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What is a criminal personality?

What is a criminal personality?. Impulsive, no feelings of guilt, self important . BUT ALMOST ALL ADULTS HAVE BROKEN THE LAW AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIVES – therefore we can’t ALL be criminals!!! This is a problem when defining the criminal personality.

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What is a criminal personality?

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  1. What is a criminal personality? Impulsive, no feelings of guilt, self important. BUT ALMOST ALL ADULTS HAVE BROKEN THE LAW AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIVES – therefore we can’t ALL be criminals!!! This is a problem when defining the criminal personality.

  2. What are the problems with defining a crime? • Can’t define a crime, e.g. drink driving is not illegal in Tobago • Statistics tell us how many crimes have been committed not how many criminals there are (100 crimes may have been committed by 1 person) • Victims don’t always report crimes

  3. BIOLOGICAL THEORY – says these parts of brain are dysfunctional in criminals. pre Irrational - murder No association between fear And anti social behaviour Theory also says genes control facial Feautures (sloping forehead, Large ears, upturned nose, high Cheek bones) Learning, language, emotion, memory Unable to recognize a sad face Aggressive psychopaths Temporal lobe Limbic system Controls sexual behaviour And aggression - psychopaths

  4. Limitations of the Biological Theory of Criminal Behaviour

  5. Social Learning Theory of Criminal Behaviour • Criminal behaviour is LEARNT! • Observing and imitating • Copy role models • We imitate behaviours that we see being rewarded • Seeing a behaviour rewarded is called VICARIOUS REINFORCEMENT • Therefore children will imitate what they see in the media

  6. Massacre at Columbine

  7. Pre-frontal cortex Limbic system Amygdala Corpus Callosum brain dysfunction genes antisocial behaviour sexual behaviour emotions psychopaths hemispheres murderers language/learning/memory slower aggressivepsychopaths rape/fraud euthanasia illness/injury asymmetrical face facial features ‘prejudiced against mingers’ social learning theorypunish/reward vicarious reinforcement

  8. Describe the Social Learning Theory of Criminal Behaviour • http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/james-bulger-suffered-multiple-fractures-pathologist-reveals-twoyearold-had-42-injuries-including-fractured-skull-jonathan-foster-reports-1503297.html

  9. What have these things all got in common?

  10. Learning Objectives • Describe Social Learning Theory (all) • Describe Mednick et al’s study (most) • Evaluate Mednick et al’s study (some)

  11. Social Learning Theory of Criminal Behaviour • Criminal behaviour is LEARNT! • Observing and imitating • Copy role models • We imitate behaviours that we see being rewarded • Seeing a behaviour rewarded is called VICARIOUS REINFORCEMENT • Therefore children will imitate what they see in the media

  12. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_James_Bulgerhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imYvOgyU9oohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_James_Bulgerhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imYvOgyU9oo Explain why Robert Thompson killed Jamie Bulger. Use social learning theory and the key vocabulary linked to this theory. (observe, imitate, reward, vicarious reinforcement)

  13. Core study: Mednick at al (1984) Aim – Investigate the nature/nurture debate using an adoption study. Is criminal behaviour genetic or learnt? Procedure – Denmark, 4000 males born between 1924 and 1947 who had a criminal record. Compared the records with biological parents and adopted parents. Results – • If bio parents were convicted of a crime, twice as likely to have criminal record than adoptees who’s bio parents were not criminals. • Men who’s adopted parents were criminals 14.7% chance they would be criminals V’s Men’s who’s bio parents were criminals (but adopted were not) 20% chance. • Siblings from criminals separated at birth and raised in non criminal families) 30% both had criminal records Conclusion Strong genetic link. Can’t totally rule out social learning theory though as highest chance of being criminal was when your bio parents were criminals and your adopted parents (24% V’s 20%)

  14. Limitations to Mednick! • Criminal convictions are not reliable, not all caught, wrongly convicted • Adopted children spend time with bio family, CONTAMINATION EFFECT – may have learnt criminal behaviours then • Gender bias – all men, not generalise finding to women.

  15. What is reliability?If you repeated the study, would you get the same results. If so we can say it is reliable.What is validity?The extent to which you measure what you wanted to measure.

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