health law and bio ethics prof. dr. helena pereira de melo

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Health Law and Bio Ethics

Prof. Dr. Helena Pereira de Melo

Medical Causes of Criminal Behaviour

2º CICLO – ANO LECTIVO 2013/2014

ANGELICA SCHMIDT - Nº 003904

Lisboa, 30 de avril de 2014

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Agenda

Implications for health law: Discussion

Medical research on criminal behaviour today

Medical research on criminal behaviour then

Criminological Basics

30.04.2014 - Medical Causes of Criminal Behaviour

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Criminological Basics (1/2): Definition of

Criminology• Causes, control and prevention of criminal behavior both

for individuals and society

• Interdisciplinary field in behavioral sciences, focussing on the research of sociology, psychology, psychatry, social anthropolgy as well as on writings in law

• Areas of research: forms, causes and consequences of crime, social and governmental regulations and reaction to crime

• Victiminology


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Criminological Basics (2/2): Most popular

theories• Subcultural Theory• Ecological Approaches• Theory of cultural conflicts• Frustration-Aggression-Hypothesis• Control Theory• Psychologic and socialpsychologic theories• Medical theories


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Agenda






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• Cesare Lombroso (1883 – 1909): Types of criminals

• Ernst Kretschmer (1888 – 1964): Somatotypology

• Joseph Gall (1758 – 1828): Craniology

• Johannes Langes (1891 – 1923): Twin research

Medical Research then (1/7):

Famous Representatives


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• „L’uomo delinquente“ (1876): „born criminal“

• Pathologic and deviant characteristics of criminals

• Criminals as a primitive humans: „Degeneration-Stigmata“

• Demand: abolition of criminal liability

Medical Research then (2/7): Lombroso


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"Physique and Character" (1921): Development of specific body types

• Leptosome (thin: tends to offenses against property)

• Pyknic (thickish, prone to fraud)

• Athletic (muscular, prone to violent offenses)


Kretschmer


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Leptosom e Pyknic Athlete

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Kretschmer


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• Founder of phrenology and skull research

• Localization of mental skills and character traits in certain brain areas

• Altered brain regions can cause personality changes or provoke violent criminal behaviour

Medical Research then (5/7): Gall


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.


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• "Crime as Destiny" (1929)

• Assumption: chromosome abnormalities of violence criminals

• „Murderer-chromosome“ (XYY-Chromosome-Aberration)

• „Klinefelt-Syndrome“ (XXY-Chromosome-Aberration)

• Influence on genetics and chromosome-research

Medical Research then (6/7): Langes


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• Very poor methodology

• Empirically research results are not justifiable

Negative: conservative and repressive explanations, racial politics

Positive: impulses for today's medical research


Critique


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Agenda






I Biological causes II Psychological causes

a)Prenatal Influencesb)ADHDc) Sex/Genderd)Bio-chemical

processes e)Nutritionf) Brainfunction

a) Intoxication & Drugsb)Bipolar Personality

Disorder c) Schizophreniad)Organic brain

damages

Medical Research today


• Stress, tobacco, drug or alcohol abuse (eg, fetal alcohol syndrome) leads to severe embryonic damage

• Consequence: antisocial behavior, character neuroses

• Other factors: negative environmental influences, cognitive-emotional development


Medical Research Today (1/10)

Prenatal Influences

• Aggression, impulsivity, "sensation-seeking“, lack of discipline, emotional instability

• Cause: neurobiological disorder, inactive neurotransmitter

• 30-50% with antisocial and aggressive behavior.

• Persons with ADHD show three times more delinquent behavior

Medical Research Today (2/10)ADHD


• Percentage of female and male suspects: 25.4% and 74.6%

• Women: Emotional control and lower degree of aggression

• Evidence of a correlation between pre-frontal brain complex and violent behavior in males only


Gender


Hormons (Androgens) Sexual hormone Testosterone

Cortisol (Adrenal Cortex) Overproduction: Anxiety Underproduction:

„sensation-seeking“

Thyroid function Over/Underproduction:

Anxiety, restlessness

Neurotransmitter (Messengers) Serotonine

Deficiency causes violent or aggressive behavior

Noradrenalin Causes Stress

„GABA“ Influences level of

aggression and anxiety


Bio-chemical Causes


• American Institute of Biosocial and Medical Research:o Correlation between poor nutrition and agressiono Metabolic disorders, poisoning and biochemical

malfunction

• University of Baltimore: o Correlation between sugar and refined

carbohydrates and behavioral problems o Sugar diet reduces violent behavior


Nutrition


• Limbic System (Affects and Emotions)o Hypothalamus, Amygdala, Hippocampus o If damaged: misjudgment and misinterpretation of

emotions, fear, anger

• Pre-frontal Cortex o Anger Management o circulatory disorder: increased aggressive behavior

Medical Research Today (6/10)Others


I Biological causes II Psychological causes

a)Prenatal Influencesb)ADHDc) Sex/Genderd)Biochemical processes e)Nutritionf) Brainfunction

a) Intoxiction & Drugsb)Bipolar Personality

Disorder c) Schizophreniad)Organic Braindamages


Medical Research Today

• Alcohol o Delirium: disinhibition, aggressive behavior o Detoxication: violence attacks o Sober alcoholics: irritability, impulsivity, isolation o 13.2% of all offenses under the influence of alcohol

• Drugs o Opiates: passive state o Psychostimulants: violent behavior possibleo Hallucinogens: panic attacks, psychosis, delusional states o Drug-related crimeso Overdose: aggression, irritation


Intoxication and Drugs


• Affective personality disorder

• Causes: o Lack of neurotransmitters: metabolic disturbances in the

brain o Alcohol and drugs increase symptoms

• No definite causal link between disease and (violent) criminal behavior



Bipolar Disorder

• Affective personality disorder

• Diverse symptoms: o Delusions, hallucinationso paranoid and schizoid personality disorders o personality changes o Hypersensitivity, nervousness, increased levels of

aggression

• In an acute psychosis: high violent potential



Shizophrenia

• acute brain disorders: o Encephalitiso Cerebral Hemorrage Unpredictable, aggressive, psychomotoric affective behaviour

• Case of Phineas Gage:o Injury prefrontal cortex o No intellectual, but emotional-affective personality changeso After the accident: reckless, carefree, aggressive behavior


Organic Brain Lesion


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Agenda






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• Neuro-scienceso Genetics and brain function do influence behaviour!o Doubts on individual freedom of choiceo Terms of guilt, liability and blame might loose their

meaning

• Consequences for penal law?o Elimination of guilt and liability? Elimination of

penalty?o Solution: protection to the public by medical

treatment of the patients?o problems?

Implications for health law (1/2)


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Implications for health law (2/2)

• Can people be accountable for their offenses?

• Do criminals have a personal responsibility?

• How to deal with criminals who have genetic, biologic or physic defects?

• How to deal with guilt and liability ?


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Q & AThanks for your attention!

Any questions, remarks, comments?


health law and bio ethics prof. dr. helena pereira de melo

Documents

twin research medical

discussionmedical research

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consequences of crime

social anthropolgyas

crime victiminology

governmental regulations

subhuman predestined