forensics: biological explanations genetic and neural explanations ao3

Question 1

Issues w twin studies

Answer 1

Assumption made by researchers that twins share the same environment as their brought up w eachother
But this shared environment may apply more to MZ over DZ bc MZ look alike and are trerated more similar
Which impacts beh
The concoordance rates could be due to the fact that they’re treated more similarly in MZ vs DZ rather than genetics

Question 2

Research support for diathesis stress

Answer 2

Mednick 1984 studied 13 000 danish adoptees
Neither biological nor adoptive parents parents had criminal convictions
The percentage of adoptees that did was 13.5% this is high
The figure rose to 20% when either biological or adoptive parents had criminal convictions
This shows that GI plays an important role in offending beh but the environment also clearly has an influence

Question 3

Research support for frontal lobe

Answer 3

• Research support for the link between crime and the frontal lobe.
• Kandel and Freed 1989) reviewed evidence of frontal lobe damage and antisocial behaviour.
• Impulsive behaviour | emotional instability | inability to leam from mistakes.
Supports the idea that brain damage may be a causal factor in offending behaviour.

Question 4

Intervening variables

Answer 4

• Other factors could contribute to APD and ultimately to offending.
• Farrington et al. (2006) studied males who scored highly on a APD test
• Raised by convicted parents, physically neglected → could have also caused APDo or neural differences e.g. reduced activity in frontal lobe Due to trauma
•offending is complex and there are possible confounding variables.