t;ttt=ttt:tt'

The Pathclogical Approach to Crime

;,idividually Based Theories
,::li Rimke, Uttiuersitl' of Winnipeg

iiiTRODUCTIOn'l examine their history and social contexts of emer-

*-: notions of the crrminal as "sick," or, specifi- gence. Understanding the history of the develop-
ment of pathological approaches is important :n
-::,,r", "psychopathic" are prevalent in North this context because 21st-century criminological
.:-'erican society, finding regr-rlar expression in aca-
theory is the product of theories developed in previ-
.r:'.i;c writings, in everyday life and in popular olis centuries. Wh;le most of these theories did not
"':Jia and culture alike, Persons suspected or con-
originate in Canada, tl-rey have influenced Canadian
- ::ed of crirnes are commoniy represented as in-
criminal justice policies and university based re-
::ently bad or defective individuals suffering from search, not to mentiorr popular representations and
r oathology, or abnornral condition. One need only misconceptions about crinre and criminality in con-
:^ ::k of Oliver Stone's 1994 movie Natural Born temporary society. As will be seen, individually
- 'ers and its sensationalistic storyline that docu- based theories of criminalrty are distinct from the
.^ents the random, senseless murder spree of two
sociological theories presented in Chapter 6, and
- -:ng lovers lvho themselves insist they were they are based on a different set of assumptions
:crn bad." Paul Bernardo, convicted in 1995 of and goals.
.:rng and murdering two teenage girls, is also lndividually based theories generally rely on the
--:rrmonly presented in the mecJia as a socio- pathological perspective rooted in tlre tradition of
; :rr ic/ psyclropathic/anti socia I persona ity suffer-
I
Western hunran sciences r,vhereby criminality is
-g from a clinical pathology. More recent is the
akin to a sickness or illness, Centrai to the patho-
:ise of Vince Weiguang Li, who stood trial for the logical approach is the idea that criminality is in-
._,'iB stabbjng, beheading and cannibalization of herent rn the individual (e.g., in the irind, hor-
-?-year-old Tim Mclean. Li was found not criminally mones, personality, brain, neurotransnritters or
:sponsible on accoLint of a mental disorder genetic makeup) and that it can be explained by
'.CRMD), sparking public demands for reinstating
isolating biological d ifferences, psychological differ'
.-e death penalty and abolishing human rights for ences, or both in individuals. Another basic feature
:-e mentally ill. ln a culture obsessed with con- of the pathological approach is that il is positivist.
.-,n:ing crime, the spectacle and horrors of these The scientific approach or positivism in criminology
:ases often overshadow serious academic exanri- assunres that the methods of the natural sciences
-ation, thus perpetuating various probiematic as-
slrould be applied to the objective (value-free)
3rmptions about the nature of criminality. study of criminality. The basis of knowiedge (epis-
The idea that some people are criminal by na- tenrology) is dispassionate data collection and
:.;r'e and commit crimes due to their essential analysis based on observation, experimentation
-rakeup as human beings is a powerfuily alluring
and measurement and is thus quantitative rather
;ea, but one that poses serious qirestions arrd than qualitative in iis approach. The emergence of
:rallenges. This chapter provides an overview of positivistic crirninology in the late 19th century
.re historrcal development of nonsociologica, theo- was part of llroader movement lvhereby ail social
',es that focus on criminal condLrct and crirninality problenrs were increasingly viewed through the
:s pathology. ln order to understand individually widening lens of science. Biogenic and psychogenic
rased theories of criminality, ii is necessary to theories are a hailmark of the pathological approach

