Evaluation

• Research support

  One strength of Eysenck's theory is support for the criminal personality:

  • Eysenck and Eysenck compared 2070 prisoners' scores on the EPQ with 2422 control non-prisoners
  • Across all age groups, prisoners recorded higher than average PEN scores
  • This agrees with Eysenck's predictions of his 3 dimensions of the criminal personality
• Counterpoint to Eysenck and Eysenck

  • Farrington et al. conducted a meta-analysis of relevant studies
  • Offenders tended to score high on psychoticism but not for extraversion or neuroticism
  • Kussner also found inconsistent evidence of EEG differences - used to measure cortical arousal - between introverts and extraverts, casting a doubt on the psychological basis
  • Therefore, some central assumptions of the criminal personality have been challenged
• Cultural factors


  One limitation of Eysenck's theory is that cultural factors are not taken into account:

  • Bartol and Holanchock studied Hispanic and African-American offenders in a prison in New York
  • Split into 6 groups based on offending history
  • All 6 groups were less extravert than the control group
  • This therefore questions how far the criminal personality can be generaised, and may be culturally relative
• Real-world application

  One strength of Eysenck's theory is that it can be used in preventing crime:

  • Underlying tendencies that manifest themselves are detectable in childhood
  • It may be possible to modify socialisation experiences of high-risk individuals
  • Interventions and early treatment can be put in place for these individuals
  • Therefore, Eysenck's theory may be able to prevent vulnerable individuals from committing crimes