AO3

• Atavistic Form: Evaluation Points

  • Origins of offender profiling
  • Methodology doesn't meet modern scientific standards
  • Conflicting evidence
  • Issues and debates
• Atavistic Form AO3: Origins of Offender Profiling

  Lombroso became known as the father of modern criminology as he was one of the first to study criminals scientifically. He became a forerunner for later research as he shifted crime research away from moralistic discourse, into science. This led to criminal profiling when he tried to describe how particular types of people are likely to commit crime. His initial research and theory has benefited society.
• Atavistic Form AO3: Methodology doesn't meet Scientific Standards

  Lombroso's research has been criticised for lacking a scientific basis, suggesting his research and findings to be unreliable. He did not use a control group to compare participants . His methods of investigations were poorly controlled as he didn't consider cofounding variables which may have explained higher crime rates in certain groups of people, such as education. This limits the validity of the atavistic form as the research that supports it does not meet modern scientific standards.
• Atavistic Form AO3: Contradictory Evidence

  There is evidence from Goring which contradicts the link between atavistic form and crime. He investigated whether there were any physical or mental abnormalities among offenders by comparing 3000 offenders and 3000 non-offenders. He concluded that there was no evidence that offenders are a distinct group with unusual facial and cranial characteristics. This challenged the idea that offenders can be physically distinguished and are therefore unlikely to be a subspecies.
• Atavistic Form AO3: Issues and Debates

  Atavistic form is deterministic as it suggests that possessing particular innate physical characteristics is likely to lead to crime, not considering free will and moral/religious values. This limits its usefulness as it can't explain individual differences. It is also socially sensitive as it has been accused of scientific racism, as some of the features described by Lombroso are linked to skin colour and other traits are associated with race. His theory has also been used to support the Eugenics.