70
80 Heidi Rimke

behaviour, biological and/or psy-

to crime and criminal conduct. ln order to explain criminal
The body and/or mindlpsyche
chological factors and attributes are isolated and measured'
Positivists assumed that human con-
are taken as flawed and at the root of criminal activity'
psychiatric factors' The new perspective
duct was determined by biological, psychological or
individual pontrol; thus, with the proper
argued that criminality had natural causes beyond
and social ills such
application of the positivist method, social progress would be achieved
as crime (and vice) would be eliminated'
problematic and elusive' yet millions of
constructing a science of criminality has proven
tune in to watch enormously popular
dollars are spent researching it and millions of viewers
have historically been among
crime shows based on these ideas. Biological explanations
Today they are again proliferating in
the most popular and influential of all theories of crime,
biochenlistry' neuropsycholo$y' behav-
academia, recast in terms of evolutionary psychology,
iourai genetics and so on. ,,psychopat]h,,, or in some other way bio-
While popular Conceptions of the criminal as
granted in everyday discourses' sociological
logically constituted have become taken for
approacheshavelongrejectedthishypothesisontheoretical,empiricalandethical
grounds(Taylor,Walton,&Young,lg7t).However,theresurgenceofbiologicaltheories-
popular culture alike-makes it imperative to address
the serious impli-
in academia and
defined in biological' psychological
cations of the concept of individual criminality whether
or psychiatric terms.
theories of crime and criminality has a
The crusade to establish bio- and psycho-scientific
ideas about,evit and human nature
long, erratic and tragic history. Before the 1-8th century,
developed by church authorities'
were essentially derived from a religious framework
rejected and replaced by philosophical ex-
Supernatural theories of criminality were eventually
planationsdevelopedbytheclassicalschoolinthelSthcentury'postulatingthatcrimewas
agents rather than the result of mys-
the result of calculated choices made by rational human
pqsitive philosophy during the
tical forces circulating the cosmos- with the birth of
emerged and replaced the specu-
Enlightenment, scientific theories of crime and criminality
lativephilosophyoftheclassicaltheories'Thepositivistcriminplogyofthelatelgthandearly
or psy-
2Oth centuries hypothesized that criminality was
the result of biological, physiological
were the product and effects of the
chological factors, or all three. such new explanations
growingscientificrationalityofsociety.Theoriesshiftedtowarps,individualexplanationsthat
individual'
searched for "endogenous" (or internal) causes rooted in the body and mind of the
We will look at each of these approaches in
turn'

THE DEMONOLOGICAL APPROACH :

CRIMINALITY AS SIN
the demonoioqlcal perspective or spiriru-
The oldest known explanation for criminality is
aiismcharacteristicofprescientificEuropeduringtheMiddieAges(13001700AD)
basis from religious authority and
(pfohl, 1985). The demonological approach derives its and crimi-
This framework sees crime
viewed crime as a sin and the"criminal as a sinner.
forqes operating on mortal beings
nality as the product of supernatural or "otherworldty"
explanations for-transgression domi-
in a spiritual battle betrveen gooa and evil. Two main
possession' The cause o^f criminal conduct is
nate this viewpoint: temptation and demonic
from otherworldly forces external to and
thus supernalural orpreternafural; that is, it stems
coerciveoftheindividualneatlysumm.dupbythep}u.ase.ithedeviimademedoit,',
 Chapter Five: The Pat ological APProach to Crime 81

Although the chapter is organized around hi deveiopments and Paradigm shifts,

sy-
it is imperative to understand that hard and fast between perspectives are more fic-
rhe
titious than factual. For example, it is both naive and orrect to assume that the religious
3n-
perspective is simply a relic of the past rather tlran influential force on ruodern dis-
ive
courses operating in contemporary sociery. The of moral insaniry the Precursor to
ler
"antisocial personality disorder," or psychopathy, is exanrple ofthe hybridization of re-
rch
ligious views and scientific discourses: Psychiatric di about "moral insanitY" were
the product of both Christian moralism and scientific ies. Thus what was viewed as a
of
sin or sinfulness became renamed spiritualism still i ts theoperation of law; the man-
rlar
dates that politicians mobilize during election cam igns when theY frequentlY call for
)ng
punishments to be based on retributiorl; in correcti , rvhere various kinds ofchaplaincy
lin any one of the number of available
av- remain impofiant; and in treatment, for instance, in
"twelve-step" programs based on the work of A ics Anonymous and the idea of a

