A.

Biological Theories: Physical Trait Theories

The belief that one can determine a person's character moral disposition, or behavior by
observing his or her physical characteristics is ancient. Pythagoras, a philosopher,
mathematician, and scientist who lived during the period around 500 BCE may have been one of
the first to advocate this practice, known as physiognomy.

1. Physiognomy Theory. The term physiognomy comes from the Greek words physis,
meaning nature, and gnomon, meaning to judge or to interpret. It refers to the evaluation
of a person's personality or character (i.e, his or her nature) through an examination of
that person's outward appearance. Early physiognomy concentrated on characteristics
of the face through which to judge the person's nature. Aristotle was a proponent of
physiognomy, as were many other ancient Greeks. The practice flourished in many areas
of the world and was taught in universities throughout England until it was banned by
Henry VIII in 1531.

Physiognomy Theorists or Physiognomists

a. Giambattista della Porta. The publication of On Physiognomy in 1586 by Italian

scholar Della Porta once again brought renewed focus to this belief and practice of
the ancient Greeks. Della Porta, often considered the first criminologist, examined
patients during his medical practice and concluded that appearance and character
were related. He approached the study of this relationship from a magico-spiritualistic
metaphysical perspective instead of a scientific one, classifying humans on the basis
of their resemblance to animals. For example, men who look like donkeys are similar
to donkeys in their laziness and stupidity, men who resemble pigs behave like pigs.
b. Johann Kaspar Lavater. Della Porta's ideas were extremely influential to Johann
Kaspar Lavater, a Swiss pastor who published his painstakingly detailed study of
facial fragments in 1783. He concluded that one could determine criminal behavior
through an examination of a person's eyes, ears, nose, chin, and facial shape.
c. Jacob Fries. In 1820, Fries relate nature of the crime to personality of the individual
or suggested a link between crime and physical appearance in his Handbook on
Criminal Anthropology.

2. Phrenology Theory. Phrenology, from the Greek words phren, meaning mind, and logos,
meaning knowledge, is based on the belief that human behavior originated in the brain. This was
a major departure from earlier beliefs that focused on the four humors as the source of emotions
and behaviors:
a. Sanguine (blood), seated in the liver and associated with courage and love,
b. Choleric (yellow bile), seated in the gall bladder and associated with anger and bad temper;
c. Melancholic (black bile), seated in the spleen and associated with depression, sadness, and
irritability, and
d. Phlegmatic (phlegm), seated in the brain and lungs and associated with calmness and lack of
excitability.

Theoretically and practically relocating responsibility for behavior from various organs to the
brain represented a major step in the development of the scientific study of behavior and in the
development of biological explanations of crime and criminality.

Phrenology Theorists or Phrenologists

a. Franz Joseph Gall. Around 1800, Gall, a German neuroanatomist and physiologist who
pioneered study of the human brain as the source of mental faculties, developed the practice of
cranioscopy, a technique by which to infer behaviors and characteristics from external
examination of the skull (cranium). According to Gall, a person's strengths, weaknesses, morals,
proclivities, character, and personality could be determined by physical characteristics of skull
and fissures.
Gall mapped out the location of 27 "brain organs" on the human skull A bump or depression in a
particular area of the skull would indicate a strength or weakness in that particular area. For
example, several areas of Gall's map of the skull were believed to correspond to that person's
tendencies to engage in criminal or deviant acts. One arca corresponded to the tendency to
commit murder another area corresponded to the tendency to steal. Although crude, and
somewhat ridiculous by today's standards Gall's efforts had significant impact on subsequent
research that attempted to identity the brain as the origin of behavior

b. Johann Spurzheim, Spurzheim, a German physician and student of Gall. actually coined the
term phrenology to replace cranioscopy, In 1812. Spurzheim also expanded the map of the brain
organs, developed a hierarchical system of the organs, and created a model "phrenology bust"
that depicted the location of the brain organs. "

