WHAT GOES ON IN A CRIMINAL’S MIND?
Elangovan, October 22, 2018
The biological roots of crime have long been a discussion of much debate. In The Anatomy of Violence, Adrian Raine has stated rather uncategorically that ‘environmental toxins, genetics and neuro-anatomy all play a role in criminal behavior’.
Making the association between biology and criminal behavior has, however, left a bitter taste in the mouths of many people, for obvious reasons. This is largely because biological research has been misused by many. Hitler’s genocide and the sterilization of the mentally retarded are just two examples of this misuse.
It is remarkably easy for us to assume crime to be a matter of conscious choice and decision. Hence most discussions on the criminal mind tend to be one-sided, focusing on the thought processes as opposed to the actual physical makeup of the brain itself. This has been proven, particularly in recent times, to be a flawed approach.
The Function and Structure of the Brain
Dustin Pardini, PhD, found in a neuroimaging study that he led, that there was a definite link between the amygdala and crime. This part of the brain is in part responsible for social interactions, fear and aggression.
In this study, 26-year old males with lower volumes of amygdala tended to be three-times more violent than men of the same age with normal amygdalas.
This is just one study, but the evidence speaks for itself. There is a definite relationship between the properties of the brain, and a tendency towards criminal behavior.
So, thinking and reasoning aside, is it possible to address the physical anomalies of the human brain in order to make one less predisposed to violence and crime? According to Raine, yes!
Can You Change The Brain To Effect Behavioral Changes?
Raine, an expert on the subject, suggests that the earlier you intervene, the better chance you have of curbing the criminal tendencies that result from brain abnormalities. In fact, 3-year-olds who participated in one such intervention, where they were involved in a program of nutrition, cognitive skills and exercise showed a better brain functioning by age eleven, and less likelihood to commit crime by age 23.
Simple interventions are just as effective. In one study, according to the Journal of Psychiatric Research, 2013, a 10-week yoga program for prisoners improved impulse control. And in another study, as quoted in the British Journal of Psychiatry, 2003, British prisoners who received vitamin and mineral supplements committed 26, 3% less offences than those who were fed the placebo.
No matter how you look at it, there seems to be a difference between the average person’s brain, and the brain of a criminal. Let us now look at some of these differences, to further give us insight into the criminal mind.
Facts about the Criminal Brain
Here are some mind-blowing facts about the criminal brain that will deter you from judging a criminal too quickly, or too blindly. Yes, we should all be able to control ourselves, using learned or inherent perceptions of right and wrong. The truth is, however, this is not always possible. Here is why:
- The amygdala, also known as the seat of emotion, is deformed in criminals and particularly in psychopaths
- The criminal mind does not change, and a comparison between an active offender’s brain and the brain of an offender who claims to have changed show that no distinction can be made between remitting and chronic offenders
- Serial killers are not the antisocial misfits we expect them to be. In fact, most times, they are extremely social, blending in with society very well.
- This shows that the brain of a psychopathic criminal is not underdeveloped. It is just differently developed
- Chemical levels in the mind of a criminal are usually way off
- Psychopaths also have difficulty reading facial expressions, unable to identify fear and also to feel it
- They have a predisposition to crime, partly or mostly due to the excessive communication between the irrational and rational sides of the brain
These are just some of the anomalies associated with the criminal mind, but they are sufficient to point to the fact that there are clear distinctions between the psychotic and the average mind, the brain in particular.
Criminal Mind over Criminal Grey Matter
The mind is, therefore, obviously influenced by the makeup of the brain, in particular in criminals. Their sense of right and wrong is sometimes warped, and sometimes they are aware that their actions are wrong, but they are unable to resist the crime.
The question then becomes one of conscience, but this too is topic of much debate amongst criminologists especially. What is supported by research though, is that there is a genetic propensity towards criminal behavior in the criminal brain. So the nature versus nurture debate comes to the fore.
How so?
Well, with a natural inclination towards crime, can one then fight nature with the right amount of nurturing? Raine thinks so, as do many of his colleagues. There is much literature out there to support the idea that with the right guidance, early enough, the criminal brain can be influenced towards more positive behavior.
With this level of complexity, though, it is obviously a point of much contention. The idea that some people are just born bad is thrown out by the massive amounts of qualitative and quantitative research on the subject. But this offers up a new set of questions, particularly as these relate to the assumptions made by the Rational Choice Theory.
The goings on in the criminal mind are a maize that needs much more discussion than is allowed by the ambit of this article. Suffice it to say, though, that the obvious discrepancies between the average and the psychotic make for very interesting discussions and studies.
In a nutshell
People who are convicted of serious crimes and those who are not display significant biological differences in the brain. And even though not all psychopaths end up committing crime, and not all criminals fit the mold discussed above, the correlation between these facts is too staggering to ignore.
References
Adrian Raine, The Anatomy Of Violence, (February 11, 2014)
Gareth Cook, Secrets Of The Criminal Mind, (May 07, 2013)
Vinita Mehta, Is There A Criminal Mind? What Does It Look Like? (May 19, 2013)
Stanton Samenow, Inside The Criminal Mind, (March 30, 2004)
Clara Moskowits, Criminal Minds Are Different From Yours, Brain Scans Reveal, (March 04, 2011)
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