6. Cultural Deviance Theory
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7. Social Learning Theory
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Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (10pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 15pts.

Abstraction

Sociological Theories

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 This theory suggests that the explanations of criminal behavior lie outside the
individual. It is attributed on the criminogenic social conditions. Sociological causes of crime refer
to things, place and people with whom the person comes in contact and which play a part in
determining actions and conducts. These causes may contribute to the development of criminal
behaviour. The following are the sociological theories of causation of crime:
Social Disorganization Theory
Social disorganization refers to the breakdown in traditional social control and
organization in the society, community, neighbourhood, or family so that deviant and criminal
activity result. It states a person’s physical and social environments are primarily responsible for
the behavioural choices that a person makes. At the core of social disorganization theory, is that
location matters when it comes to predicting illegal activity. It is most open applied to urban
crime.it simply focus on the immediate social environment, like family, peer group, and school.
Characteristics of communities where crime is more likely to happen:
1. Economically deprived
2. Large in size
3. High in multiunit housing like apartments
4. High in residential mobility (people frequently move into and out of the community)
5. High in family disruption (high rates of divorce, single parent families)
Proponents: Clifford R. Shaw and Henry D. Mckay

Strain/Anomie Theory
Anomie theories (sometimes also called strain theories) deal with the question of why norm
breaks occur more clearly in certain societies or historical epochs than in others. The focus is on
the link between crime and the social structure of society. According to anomie theories, crime
arises in particular as a result of the pressure exerted by the unequal distribution of socio-
economic resources in society. Anomie can thus be described as disturbed stability in society due
to inequality in the social structure or a lack of individual or collective strategies for adapting to
changing social circumstances.
The French sociologist Emile Durkheim, who introduced the concept of anomie to sociology
for the first time in 1893 and understood it as a form of ratelessness in societies, is regarded as a
pioneer of anomie theory. Durkheim coined the term anomie to describe the pathological effects of
the rapidly developing social and labor division in early industrialism. The associated weakening of
norms and rules for the allocation of goods led to intensified competition for the increasing gains in
prosperity.
Robert Merton, on the other hand, is regarded as the main scholar of anomie theory.
Merton’s explanations of anomie emerged in 1938 under the influence of the theoreticians of the
Chicago School. These led Merton to explore the topic of “social integration” and the need to
control human desire. In contrast to Durkheim, Merton focused his reflections on the discrepancy
between pre-defined goals and the limited social resources available.

Subcultural Theory
Cohen’s subcultural theory assumes that crime is a consequence of the union of young
people into so-called subcultures in which deviant values and moral concepts dominate.
Subcultural theory became the dominant theory of its time.
Cohen’s basic assumption is that most juvenile criminals are members of delinquent
subcultures. Subcultures are defined as subsystems or antisystem of society with their own
attitudes and norms that often contradict the moral concepts of majority society.
According to Cohen, the union of young people into subcultures is the result of adjustment and
status problems of their members caused by the inequality of the existing class society.

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Social Control Theory
Social control theory assumes that people can see the advantages of crime and are
capable of inventing and executing all sorts of criminal acts on the spot—without special
motivation or prior training. It assumes that the impulse to commit crime is resisted because of the
costs associated with such behavior. It assumes further that a primary cost of crime is the
disapproval of the people about whom the potential offender cares.
The first task of the control theorist is to identify the important elements of the bond to
society. The second task is to say what is meant by society—to locate the persons and institutions
important in the control of delinquent and criminal behavior. The following list of elements of the
bond— attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief—has proved useful in explaining the
logic of the theory and in summarizing relevant research. It has also provided guidelines for
evaluation of delinquency prevention programs.

Differential Association Theory

Differential association theory proposes that people learn values, attitudes, techniques, and
motives for criminal behavior through their interactions with others. It is a learning theory of
deviance that was initially proposed by sociologist Edwin Sutherland in 1939 and revised in 1947.
The theory has continued to be enormously important to the field of criminology ever since.
Sutherland’s theory doesn’t account for why an individual becomes a criminal but how it
happens. He summarized the principles of differential association theory with nine propositions:
1. All criminal behavior is learned.
2. Criminal behavior is learned through interactions with others via a process of
communication.
3. Most learning about criminal behavior happens in intimate personal groups and
relationships.
4. The process of learning criminal behavior may include learning about techniques to carry
out the behavior as well as the motives and rationalizations that would justify criminal
activity and the attitudes necessary to orient an individual towards such activity.
5. The direction of motives and drives towards criminal behavior is learned through the
interpretation of legal codes in one’s geographical area as favorable or unfavorable.
6. When the number of favorable interpretations that support violating the law outweigh the
unfavorable interpretations that don’t, an individual will choose to become a criminal.
7. All differential associations aren’t equal. They can vary in frequency, intensity, priority, and
duration.
8. The process of learning criminal behaviors through interactions with others relies on the
same mechanisms that are used in learning about any other behavior.
9. Criminal behavior could be an expression of generalized needs and values, but they don’t
explain the behavior because non-criminal behavior expresses the same needs and values.