B. Biological Theories: Body Type and Physique

Body type theory is also called as biological constitutional (structure of the body).
 1. Body Type and Physique
The Body Type and Physique theory view that there is a relationship on the type of
human body to criminality. This theory is also called Criminal Anthropology Theory.
Criminal Anthropological Theorists
a. Cesare Lombroso. Lombroso, inspired by Charles Darwin's evolutionary theory in 1868,
presented his work on atavism in his book L'uomo Delinquente (Criminal Man) first published in
1876 (see below). He was the first to connect crime to human evolution. Criminals were atavistic
or throwbacks to an earlier. more primitive stage of human development. They closely resembled
their apelike ancestors in traits, abilities, and dispositions. Because criminals were not highly
evolved, they possessed stigmata or distinctive physical features such as asymmetrical face, an
enormous jaw, large or protruding ears, and receding chin. Lombroso's theory of
Anthropological Criminology essentially stated the following:
1. that criminality is inherited; and
2. someone is born criminal and could be identified by physical defects, which confirmed a
criminal as savage, or atavistic.

The Criminal Man by Lombroso in 1876

Cesare Lombroso conducted an autopsy (Giuseppe Villela) and identified various physical
stigmata; hence, Lombroso concluded that those identified numbers of physical stigmata were
indicative of the bom criminal or atavistic criminal such as the following:

1.Deviation in head size and shape from type common to race and region from which the
criminal came,
2 Asymmetry of the face; 3. Eye defects and peculiarities;
4 Excessive dimensions of the jaw and cheekbones:
5. Ears of unusual size, or occasionally very small, or standing out from the head as to those
of a chimpanzee;
6 Nose twisted, upturned, or flattened in thieves, or aquiline or beak like in murderers, or
with a tip rising like a peak from swollen nostrils
7. Lips fleshy, swollen, and protruding: Pouches in the cheek like those of some animals;
9. Peculiarities in the plate, such as are found in reptiles, and cleft palate,
 10 Chin protruding, or excessively long, or short and flat, as in apes,
11. Abnormal dentition:
12. Abundance, variety, and precocity of wrinkles;
13. Anomalies of the hair, marked by characteristics of the opposite sex,
14 Defects of the thorax, such as too many or too few ribs, or super numerary nipples;
15. Inversion of sex characters in the pelvic organs,
16. Excessive length of arms:
17. Supemumerary fingers and toes; and
18. Imbalance of the hemisphere of the brain (asymmetry of the cranium),
B. Ernst Kretschmer. Kretschmer developed his Physique Theory in his book Physique and
Character published in 1921, he suggested the following physique
1. Asthenic Type. This person is skinny, with ribs easily counted and slender body type. This
type usually commits crime known as petty theft and fraud
2. Athletic Type. This person has broad shoulders, powerful legs and muscular body type. This
type usually commits violent crimes.
3. Pyknic Type. This person is stout, has short stubby hands and with round body. This type
usually commits deception, fraud and violence.
4. Dysplastic or Mixed Type. The person has a body type that is less clearly evident having any
predominant type (unclassifiable). Any person with this body type usually commits an offense
against decency and morality.
Kretschmer argued that the asthenic and athletic types are associated with schizophrenic
personality while the pyknic type is linked to manic depressive.

c. Earnest Hooten. Hooten spent 12 years conducting research into d criminal nature of man to
disprove Goring this contemporary and to support Lombroso. His first influential publication,
Crime and the Man (1939), documented his study of 14.000 prisoners and 3,000 non prisoner
controls in 10 states. Hooten was more rigorous than Goring in his methods, differentiating his
subjects on the basis of types of crime and by geographic, ethnic. and racial backgrounds Hooten
agreed with Lombroso's idea of a born criminal and argued that most crime was committed by
individuals who were:

1. biologically inferior,
2. organically inadaptable,
3. mentally and physically stunted and warped, and
4. sociologically debased.
He argued that the only way to solve crime was by eliminating people who were morally,
mentally, or physically "unfit," or by segregating them in an environment apart from the rest of
society. Hooten linking criminality to organic inferiority supported the notion of born criminals
(atavism) by Lombroso. Hooten was widely criticized because of his failure to consider social
factors and his myopic focus on biological determinism.