)io- "higher power."

cal
cal THE CLASSICAL AND NEOCLAS ICAL SCHOOLS:
;- CRIMINALITY AS HEDONISM
pli-
The Enlightenmeat, emerging in the late iTth and dominating the 18th, Produced
cal
the first formal academic theories about criminality' theories, dating frorn the 1Sth
cenfury, sought to establish the crininal as a calcul ing individual exercising rationaiiry
sa inated for manY centuries which
ure and fi'ee rvill. They rejected the perspective that had
vierved transgression as a sin cot.rmitted against God ing to human weakness in the face
es.
ofexogenous or external forces such as demons or ev spirits that compeiled particular be-
ex-
haviours. The cruel and arbitrary punishnlent cl :istic of earlier centuries, organized
vas
around ideas ofrevenge and retribution, u'as increast gly criticized as barbaric, inhumane
]ys-
and ineffective. For example, the English penal code referred to as the "bloodY code"
the
because over 250 offences were punishable by In 1878, a7-Year-old girl was sen-
)cu-
arly tenced to death by the Canadian State for stealing a
In the global North and West, social and politi I upheavals such as the French and
)sy-
American revolutions ovefthrerv the feudal systelrl o monarchical power, resulting in gov-
the
ernmental reform and major political gains for the m e classes. One of the principal op-
hat
erations of this emergent Enlightenment positivism the provision of a scientificallY
Jal. and otherwise
constructed framework deployed to oversee the " ealth" of disruPtive
"abnormal" individuals. The law was essential in ing the new social order could be
demands for enlightened legal
policed. The campaign for property-or'vner rights nd
ral utiiitarian philosopirers such as
rationality, as seen in the writings of classical lib
Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, occurred al ide the clevelopment of industrial
capitalism. As Newburn QA07,p. 115) writes: "Pt g needed to be Protected sYstems
ltu- centres given a degree oforder."
of production maintained, workers disciplined and
lD) utilitarianism and Enlightenment
Influenced by the ideas emerging from Briti
and and the ciassical school rejected
thought more genelally, Cesare Beccaria (1738-1 )
mi- For utilitarians, punishment could be
religious authority in law and criminal matters.
ngs This philosoPhical aP-
justified only ifit served the greatest good for the number.
mi- criminality. At the heart of the clas-
proach set out to provide a ratioaal theory of crime a
:t is with free will and
sical conception is the view of the criminal as a rati al actor endorved
and itted based upon a cost-benefil
reason. According to the classical schooi, crime is
A2 Heidi Rimke

as hedonistic, guided by a pleasufe-pain

calculation. This approach viewed the individual
involved in one's choice to act' The pleas-
principie used to calculate the risks and rewarcls
ure_painprinciple,orl.elicitycalculus,statestlrathumanbeingsconductthemselvesin
pain. The theory argued thaf the selrerity
such ways as to maxinriJ" pr.u*.. and r'inimize
dedved from committing the clirne to deter
of the punlshment had to o'verride the pleasure In
devise a graduated system of punishment'
criminaiity. T'his provided the rationale to prevention of criminal
was del"rre'-tce-the
order to be effective, the goal of pu'ishme*t
u iurling imiressron on the minds of offenclers and others, with the
activity_by making criminal
least necessary tor*rni to ,ii. oooy of
the offender. The foundation of 'rodern
the punishment must lit the crine; ex'
justice systems was built on the classical tenet that ha|sh and
previously' punirh,]1tnt nu.o.b:tn both
cessive punishment was not effective.
very public (Foucault, r szil U,rt rhe clagsical rt.r"otiir pointed out this had failed to reduce
in a reduction of barbarity and helped es-
criminal coilrjuci. This school of thought resrilted
tablish "modern" criminal justice systems' problems
The classical ir.utlrrg individuals as rational agents, overlooked
"pp."".rr,l, important differences based on age' This
of incapacity and impairment as werl as other factors and other
tho;ght rvhere mitigating
gave birth to what i, ,.i;;;;,o as neoclassical difficul-
issues of ag{ mental illness and learning
allowances are made to accommodate crirninal
ties, fot example. The neoclassical line of thougli tun b"- seen in most modern
is a good example illustrating this influ-
justice legislation. The youth crinti,al ,trtrstice A7r
".n""
on Canadian criminal justice policy'

