Biological Theories Of Criminal Behavior

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It is evident through evaluation of our history that criminologists have long pursued an explanation as to why particular individuals live a law-abiding life and why others are drawn to deviant behaviour. There is now an abundance of theories that attempt to explain this deviancy, and whilst there isn’t a theory that ascertains a faultless solution to crime, many theories do provide some valid rationalisations. So, are we given the choice to peruse deviant actions or are we born into an inevitable life of crime? This is the question that biological positivism attempts to answer. Positivists theorist’s view human behaviour as ordained by variables beyond the power of the individual, juxtaposing classical theories which assert that individuals …show more content…

Are we born into an inevitable life of crime or does one’s physical surroundings determine their law-abiding capabilities? Lombroso’s theory of biological positivism attempts to explain this dichotomy. He proposed that delinquency was intrinsic and innate, and that these inherent qualities made a criminal easily identifiable by their physical features. He asserted that criminality was based on evolutionary outcomes and proposed that criminals themselves were less evolved than other members of society. As such, he believed that criminal behaviour was a product of natural causes rather than freedom of choice (Gibson & Rafter 2006, p. 70) He used Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution to validate his beliefs. Lombroso carried out his own studies and catalogued the physical attributes of a broad spectrum of individuals ranging from normal members of society to the mental ill and criminals. His findings suggested there were correlations between specific physical markers and criminal behaviour. Nevertheless, it was later shown that Lombroso’s claims were highly unreliable and possessed no statistical soundness. Charles Goring, a, challenged Lombroso’s findings in the English Convict (Goring, Pearson & Driver 1913). He conducted his own study to discredit Lombroso on over 3,000 criminals and non-criminals. He discovered there to be no correlation between physical features and criminal behaviour. This lead to …show more content…

The concept that a person’s biological traits, including the shape and size of physical features can be used to distinguish those who are primitive and therefore destined for a life of crime is undisputedly illogical. The practice of this theory is not only invalid, but it allows for a hierarchy between social groups to be constructed.
Biological positivism brings prejudice to women, races and social groups as it allows them to be classified as inferior (Gibson & Rafter 2006, p. 69). As such, the racist and sexist insinuations that biological positivism promotes is no longer accepted by today’s society, and the idea that a criminal mind is inborn on the basis of these claims is heavily

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