d. William H. Sheldon. Sheldon in 1940s, developed and tested his classification system, known
as Somatotyping. He attempted to document a direct link between biology (specifically,
physique) and personality (specifically, crime) through the development of a classification
system of personality patterns and corresponding physical builds. He associated body type
(physique) to human temperament and created three classifications of somatotypes, namely

1. Endomorphs, Endomorphs have the following characteristics

a fat, soft and round body types: personality was described as relaxed, fond of eating and
sociable:
have wide waists and large bone structures: have a higher proportion of Digestive Tissue, and
have a Viscerotonic Temperament. BEING RELAXED, TOLERANT, COMFORTABLE,
AND SOCIABLE. PSYCHOLOGICALLY, THEY ARE ALSO FUN-LOVING, GOOD
HUMORED, EVEN-TEMPERED AND THEY LOVE FOOD AND AFFECTION.
2. Mesomorphs Mesomorphs have the following characteristics
a body type is characterized by a high rate of muscle growth: have large bones, solid torso
combined with low fat levels:
c. filled with energy, courage and assertive tendencies:
d. have wide shoulders with a narrow waist; e have a higher proportion of Muscular Tissue; and
have a Dionysian Temperament. IS A SENSOR AND A PERCEIVER (SP) THEY ARE
ACTION-ORIENTED AND IMPULSIVE.. BEING ACTIVE AND AGGRESSIVE.
3. Ectomorphs. Ectomorphs have the following characteristics:
a. have long arms and legs:
b. have short upper body,
c narrow shoulders;
d. long and thin muscles:
c. very low-fat storage:
usually referred to as slim: have a higher proportion of Nervous Tissue; and
Cerebrotonic Temperament. A PERSONALITY CHARACTERIZED BY SHYNESS,
INTROSPECTION, AND EMOTIONAL RESTRAINT.
Sheldon argued that mesomorphic types were more likely to engage in crime, ectomorphs were
more likely to commit suicide, and endomorphs were more likely to be mentally ill. Although
Sheldon linked physical and psychological characteristics, and concluded that both were the
result of heredity, he failed to support that conclusion with valid statistical methods’
Also during the late 1940s and early 1950s, Sheldon Glueck and Eleanor Glueck conducted
longitudinal research into juvenile delinquency In their research, they found support for
Sheldon's proposition that mesomorphs are more likely to commit crime.

C. Genetics:
Early genetics
Gregor Mendel. Mendel. an Austrian scientist, is known as the father of genetic who has made
experiments with plants (in particular, peas) and with animals (in particular, bees) in 1866 and
provided quantitative evidence that traits were passed on from one generation to the next for
inherited), making it one of the most critical pieces of research related to biological theories of
crime. Model study points to the Laws of Inheritance.
However, Mendel's work was largely ignored until after 1900 (in part because of the popularity
of Darwin's theories), application of his laws of inheritance to individual and social development
resulted in significant advances in biological theories of behavior.
Mendel, however, was the one who developed support for the theory of inheritance through his
experiments with the cultivation and breeding of pea plants, and the scientific support for
dominant and recessive characteristics, passed from one generation to the next.
Note: The works of Mendel on plants and animals led to the idea that trait of human beings too
could be inherited, and that such trait (criminal trait) could be transmitted to their progenies or
descendants.

d. Francis Galton. Galton, a cousin of Charles Darwin, developed his Theory of

Eugenics in 1883, Eugenics advocated the encouragement, through the distribution of
incentives, of "able" couples to reproduce in an effort to improve human hereditary
traits.
Eugenics is the practice of improving the human species by selectively mating people
with specific desirable hereditary traits. It aims to reduce human suffering by
 breeding-out disease, disabilities and the so-called undesirable characteristics from
the human population.

Two Kinds of Eugenics

1. Positive Eugenics. It aims to produce more healthy and intelligent humans by persuading
people with those traits to have more children It encourages the reproduction of the more fit"
which means that good or intelligent people are more favored to produce children.
2. Negative Eugenics. Negative eugenics aims to cut out traits that lead to suffering by limiting
people with the traits from reproducing. It discourages reproduction of the "less fit" which means
that epilliptic. feebleminded couple or people are not allowed to produce children.

