Brain disorders

• How are brain injuries and diseases linked to criminal behaviour?


  Brain injuries:

  • phineas Gage - personality changed after major brain injury - nice to rude - damage to frontal lobe
  • studies show that some prisoners are more likely than non prisoners to have suffered brain injuries

  Diseases:

  1920s - encephalitis among children linked to destructiveness, impulsiveness and arson

  dementia and Huntington’s disease and brain tumours also linked to criminal behaviour
• What are the strengths of brain injuries and diseases?


  Few extreme cases, brain injury or disease has led to major changes in an individuals personality and behaviour

  • phineas gage

  Correlation between abnormal EEG readings and psychopathic criminality
• What are the limitations of brain injuries and diseases?


  Crime caused by brain injuries and diseases are rare

  prisoners have a higher likelihood of brain injury could be result of their criminality

  • getting into fights rather than the cause of it