Research for the motive of criminal behavior
“Research for the motive of criminal behavior”
Abstract The research for “scientific crime [started] on a cold, gray November morning in 1871, on the east coast of Italy. Cesare Lombroso, a psychiatrist and prison doctor at an asylum for the criminally insane, was performing a routine autopsy on an infamous Calabrian brigand named Giuseppe Villella. Lombroso found an unusual indentation at the base of Villella’s skull…the founding father of modern criminology” (Adrian Raine, April 26, 2013). For over a century, modern criminology has developed a correlation between genetics and neuroscience. Modern-day researchers examine these correlations to discover the motive for criminal behavior. In this paper, the relationship between Lombroso’s controversial theory and effects of the brain, genetics and environmental conflict highlight modern criminology’s development and correlations to discovering the motive for criminal behavior.
Theory and Effects Cesare Lombroso was an Italian university professor and criminologist. Lombroso’s controversial theory states “that crime originated in large measure from deformities of the brain” (Adrian Raine). It would be unnecessary to argue that Lombroso’s theory is unethical when modern-day scientist consider his proposed ideas. Ironically, this theory is correlated to neuroscience research studies to criminal behavior. Neuroscience “is the study of how the nervous system develops, its structure and what it does” (Medical News Today). According to Adrian Raine, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, “brain-imaging techniques are identifying physical deformations and functional abnormalities that predispose some individuals to violence”. Raine’s discoveries illustrate signs of violent tendencies in studying the brain scans of criminals. In a recent study, Raine analyzed the brain of Donta Page, a male from “Denver, Colorado sentenced to life in prison without parole for the rape-murder of Peyton
Abstract The research for “scientific crime [started] on a cold, gray November morning in 1871, on the east coast of Italy. Cesare Lombroso, a psychiatrist and prison doctor at an asylum for the criminally insane, was performing a routine autopsy on an infamous Calabrian brigand named Giuseppe Villella. Lombroso found an unusual indentation at the base of Villella’s skull…the founding father of modern criminology” (Adrian Raine, April 26, 2013). For over a century, modern criminology has developed a correlation between genetics and neuroscience. Modern-day researchers examine these correlations to discover the motive for criminal behavior. In this paper, the relationship between Lombroso’s controversial theory and effects of the brain, genetics and environmental conflict highlight modern criminology’s development and correlations to discovering the motive for criminal behavior.
Theory and Effects Cesare Lombroso was an Italian university professor and criminologist. Lombroso’s controversial theory states “that crime originated in large measure from deformities of the brain” (Adrian Raine). It would be unnecessary to argue that Lombroso’s theory is unethical when modern-day scientist consider his proposed ideas. Ironically, this theory is correlated to neuroscience research studies to criminal behavior. Neuroscience “is the study of how the nervous system develops, its structure and what it does” (Medical News Today). According to Adrian Raine, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, “brain-imaging techniques are identifying physical deformations and functional abnormalities that predispose some individuals to violence”. Raine’s discoveries illustrate signs of violent tendencies in studying the brain scans of criminals. In a recent study, Raine analyzed the brain of Donta Page, a male from “Denver, Colorado sentenced to life in prison without parole for the rape-murder of Peyton
References: Pemment, J. (2013, January 29). Evolution and the Psychopath | Psychology Today. Psychology Today: Health, Help, Happiness + Find a Therapist. Retrieved May 7, 2013, from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/blame-the-amygdala/201301/evolution-and-the-psychopath RAINE, A. (2013, April 26). Neurocriminology: Inside the Criminal Mind - WSJ.com. The Wall Street Journal - Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News & Video - Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. Retrieved May 7, 2013, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323335404578444682892520530.html What Is Neuroscience?. (2012, August 7). Medical News Today: Health News. Retrieved May 7, 2013, from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/248680.php country. (n.d.). Donta Page | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers. Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers. Retrieved May 7, 2013, from http://murderpedia.org/male.P/p/page-donta.htm