Theories of criminal and anti-social behaviour: the biological explanation (brain structure, genetics and inherited traits) and the social learning explanation (observation, imitation, modelling, vicarious reinforcement and identification).

What this dot point is asking

OCR wants you to describe two competing explanations of why people commit crime: the biological explanation (brain structure, genetics and inherited traits) and the social learning explanation (learning crime by observing and imitating others). You need to explain how each works and be able to evaluate them with strengths and weaknesses.

The biological explanation

There are three strands you must know.

• Brain structure. Damage to or abnormal activity in certain brain regions is linked to crime. The prefrontal cortex controls planning, impulse control and moral reasoning, so damage here can make a person more impulsive and aggressive. The amygdala, which processes emotions like fear, has also been linked to aggression when it functions abnormally.
• Genetics. Criminal tendencies may be partly inherited. Twin studies find that identical (monozygotic) twins, who share all their genes, are more likely to both offend than non-identical (dizygotic) twins, who share half. Adoption studies find adopted children's offending correlates more with their biological than their adoptive parents, suggesting a genetic influence.
• Inherited traits. Some psychologists argue people inherit a personality type that raises the risk of crime, an idea explored in the criminal personality and self-fulfilling prophecy dot point.

The social learning explanation

The social learning theory of crime says offending is learned from other people through observation and imitation, not inherited. It builds on the idea that we copy role models, especially when we see them rewarded. The key processes are:

• Observation: the person watches a model behave criminally (a parent, an older peer, a gang member or a character on television or in a video game).
• Identification: the observer is more likely to copy a model they identify with, seeing them as similar, admirable or high status.
• Vicarious reinforcement: if the model is seen being rewarded for the behaviour (gaining money, respect or status, and not being punished), the observer learns it pays off and is more likely to imitate it.
• Imitation and modelling: the observer reproduces the behaviour, provided they have the ability and the motivation.

This explanation is why concern about violent media and the influence of older peers is taken seriously. The classic core study, Cooper and Mackie (1986), tested whether children would behave more aggressively after playing or watching a violent video game.

Evaluating the two explanations

The biological explanation is supported by objective brain-imaging, twin and adoption evidence, which makes it scientific. Its weaknesses are that it is reductionist and deterministic, ignoring upbringing and free will, and that the evidence is correlational (a damaged brain region is linked to crime, but may not cause it). The social learning explanation explains the real influence of peers and media and why crime runs in families and areas, but it underplays biology and cannot easily explain why two children exposed to the same models behave differently. Most psychologists accept crime has multiple causes, combining biological vulnerability with learning and environment.

Try this

Q1. Name the brain region linked to impulse control and planning whose damage is associated with aggression. [1 mark]

• Cue. The prefrontal cortex.

Q2. Explain what is meant by vicarious reinforcement. [2 marks]

• Cue. Learning by seeing a model rewarded for a behaviour, which makes the observer more likely to imitate it.

Q3. Give one weakness of the biological explanation of crime. [2 marks]

• Cue. It is reductionist and deterministic (or the evidence is correlational), ignoring upbringing and free will.