BIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF CRIME

This refers to the set of theories that point to physical, physiological and other natural factors as
the causes for the commission of crimes of certain individuals.

This explanation for the existence of criminal traits associates an individual’s evil disposition to
physical disfigurement or impairment.

Types of Biological Theories

Biosocial Theory

This theory viewed that both thought and behavior have biological and social bases.

It believes that it is the interaction between predisposition and environment that

produces criminality.

Three distinct areas of Biosocial Theory

1. Biochemical Factors

Relationship between anti-social behavior and biochemical makeup/body chemistry can

govern behavior and personality.

1.1. Hormonal Levels

Antisocial behavior allegedly peaks in the teenage years because hormonal activity is
as its highest level during this period

Research also suggest that increased levels of the male androgen testosterone are
responsible for excessive levels of violence among teenage boys.

2. Neurological Dysfunction

Focused on the neurological, or brain and nervous system, structure of offenders.

Imbalance in the nervous system’s chemical and hormonal activity has been linked to
anti-social behavior and drug abuse. (Siegel et.al., 2007).
2.1. Minimal Brain Dysfunction

Damage to the brain itself that causes anti-social behavior injurious to the individual’s
lifestyle and social adjustment.

3. Genetic Influences

Individuals who share genes are alike in personality regardless of how they are reared,
whereas rearing environment induces little or no personality resemblance.

Cesare Lombroso believed that antisocial behavior have genetic basis.

3.1. Parental-Child Similarities

Criminal fathers produce delinquents sons who grow up to have delinquent children
themselves.

3.2. Siblings and Twin Similarities

The behavior of twins and non-twin siblings found out that the twins who share more
genetic material are also more similar in their behavior.

3.3. Adoption Studies

Adoptees share many of the behavioral and intellectual characteristics of their biological
parents despite the social and environmental conditions found in their adoptive homes.

SCHULSINGER (1972)

found criminality in adoptive boys to be higher when biological fathers had criminal
records.

HUTCHINGS AND MEDNICK

(1977)

studied 1, 145 male adoptees with criminal records and found the criminality of the
biological father was a major predictor of the child’s behavior.
Evolutionary Theory

Explains the existence of aggression and violent behavior as positive adoptive

behaviors in human evolution. These traits allowed their bearers to reproduce
disproportionately, which has had an effect on human gene pool.

Example: A child witnessed that his father beats her mother, then the child will do the
same as he grows.

Arousal Theory

Environmental factors influence the brain’s level of arousal. It explains that aggression
is a function of the level of individual’s needs for stimulation.

Thrill is a motivator of crime.

Example: when arousal level is extremely low and feels bored, person engages in
activities that will increase his arousal level.
PHYSIOGNOMY

the study of facial features / characteristics and their relation to human behavior.

GIAMBIATISTA DELA PORTA - Founder of human physiognomy. According to him,

criminal behavior may be predicted based on facial features of the person.

JOHANN KASPAR LAVATER - A Swiss theologian, regarded the lack of beard in man,
the swirly eye or angry eye and weak chin serve as clues to unfavorable personality or
characteristic traits of an individual.

supported the belief of dela Porta

he believed that a person’s character is

revealed through his facial characteristics.

PHRENOLOGY, CRANIOLOGY OR CRANIOSCOPY

the study of the external formation of the skull in relation to the person’s personality and
tendencies toward criminal behavior.

FRANZ JOSEPH GALL - he developed “cranioscopy” which was later renamed as

phrenology.

JOHANN KASPAR SPURZHEIM - An assistant of Gall in the study of phrenology; He

was the man most responsible for popularizing and spreading phrenology to a wide
audience

PHYSIOLOGY OR SOMATOLOGY

refers to the study of body build of a person in relation to his temperament and
personality and the type of offense he is most prone to commit.

ERNST KRETSCHMER
he distinguished three (3) principal types of physiques: asthenic, athletic, pyknik and
dysplastic.

ASTHENIC – characterized as thin, small and weak.

ATHLETIC – muscular and strong.

PYKNIC – stout, round and fat.

DYSPLASTIC – combination of two body types

WILLIAM HERBERT SHELDON

formulated his own group of somatotype: ectomorph, mesomorph and endomorph and
their corresponding temperaments.

ENDOMORPHIC – relatively large digestive viscera; round body; short’ tapering limbs;
bones; smooth, velvety skin.

Temp: VISCEROTONIC – generally relax and comfortable small person, loves luxury
and essentially extrovert.

MESOMORPHIC – with relative predominance of muscles, bones and motor organs of

the body with large wrist and hands

Temp: ROMOTONIC – active, dynamic; walks, talks and gestures assertively and
behaves aggressively

ECTOMORPHIC – relative pre- dominance of skin and its appendages which includes
the nervous system; it has fragile and delicate bones; with droopy shoulders, small face
and sharp nose, fine hair

Temp: CEREBROTONIC – introvert prone to allergies, skin troubles, chronic fatigue,

insomnia, sensitive skin and sensitive to

noise and with relatively small body

EARNEST HOOTON (1887 - 1954)

“Tall thin men tend to commit forgery and fraud,

Undersized men are thieves and burglars,

Short heavy person commit assault, rape and other sex crimes;

Whereas mediocre (average) physique flounder around among other crimes.” He also
contended that criminals are originally inferior; and that crime is the result of the impact
of environment.