Cultural Deviance Theory

Explain how people living in slum neighborhoods react to isolation from the rest of society
and economic deprivation. Because this lifestyle is extremely frustrating and draining, members of
the lower class often create their own subculture (a social unit with its own rules and values). The
middle-class culture emphasizes hard work, delayed gratification, and education. The lower class
subculture emphasizes excitement, toughness, fearlessness, immediate gratification, and "street
smarts." The lower class subculture has many followers because it is easier to fit into than the
middle class culture. Slum dwellers are forced to violate the law because they obey the rules of
the deviant culture in order to fit into their surroundings.

Social Learning Theory

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 Social learning theories suggest that children learn to exhibit aggressive behaviors because
they observe others acting aggressively and can see how these behaviors are reinforced over time
(Bandura, 1973). Social learning theories emphasize the importance of the social context and
posit that individuals can learn by observing others’ actions and whether these individuals are
positively or negatively reinforced when exhibiting aggressive behaviors.
Social learning theory proposes that individuals learn by observing the behaviors of others
(models). They then evaluate the effect of those behaviors by observing the positive and negative
consequences that follow. Social learning theorists assert that members of the adolescent's social
network who use substances serve as models for adolescents. If adolescents see role models,
such as parents or friends, using substances with positive consequences, they are more likely to
develop positive expectations of substance use, which increases the likelihood that the adolescent
will use substances.

Application

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Direction: Select two of the sociological theories and create scenario wherein it could portray and
explain the theory of your choice. Make 2 suggestions to what you did. Make suggestion with what
you made from your scenario to prevent it happen.
Note: your scenario must be fit on the box below!

Write your scenario here!

Suggestions:
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Write your scenario here!

Suggestions:
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Reflective Journal

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Direction: Fill-in the space provided below honestly and sincere. Answer must have a minimum of
30 with a maximum of 50 words.
Before, I believe that …… After, I believe that …….

Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (10pts). Relevance and Accuracy (5pts). Organizational of thoughts (5pts). Total of 20pts.

Bravo! You have already finish the second lesson of this module keep it up.”

Psychological Theories
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Objectives:
 Know impact does Freudian theory have on our criminal justice system today;
 Discuss the theories that belong to the Psychological Theories;
 Create a treatment program that could possibly treat the delinquent behaviour of a
person.

Introduction:
This lesson introduces to you the psychological theory.
This theory has a general perspective that looks to the psychological functioning, development,
and adjustment of an individual in explaining criminal or deviant acts. Under this approach, the
criminal act itself is important only in that it highlights an underlying mental issue. It focusses on
association among intelligence, personality, learning and criminal behavior. It further explains
criminal behavior, in part, as factors affecting individuals such ass negative childhood experiences,
or incomplete cognitive development.

So prepare yourself for the exciting topics inside this lesson. Enjoy the activities and keep
reading!

Activity
Direction: List your wants and needs on the boxes below. Select 1 from wants and 1 from needs
that you think is the most important to you and explain it in 2 sentences each on the space
provided below.

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Write your explanation of your choice from wants and needs here!
Choice from wants……
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Choice from needs……
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Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (5pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 10pts.

Analysis
Direction: Answer the following question in 50 words and a maximum of 70 words. Write your
answer on the space provided below.

What impact does Freudian theory have on our criminal justice system today?
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 How would you go about changing another person’s personality? Can you change your
own personality?

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How does the crime committed by individual according to Psychological theories?

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 Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (10pts). Relevance and Accuracy (3pts). Organizational of thoughts (2pts). Total of 15pts.

Abstraction
Probes of the Psychological theory
1. Charles Goring (1870-1919)
Findings:
a. There was relationship between crime and flawed intelligence. Goring examined more than
3,000 convicts in England.

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 b. Criminals are more likely to be insane, to be unintelligent, and exhibit poor social behaviour.
2. Gabriel Tarde (1843-1904)
Findings:
a. Maintained that individuals learn from each other and ultimately imitate one another.
b. Out of 100 individuals, only 1 was creative or inventive and the remainder were prone to
imitation.