THE PATHOLOGICAL APPROACH :

CRIMINALITY AS SICKNESS
Theciassicalapproaclrtocrimeandcriminalitydonrinatedforapproximatelyl00years rise to
the iast half of the 19th century' giving
until criminological positivism emerged in that criminality was
science cleterrnined
scientific criminology. An "enlightenecl" modern
ot body' As Foucauit (1987' p' 1988)
has
chiefly a state due,o u ai'oJt'Ja psy:h:'Tlld involved creating a new
.,the psychiatriruiion of tt .rinrinal" in the lgth century
shown, " to fear and govern. The positivist school emerged as a
social group uno ,.i"niili, ia.ntny the individual crimi-
loose network of ."p..t, no* ai".tt. disciplinJs a'd fieldsihat took ofwhat
prnderstood as an aspect ofthe development
nal as its object ofconcern and is best
arebroadlyunderstoodasthehumansciences.Thedisciplinarycompositionthusmoves knowledges
the sociai sciences to inclucle medical
beyond what is typi.utfiirorrght of as forth' It is impor-
sexology, kinesiology.and,so
and other disciplines such as social rvork, the chapter provide a gen-
in ihis section of
tant to bear in mind tfruiift. theories surveyed ihat irnpacted
of the most influential developrnents
eral historical and intellectual mapping than a comprehensive
criminality rather
the rise of pathologicui tt "ori", ,;of inaiviauat
account of the
..trumal ,.r.*", olu*lng,tri.t boundaries betrveen the disciplines-
crirrinology,psychology,sociology"ptdicint'u"thropology'biologyandpsychiatry-is research
betrveen 19th-ttntuty subfields and
particularly difficult aue to ttre great dverlap
within the human sciences'
Thepathologicaiapproachtocrinleoccut.redalongsideseveral^otherimportantandin-
the rise of the professions' the emergence
terrelated lgth- and ZOii -c.nt r.y devilopments:
compulsory schooling and governmental
of the middre .turr"r,l"r.,r""-ril ffi;ir"ii"r,
 Chapter Five: The Pathological Ap ach to Crime 83

reform. The rise of "the expert"-psychiatrists, academic resea , teachers, social hy-
giene reformers, psychologists, health workers and social the develop-
ment of professional knowledges that relied upon a scientific rati ity to understand
explain and control human conduct. Positivist techniques were thus ngly sought in
projects aimed at identifying and improving individuals deemed ically unfit, degen-
erate and inferior. This process involved the shift from focusing on act (crime) to one
that redefined the identity of the person (criminal) in scientifical positive terms. This
served to regulate the population through a regime of medical di and expert huths
that eventually almost entirely replaced the barbarous examples o bloody spectacle of
punishment of previous eras, which had been declining under the in ofthe classical
school (Fouc ault, I 97 9).
The emergence of the Age of Reason had marked a shift in thi ng about the individ-
ual and sociefy. A modern, progressive, "civilized" society thus upon the new ideals
of science, reason and progress. Human problems were increasingl viewed as scientific
problems that could be studie4 known, categorized, regulated, and cured. Under
late l9th-century positivism, explanations of crime could specifical be found in the dif-
ferences among individuais, whether in terms of "character" or c umstance. The opti-
mistic conviction was that crime and criminality could be and cured by the
proper application of science. Scholars stafied positing that pe a set of underlying
forces propelled individuals to conduct themselves in particular Just as the scientific
theory ofgravity could explain faliing apples, positivist approaches out to identiff the
underlying forces causing criminality in the human being. While t classical school em-
phasized the free will of individuals, the new positivist approaches interested in de-
termining the "natural laws" predisposing an individual to criminal uct. Rather than
provide a speculative and therefore subjective view, the positivists sted that through
systematic observation, human behaviour could be explained in the objective manner
as the hard sciences explained the natural world.
In the wake of the French Revolution, as industrialization and ization were ex-
panding both in Westem Europe and North America, the traditi social bonds based
upon religious convictions and moral duties to the monarchy and church were being
challenged, criticized and overthrown, creating massive social, ic and political un-
rest. Positive criminology suggested social disorder could be ied without specific
reference to discredited spiritual explanations. As a result of the ivist movement, any
kind ofconduct viewed negatively could be classified and calcified I'scientifically sick."
Not only was criminality seen as a social problem to be combated the general health of
the social body, it was at the social body's very foundations owing physiology, biology,
ancestry and place of birth-all factors indisputably beyond the I of the individual.
Yet popular religious and spiritual discourses were also i in the development
of nonsociological positivism. Johann Kaspar Lavater (I741-1801) ued that there was a
direct relationship between facial features and character. His 1789 on physiognomy
provided a means of performing "character diagnosis" on the basis al characteristics
which, although written by a clergyman and famous spiritual , made an enor-
mous impact on psychiatric medicine and helped to push charac logy to the popular
fore in both medicine and the wider literate middle classes. This ted in the influential
psychological discourse ofthe nineteenth century: phrenology, w would eventually
branch offinto the physiognomic sciences. Between 1810 and 181 oFranz Joseph Gall
(1758-1828) and Johann Caspar Spurzheim published five volumes the anatomy and

