Criminality personality theory

• Criminality personality theory


  Proposes that criminals make errors and biases in their thinking and decision making, which leads to criminal behaviour
• Errors or biases in criminal thinking

  • Lying
  • Need for power or control
  • Self-centredness
• Psychologists Yochhelson and Samenow


  • Argue that criminals are prone to faulty thinking and this makes them more likely to commit crime
  • Based this on a long term study of 240 male offenders, most of whom had been committed to a psychiatric hospital
• Ownership, altitude, victimstance, slave trade (women), sex, murder, assault, power thrust, murder (control) are examples of criminal thinking errors that can lead to criminal behaviour