Biological theories

• what are the three genetic theories?

  XYY theory, adoption study and twin study
• what has more tests been done in recent times?

  genetics behaviour including anti-social behaviour.
• What chromosome makes a person male?

  Y chromosome
• what are people with an extra chromosome also referred to?

  Super males
• what suggestion has criminologicts made?

  that men with the extra Y chromosome are more likely to commit crime
• who created the study of men with an extra Y chromosome?


  Jacob et al
• what did Jacob et al suggest?

  they are more violent and aggressive than men without the extra chromosome
• what is a statistic to do with this theory?

  15 of 1000 men in prison have the extra chromosome and 1 in 1000 in the population has it
• are XYY men overrepresented in the prison population?

  yes
• who is a famous serial killer that has the extra Y chromosome?

  John Wayne Gacy
• what debate supports from the twin studies?

  a heritable trait may increase risk for criminal behaviour
• what do the twin studies do?

  they compare the rate of criminal behaviour of twins
• what are the two types of twins?

  monozygotic (identical twins) dizygotic (not identical twins)
• what are the twin studies assessing the role of?

  gener=tic and environmental influences
• who were the two people who tested the twin thoery?

  Lange (1929) and Christiansen (1977)
• what did Lange find out in twin theories?

  mz twins showed a higher degree of concordance than the dz twins.
• what statistic did lange in twin studies find?

  10-13 MZ twins both served time in prison but only 2-17 DZ twins had such concordane
• who suggested that crime was inevitable in a functionalist apporach?

  Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
• What else did Emle Durkheim think about crime?

  not everyone in society can be equally committed to the collective settlements or values and beliefs.
• what does Durkheim think helps achieve solidarity in society?

  Socialisation and social control
• what do crime and functionalist approach think crime is normally?

  it is considered functional and only becomes dysfuctional when there is too much or too little crime
• what happens if collective settlements are too strong? (c&fa)

  there will be little change
• what is an example if collective settlements are too strong?

  the changes of laws for homosexuality. if theree was no opposition then the law wouldve stayed the same that it is illegal.
• what happens if the collective settlements are too weak (c&fa)

  there will be too much crime and the status quo breaks down with chaeos.
• what do c&fa people argue?

  that crime strengthens social cohesion or the willingness of members of society to co-operate with one another.
• what do c&fa people think crime maintains?

  it maintains boundaries within society, reacting and uniting and reinforcing their commitment to the value of the consensus
• what is an example of maintaining boundaries (c&fa)

  the abduction of Shannon Matthews in 2008, when members of mooreside estate united in expressing their views of the crime, organising searches, marches and other displays of boundary maintenance
• Mertons strain theory
• who created the strain theory

  Robert k Merton
• what does strain theory argue?

  that society incourages people to have success but not everyone can because society is unable to provide the legitimate means for everyone to achieve success
• what is an example of mertons strain theory?

  not everyone is able to get the correct qualifications or access jobs.
• what are working class people mor elikely to be denied?

  material benefits
• whos opportunities are blocked and how does it link to strain theory?

  working class people. it links to strain theory because their opportunities are blocked and have feelings of strain and anomie.
• what do people strive for in strain thoery?

  goals of material success, but do not have the opportunities to reach the goals legitimatley
• what can happen to people if they cannot achieve their goals?

  conform and accept the situation, innovate by adopting non-conventional or criminal ways to gain material success, become ritualistic, retreatists or rebels
• what is ritualistic (strain theory)

  sight of goal is lost
• what is retreatists (strain theory)

  dropping out of conventional society
• what are rebels

  they oppose goals and values rather than those promoted by society