Biological Influences on Criminal Behavior

by Gail S. Anderson, John Whatley

Overview

Biological Influences on Criminal Behavior, Second Edition is fully updated to include recent research, studies, and publications examining the integration of the biological view with mainstream social, psychological, and environmental views in influences in criminality and criminal behavior.

The first edition of the book was written with the belief, grounded in research, that something vital can be discovered when we assess all the factors related to the causes of crime, including biology. Since the first edition published, it has become broadly accepted that biology is certainly a factor in criminal behavior, albeit a singular piece to the puzzle.

Increased collaborations between scientists and criminologists has led to a much stronger understanding of the intricacies of biology’s role in behavior. As well, more criminologists have biological backgrounds. As the science involved became more complex, so too did this text.

This second edition considers the more recent and integrated research that is being conducted today to show the interaction between the environment and a person’s biology that lead to our behavior. It has even been shown that the environment acts on, and actually changes the functions, of some genes. The book begins with basic scientific principles and advances to introduce the reader to the more in-depth discussions of various biological influencers.

Biological Influences on Criminal Behavior, Second Edition is written primarily for social science and law students who wish to understand this exciting area. The book offers a greater understanding of this rapidly growing field so that its lessons can help to inform policy, treatments, rehabilitation and the law.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781420043310
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	11/01/2006
Edition description:	Older Edition
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Gail S. Anderson earned a B.Sc. (Honors) in zoology from Manchester University, England; her Masters of Pest Management and Ph.D. from Simon Fraser University in medical and veterinary entomology. Her specialty is forensic entomology, the use of insects in death investigations. Dr. Anderson is one of only three board-certified forensic entomologists in Canada. She is a Professor in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University, holds a Burnaby Mountain Endowed Professorship, and is also Undergraduate Director, Co-Director of the Centre for Forensic Research and a forensic consultant to the RCMP and city police across Canada. Her work has been featured on many television programs, including "Journeys — Grave Testimony" and "Forbidden Places — Silent Witness" shown on Discovery Channel, Planet Education, "The Nature of Things — Postmortem" "Dark Waters of Crime" "Under the Sea" and "Weird or What?" shown on Discovery Channel, History Channel, Knowledge Network and CBC. She was a recipient of Canada’s "Top 40 under 40 Award" in 1999, received a YWCA Women of Distinction Award for Science and Technology in 1999, and the Simon Fraser University Alumni Association Outstanding Alumni Award for Academic Achievement in 1995. She was listed in TIME magazine as one of the top five innovators in the world, this century, in the field of Criminal Justice in 2001 and received the Derome Award from the Canadian Society of Forensic Sciences. In 2014 she received the Dean’s Medal for Academic Excellence and in 2015 was listed as one of the six most influential scientists in British Columbia. She recently received the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Pathology and Biology Section Award for Achievement in the Life Sciences.

Table of Contents

Each chapter includes an introduction, conclusion, and questions for further study.
Introduction to Biology and Crime
The Question of Biology, Crime, and the Environment, The Promise of Biological Research, Further Cautions, The History of Biology and Crime
Basic Biological Concepts
Natural Selection, Behavior in Humans and Other Animals, Innate Behaviors, Learned Behaviors, Evolution and Behavior
Genetic Concepts
Introduction to Genetics, Genetics: The Study of Patterns of Inheritance, Linked Genes, Sex-Linked Traits, Incomplete Dominance, Co-dominance, Pleiotropy, Epistasis, Polygenic Inheritance, Recessive Alleles in the Population, Aggression
Introduction to Genetic Predispositions for Behavior
Misconceptions about Genetics, Misconceptions about Animal Cloning, Misconceptions about Human Cloning, Does All Crime Have the Same Single Cause? XYY Man: Truth and Fallacy, Problems with Experimental Design, Introduction to Twin Studies, Dizygotic Twins, Monozygotic Twins, Explanations for Twin Coincidences, Using Twins to Study Genetic and Environmental
Influences on Behavior
Evidence for Genetic Predispositions for Criminogenic Behavior
Twin Studies, Problems with Twin Studies, Similar Environments, Zygosity, Differences in Monozygotic Twins, Sample Size, Different Countries, Political Bias, Summary of Twin Studies, Identical Twins Reared Apart, Adoption Studies, Mednick’s Danish Adoption Studies, Some Caveats to Mednick’s Adoption Studies, Bohman’s Stockholm Adoption Studies , Further Genetic Studies, Type II Alcoholism, Conduct Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Aggression
Hormonal Effects on Behavior
The Functions of Hormones, Testosterone, Natural Testosterone Levels in Aggressive Men, Serotonin and Testosterone, Increasing Testosterone, Chemical and Physical Castration, Other Androgen Activity, Premenstrual Syndrome and Crime, Growth Hormones, Cortisol, Other Hormones, Thyroid Hormones, Adrenalin
Pregnancy and the Effects of Birth
Birth Complications, Fetal Development and Diet, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Maternal Smoking, Maternal Age, Fetal Maldevelopment and Minor Physical Anomalies, Other Birth-Related Difficulties, Twins, Maternal Rejection
Brain Chemistry
Introduction to Neurotransmitters, The Mechanism of Action, Serotonin, Serotonin and Suicide Attempts, Serotonin and Aggression, Serotonin and Impulsivity, Serotonin and Antisocial Personality Disorder, Serotonin Binding Sites, Serotonin Precursors, Serotonin in the Courts, Norepinephrine, Dopamine, Monoamine Oxidase (MAO), MAO and Aggression, MAOA and Child Abuse, Body Build and Antisocial Behavior, Other Factors
Organic Brain Dysfunctions: Part I
Head Injury, Frontal Lobe Injury, Frontal Lobe Injury and Crime, Damage to Other Regions of the Brain, Treatment and Legal Issues, Psychosurgery
Organic Brain Dysfunctions: Part II
Brain Structure and Function, Structural Brain Imaging, Computer Tomography, Studies Using Computer Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Studies Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Functional Brain Imaging, Positron Emission Tomography, Studies Using Positron Emission Tomography, Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT), Studies Using Single Photon Computed
Emission Tomography
Diet, Toxins, and Food Additives
Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar), Glucose and Serotonin, Dietary Tryptophan and Serotonin, Diet and Hormonal Changes, Influence of Lead as a Neurotoxin, Manganese, Heavy Metals and Crime, Vitamins/Minerals, Fat in the Diet, Fatty Acids, Food Additives, Food Allergies, Diet and Overall Behavior
Epilogue