BIOLOGICAL THEORIES - PHYSIOLOGICAL - LOMBROSO Flashcards
(15 cards)
What does Lombroso suggest about criminals?
That they are a seperate species, between modern man and primitive humans.
How did lombroso conduct his research?
He measured and recorded details of the heads and faces of thousands of prisoners
How were ‘Born criminals’ identified ?
The physical shape of the head and face.
what did Lombroso say about heritability
he claimed criminality was heritable
State the 9 identified features of a criminal
Twisted Nose, Large Jaw, Protruding jaw, large ears, Excessive cheekbones, excessive wrinkles, Long arms, Low sloping foreheads, receding chin.
What does atavistic mean?
Throwbacks or characteristics from an early stage of human development.
what characteristics do atavistic people share that make them more likely to commit crime?
Pre social, unable to control impulses and a reduced sensitivity
Why did Lombroso’s theory lack reliability?
His work had not been proven by other scientists and doctors, which discredits his findings
What was societys ethnocentric view on his theory?
Focused on features that are not typical of western cultures and can be seen as racial profiling
Name a strength
Lombroso was the first person to study crime from a scientific perspective rather than from a moral or religious perspective. He was the first to use objective measurements to gather evidence and try to investigate a scientific method for observing criminality
what did Garland say about Lombroso?
that Lombrosso was responsible for giving criminology a scientific credibility.
what did his research show the importance of
that Lombrosso was responsible for giving criminology a scientific credibility.
what were gorings findings?
that all convicts had the same low-order intelligence, and argued that as this is genetic, there must be a genetic base to criminality
what was a limitation?
Lombroso based his theory on the facial measurements of hundreds of criminals and the skulls of deceased criminals. He did not compare these results to a control group of non-criminals.
what did goring find to contradict lombroso?
made a study of the physical features of thousands of English prisoners and found none of the distinctive facial characteristics noted by Lombroso.