B. Modern Genetic Theories and Studies:

 THEORY OF XYY
 TWIN STUDIES
 ADOPTION STUDIES

THEORY OF XYY OR CHROMOSOME IMBALANCED

• FEMALES CARYY A COMBINATION OF XX, MALES CARRY A COMBINATION
OF XY.
• During fertilization, things can develop abnormally. Some men were left with extra Y
chromosome (XYY, “supermale”). Males with XYY have been reported to be more
disruptive and impulsive, which greatly interferes with their learning skills. On the other
hand, males with the “XXY” (as opposed to XYY) are typically shy and withdrawn.

TWIN STUDIES
Twin studies have become more sophisticated and have attempted to respond to methodological
criticisms, Distinctions between fraternal (dizygotic [DZ]) and identical (monozygotic (MZ))
twins have contributed to the sophistication of this type of research. DZ twins develop from two
eggs and share about half of their genetic material, whereas MZ twins develop from a single egg
and share all of their genetic material.
Twins generally are raised in the same social environment, so the impact of the social
environment is said to be equal and consistent (and thus controlled). Therefore, any greater
similarity between identical twins than between fraternal twins would provide evidence for a
genetic link.
1. Johannes Lange in 1929. Lange studied 30 pairs of twins who were of the same sex.
Seventeen of these pairs were DZ twins, and 13 of these pairs were MZ twins. At least one of
each twin pair was known to have committed a crime. However, Johannes Lange found out that
both twins in 10 of the 13 MZ twin pairs were known criminals, compared with both twins in
only 2 of the 17 DZ pairs. Lange further found out that of those prisoners who were MZ twins,
77% of them had a criminal for a brother. In the case of the DZ twins, only 12% of the brothers
had a criminal record. Lange thus asserted that there was a genetic influence in play.
2. Karl 0. Christiansen in 1974. Christiansen evaluated the criminal behavior of 3,586 twin
pairs born in Denmark between 1881 and 1910 He found out that the chance of one twin
engaging in criminal behavior when the other twin was criminal was 50% among the MZ twin
pairs but only 20% among the DZ twin pairs. The correlation between the genetic closeness of
the biological relationship and crime was especially true for serious violent crime and for more
lengthy criminal Career.
3. David C. Rowe in 1984. Rowe and his colleagues supported findings of Lange and
Christiansen based on their research work conducted on the self-reported delinquency of twins in
the 1980s and 1990s. Their research found out that MZ twins were more likely to DZ twins to
both be involved in delinquent activity. Moreover. MZ twins reported more delinquent peers
than did DZ twins. The word of Rowe and his colleagues supported a genetic component
delinquency but also provided evidence of a social component. found out that 60% of the
influence on delinquent behaviour from genetic factors, approximately 20% of the influence
came to the peer group chosen and the other 20% of the influence was ba non-bared
environmental source.

ADOPTION STUDIES
In adoption studies, the behavior of adoptees is compared with the outcomes of their adopted and
biological parents. The aim is to separate out the impact of the environment from the influence of
heredity. This research asks whether a child will exhibit traits of the adopted parents or of the
biological parents.
1. S.A. Mednick, W.F. Gabrielli Jr., & B. Hutchins in 1984. Research indicates that an
adoptee with a biological parent who is criminal is more likely to engage in property crime
than other adoptees and that this effect is stronger for boys. The findings, from a study of 14.427
Danish children adopted between 1924 and 1947, provided evidence that there may be a genetic
factor in the predisposition to antisocial behavior. Their study on adoption studies has shown
some consistency with the hypothesis that genes influence adult criminality. Studies in both
Sweden and in the United States confirm these conclusions.
2. B. Hutchins and S.A. Mednick in 1997. In a separate study of Hutchings and Mednick about
male adoptees, they discovered that 85.7% of males with a criminal or minor offences record,
had a birth father with a criminal record. They also noted that young male adoptees without a
criminal record, had a criminal father 31.1% of the time.
BIOCHEMICAL EXPLANATIONS
 HORMONES
 NEUROTRANSMITTERS
 DIET