il-ilJrill:.r:]:,:::i
r:;.iJ,iJ.1/t,i]ir:'i].li
a4 Heidi
!1.
.l
in the brain;;;;";;;td io the'shape of the skull'
lunctionsofthebrain,arguingthatallmentaldifferencesarr}onghumanbeingsweredue .l'i

to character differencesiotut'"d a "theft organ" in

a "murder 9tg""; i" *"tg*1t-^and
t:ir
irt
to have iA""tif*O studied the
Gall claimed a scienti{ic practice that
convicted thieves. ,J;;;; *us ,onsid"ied
of human behaviour' The theorv
dt';;;l;; anatomical t";;;; separafe and dis-
shape of the head
t-::

'" . uruin could be ."*ptt,*""t alized into

nosited that the aiuiilonr-oitt its normal funclioning'
io, a purti.rlarrriJn',iiru.urry and
iinct organs..u"t r.rp*rifr.
,.::

also posited a
tfr" irraiuii.,"uii"-" fr""f,rl d";;;; rt"fi' hn'tio ::*v :..
thus reducing ", qfaiity of the soul but encom-
external Uoiily sttucture and
direct relationstrip UetwJen and phvsiognomv
of ihe iJiuiOuuf' rfitt"totogv
passed the entire b"U;;;';-r"1r"is to quantify and measure the
developments in the por'iiJi*"tirotf
were key 19th-century