Atavism Theory
Cesare Lombroso

He claimed that criminals are distinguishable from non-criminals due to the presence of
atavistic stigmata and crimes committed by those who are born with certain
recognizable heredity traits.

According to his theory (Atavism), criminals are usually in possession of huge jaws and
strong canine teeth, the arm span of criminals is often greater than their height, just like
that of apes who use their forearms to push themselves along the ground.

Lombroso’s work supported the idea that the criminal was a biologically and physically
inferior person.

Other physical stigmata include deviation in head size and shape, asymmetry of the
face, excessive dimensions of the jaw and cheekbones, eye defects and peculiarities,
ears of unusual size, nose twisted, upturned or flattened in thieves, or aquiline or
beaklike in murderers, fleshy lips, swollen and protruding, and pouches in the cheek like
those of animal’s toes.

Lombroso’s Three (3) classes of criminals

born criminals – individuals with at least five (5) atavistic stigmata

insane criminals – those who became criminals because of some brain defect which
affected their ability to understand and differentiate what is right from what is wrong.

criminaloids - those with makeup of an ambiguous group that includes habitual

criminals, criminals by passion and other diverse types

HEREDITY – the transmission of traits from parents to offspring.

KARYOTYPE STUDIES - examination and comparison of chromosomes.

Example of a normal male karyotype, denoted 46,XY

46 refers to the total number of chromosomes.

XY indicates a male karyotype; XX would indicate a female karyotype.

A normal human karyotype consists of 22 pairs of autosomes and two sex

chromosomes. Note the similar size and striped (banding) pattern between each of
the pairs.

NATURE THEORY (Henry Goddard, William Healy, Augusta Bronner)

it argues that intelligence is largely determines genetically, that ancestry determines

I.Q., and that low intelligence, as demonstrated by low I.Q., is linked to criminal behavior

RICHARD LOUIS DUGDALE

conducted a study of the Jukes family by researching their family tree as far back 200
years. He discovered that most of the ascendants of the Jukes were criminals.

He discovered that from among the descendants of Margaret Ada Jukes, there were
280 paupers, 60 thieves, 7 murderers, 40 other criminals, 40 persons with venereal
diseases and 50 prostitutes

HENRY HERBERT GODDARD

He traced the descendants of the Martin Kallikak from each of his two wives and found
a distinct difference in terms of quality of lives of descendants.
MARTIN KALLIKAK’s relationship with a feebleminded lady, there were 143 feeble-
minded and only 46 normal, 36 were illegitimate, 3 epileptics, 3 criminals, 8 kept
brothels and 82 died of infancy.

His marriage with a woman from a good family produced almost all normal
descendants, only 2 were alcoholics, 1 was convicted of religious offense, 15 died at
infancy and no one became criminal or epileptic.

He coined the term “moron”.

CHARLES GORING

he believed that criminal traits can be passed from parents to offspring through the
genes.

he proposed that individuals who possess criminal characteristics should be prohibited

from having children.

FRANCIS GALTON

he developed “EUGENICS” or the science of improving a human population by

controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics.
Developed largely as a method of improving the human race.

JONATHAN EDWARDS FAMILY TREE

Sir Jonathan Edwards was a famous preacher during colonial period. His family tree
was traced, none of the descendants was found to be criminal. Out of his pedigree
many became presidents of the United States, governor, members of Supreme Court,
famous writers, preachers and teachers

Biopsychosocial Theories of Crime Causation

Biopsychosocial Model of Crime Causation

Crime causation is an integration or combination of both the “bio”, “psycho”, and the
“socio”.

Pre-Menstrual Syndrome

Katharina Dalton’s study of “Menstruation and Crime” found that nearly half of the
crimes of her sample of female inmates had occurred during menstruation or
pre-menstruation. This is called as “Pre-Menstrual Syndrome”

In Schauss’ study comparing nutritional differences of delinquents and non-

delinquents, the surprising major difference found was that delinquents drank more
milk.

Low blood sugar (HYPOGLYCEMIA) also has been claimed to be linked to impaired
brain function and violent crime.

Battered Child Syndrome

A medical diagnosis based on evidence indicating that the child has been subjected
to a pattern of serious and unexplained abuse.

Battered Woman Syndrome

A psychological term used to describe women who are stuck within or have recently left
a violent relationship characterized by the cycle of violence.

Three basic stages where women becomes victims of abused:

Tension between the pair

Cycle of violence
Honeymoon or loving contrition

Note:
The cycle repeats itself and violence becomes more intense, the tension building stage
lengthens, and the honeymoon stage decreases or disappears entirely.