SEX HORMONES
a. Schalling (1987) discovered that high testosterone level in young males were associated with
verbal aggression but not actual physical aggression while low testosterone level boys would
tend not to protect their position, preferring to remain silent. Recent research conducted by Ellis
in 2003, however, added his evolutionary neuroandrogenic theory, Ellis argued that increased
levels of testosterone reduce the brain's sensitivity to environmental stimuli, making a person act
out with reduced abilities to control emotions. Scholars who study the relationship between
testosterone levels and crime cite as support the differences between males and females in terms
of levels of crime in general and levels of violence in particular. This work has led to the
treatment of male sex offenders with chemical derivatives from progesterone to reduce male
sexual urges through the introduction of female hormones (eg, Depo-Provera, a brand of birth
control for women. This has been effective in reducing some types of sex offenses ( pedophilia,
exhibitionism).
b. Premenstrual Syndrome and Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder. Researchers also have
investigated the impact of female hormones on behavior in women. More recently, a more severe
form of PMS has been identified. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a severe and
debilitating form of PMS, distinguished by the level of interference the menstrual process has on
the ability of the woman to engage in the functions of everyday life. Interestingly, researchers
have established a genetic link to the development of PMDD. Women with a certain genetic
structure have increased (abnormal) sensitivity to their own normal hormones, resulting in
increased symptoms of emotional and physical stress. Another phenomenon associated with
female hormones is Postpartum depression syndrome. Although most new mothers experience
symptoms of depression in the weeks or months following birth, which is primarily thought to be
due to a decrease in progesterone, approximately 1% to 2% of these mothers exhibit severe
symptoms, such as hallucinations, suicidal or homicidal thoughts, mental confusion, and panic
attacks.

NEUROTRANSMITTERS
Neurotransmitters are chemicals that transmit messages between brain cells, called neurons, and
have a direct impact on the many functions of the brain, including those that affect emotions,
learning, mood, and behavior. Although researchers have extensively studied more than 50 of
these chemicals, research on the biological bases of crime has focused on three of these:
1. Norepinephrine, which is associated with the body's fight-or-flight response;
2. Dopamine, which plays a role in thinking and learning, motivation. sleep, attention, and
feelings of pleasure and reward; and
3. Serotonin, which impacts many functions, such as sleep, sex drive. anger, aggression,
appetite, and metabolism.
High levels of norepinephrine, low levels of dopamine, and low levels of serotonin have been
associated with aggression. Results from research that has examined the impact of these
neurotransmitters are mixed. With all of these chemicals, fluctuations in their levels may result in
certain behaviors, and certain behaviors may contribute to fluctuations in their levels (in a
reciprocal interaction effect).

Diet, Food Allergies, Sensitivities, Vitamins, and Minerals

What one eats impacts one's body chemistry. High-protein foods, such as fish, eggs. meat, and
many dairy products, contain high levels of the amino acid tryptophan. Tryptophan produces
serotonin. Another amino acid, tyrosine (also found in high-protein foods), is related to the
production of both dopamine and norepinephrine. These relationships have suggested that many
aggressive behaviors may be controlled with a diet higher in protein and lower in refined
carbohydrates. Carbohydrates, specifically, refined carbohydrates, such as white refined flour,
white rice, white refined sugar, and any processed foods with high levels of sugar-also are
examined as related to problem behavior.
1. Blood Sugar Levels. Hypoglycemia (state of having chronically reduced blood sugar caused
by the excessive production of insulin) or low blood sugar levels - sometimes related to diabetes
mellitus - may result in irritability, aggressive reactions and may culminate in sexual offences,
assaults and motiveless murder. Experiments of Shoenthaler (1982) proved that by lowering the
daily sucrose intake of young offenders held in detention, it was possible to reduce the level of
their antisocial behavior.
Virkkunen (1987) was like hypoglycemia with other activities often defined as antisocial such
as truancy, low verbal IQ, tattooing and stealing from home during childhood. If alcohol is drunk
regularly and in large quantities, the ethanol produced induces hypoglycemia and increases
aggression. The sharp decline in blood sugar also triggers the release of hormones such as
adrenalin and increases in dopamine. This combination has been associated with increased
aggression, irritability, and anxiety.