Psychodynamic / Psychoanalytical theory

This theory was originated by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), the founder of
psychoanalysis. The thought that human behaviour, including violent behaviour, was the product
of “unconscious” forces operating within a person’s mind and felt that early childhood experiences
had a profound impact on adolescent and adult behaviour.
According to Freud, aggression was thus a basic (idbased) human impulse that is
repressed in well-adjusted people who have experienced a normal childhood. However, if the
aggressive impulse is not controlled, or is repressed to an unusual degree, some aggression can
“leak out” of the unconscious and a person can engage in random acts of violence.
Three elements or structures that make up the human personality according to Freud
The Id (Pleasure Principle)- it represents the unconscious biological drives for food, sex
and other necessities over the life span which is concerned with instant pleasure or gratification
while disregarding concern for others. This is known as the pleasure principle, and it is often
paramount when discussing criminal behaviour.
The Ego (Reality Principle) - it is thought to develop early in a person’s life. For example,
when children learn that their wishes cannot be gratified instantaneously, they often throw a
tantrum. It compensates for the demands of the id by guiding an individual’s actions or behaviours
to keep him or her within the boundaries of society.
The Superego (Morality) - it develops as a person incorporates the moral standards and
values of the community; parents; and significant others, such as friends and clergy members. It
serves to pass judgement on the behaviour and actions of individuals. The ego mediates between
the id’s desire for instant gratification and the strict morality of the superego. One can assume that
young adults as well adults understand right from wrong. However, when crime committed,
advocates of psychodynamic theory would suggest that an individual committed a crime because
he or she has an underdeveloped superego.

Behavioural Theory
It focuses on behaviour modelling and social learning. It maintains that all human behaviour
– including violent behaviour – is learned through interaction with the social environment.
Behaviourists argue that people are not born with violent disposition. Rather, they learn to think
and act violently as a result of their day-to-day experiences. These experiences, proponents of the
behaviourist tradition maintain, might include observing friends or family being rewarded for violent
behaviour, or even observing the glorification of violence in the media. Studies of family life, for
example, show that aggressive children often model the violent behaviour of their parents. Studies
have also found that people who live in violent communities learn to model the aggressive
behaviour of their neighbours.
Cognitive Theory
This theory signifies that an individual perception and how it is manifested affect his or her
potential to commit crime. It focus on how people perceive their social environment and learn to
solve problems. The moral and intellectual development perspective is the branch of cognitive
theory that is most associated with the study of crime and violence.

Personality Theory

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 This theory believes that criminal activity is the result of a defective, deviant, or inadequate
personality. In short criminal behaviour is associated with defective personality traits. Examples of
deviant personality traits include hospitality, impulsiveness, aggression, and sensation-seeking.
The criminal does not have the ability to feel empathy, remorse, or guilt for his or her actions, and
has not developed a sense of right and wrong.

Humanistic Psychological Theory

This theory explains crime and criminal behaviour in terms of human needs. People tend to
adopt criminal behaviour because they do not have other options available for sustenance.
Crime for such people can be a way of adapting. People have physiological needs, safety
needs, belongingness needs as well as self-esteem needs but remain unfulfilled most of the time
and people feel helpless because of suppression. People may need to adapt when the feel
helpless. In such situations, they adopt criminal behaviour as an option for release from
suppression and the resulting helplessness. Crime can release someone from the stress born of
oppression.
This theory was found to be more relevant than the others because it explains crime in real
terms by providing explanations as to how criminal behaviour is born of people’s needs. It
provided a greater enlightenment of deviance than most other theories. With this theory it
assumed that people are basically good but tend to adopt criminal behaviour to fulfil their
unfulfilled needs. This theory considers both physical and psychological factors to explain criminal
behaviour.

Application:
Direction: Research to the internet about the treatment program for delinquent behavior and study
the process of such program. After studying, create or construct your own treatment program that

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could possibly treat the delinquent behaviour of a person base on the topics that were given in this
module.

Paste your output here!

Reflective Journal
Direction: Fill-in the space provided below honestly and sincere. Answer must have a minimum of
30 with a maximum of 50 words.

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 Before, I believe that …… After, I believe that …….

Note: The following answer will be graded based on the set criteria
Content (10pts). Relevance and Accuracy (5pts). Organizational of thoughts (5pts). Total of 20pts.

Congratulation! You have already finish the last lesson of this module keep it up.”
`

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Introduction to Criminology Page | 26