'*'rnffi 1".::li#Til:liill,*'o*"' j':.'l:T*T$illi:Y.'J:i:,::Tff

of immoral 4cts' the prec
;:;
tematic scientific ttt"o'y
for the commission
p!'*""ri'v tlisorder" t;tiil; t H'nt'and immoral
zitoz' Rimke' 2003)'
popular "anti-social conduct had
that ft"*""
Froponenrs of the doct';;;;.;;ove "tt"t{cter
;;;il;i;;i,"o,,una,"p'l#:;1i""ts:::,i;1q;T{.:il1""ffi'#l'T.'i'?!"J':t
in the ltopicar i"u"''or *o ratitv ana
L';r'.:;r.;':i:Ti'l$ ,,:rr1?:i'11l,]Jlii];;'
#'i;&i:::*T1[1Tiff?:1"1
healrh in an age ordisruptive lo.deryizatioi caoitalist expanslonlsm
secularization and.
resistance, urbanizationl *nt.ti.""ii for these effects as indi-
landscape. giving rise,;
""1;;;;
science ".i""* t*ptns in a varietv of fields
vidual problenr, o' o'rJnlr"n"tt*t tl"i:ift;;;o* 'r criminal
prtv'iogno'iy' irttt""r"sv' evolutionism'joined the
including biology' ttoi'url'ytnoLgy' ttti"i'Li ""eeni; and genetics
anthropologv. p'v'h"l;;;:
fr';i;'';lj l"i'"' I'ntni *imke & Hunt' 2002;
Rafter'
iqqo,'i'i.t.
search tor rhe causes "i?t*.'iorrfr.A
diisc;;r:;, ;ff..;a "r.i.nii"t"'l
*t{n' to explain' identifv' regulate
2005). The disciptinary ;;;;^t* established
ail its dangerous 4;1ttt ,ttil1i"sists that
and combat d"g"n.rut,o;,-in ...o!ti*" t!l*"a argument
wider puUU" "111t^9::*"1 the scientific
their expertis. una A.n*nO"d
rJfi;;; ;lg @rnedical experts possesseda tangible sub-
sociery required
" :ttrf
ends. th" uttemp'J.;;;; d"L,n
qualrties
knowiedge to achi"u" s-r,ih i"t",rt" li"$iric11r^o.n of criminality
can be
srance or give them u *"tiriurirt foundation professor of
i" trr" *"rt of cesare L"*;;;;; iieTj-isosl' an Italian
seen most strikingly Lombroso more
u'*'i' t""tfa"*J founA"' of positive criminology'
legal psychiat'r' 'f''t o1'1".i"tnui upp'ou't'bv his criminal anthropo-
than any thinrel';;;;;;;t1'
other
:i"#X.n c ientiri c

:HT;;]?:ffi ;lr::,il:'1'J*- ** rl'"t"

ffil" e d bv manv s
pbrenol-
L'lr"r.at ttta*i"ii ""0 Spurzheim's
developments, tt.," ,plriruui.huru.i.rotog, "t.J"ruiion and Prichard's doctrine of moral tn-
,rr.or,.r of
ogy and ptlyriognomy.'il.*ir= his kev text' Criminal Man'
ii
saniry. These theones
i"n"t"t"d';;;;;t"L"a moraliry anthropology
""aL'
dJ;;;;oral insanity,.""pt"J"" "f]christian were
Drawing upon rhe ".iuninut anthropology" where humans
he devised u
and evolutionrry o.r;;;;;s, .".i"r and moraldifferences'
Using prts-
fit into phvsical differences
thought ro ",;ffi;ru,;;il:l""T.ri,
oners as raborarory ,,r13..,r,
photographJ;;r;;s;.f "Td tt'1t:^1
he.
cause for crime' Based
on the
of virtually Uoaf O"t"**t t''o"Juf ' p"hysfical that the "horn criminal" was
fu't io
"uttyth.rl;;;;rfaiff.r.n."r, t.*ut"tJiroi"''"a
measuremenr
"f p*""*, rr"*ut .i"i"J"{. ntt Lombroso' the criminal or
a regression in the nairi; "r
l

+:
| ..,
I,
i ,';'i
I
 Chapter Five: The Pathological APP ch to Crime 85

ment rooted in a
atavistwasan..evoiutionarythrowback,'sufferingfromarresteddeve - ti.
and ex ons. Atavism,
d"g"n".ut. ancestry displayed by visible bodily characteristies
phys I stigmata, which
LJmbroro argue{ co.ttJ ue identified by a number of measurable
drooping eyes, a
included anomalies of the cranium, left-handedness' outstretched
ea

protruding jaw, heavy forehead and asymmetries of the face'

shed through mass
Widespread circulation of medical knowledge had been
experts both sides of the
publication and reproductions made available to interested
. One of the main
Atlantic. Lombroso's work was accepted as part of this
disseminati
..solutions" to the dilemma of crime rvas the application of biological other scientific
were thus ci rized as naturallY
theories of hurnan difference. The dangerous classes ad-
physiological
ciminal owing to physical factors' The argument that criminality
ifferentiate human
vancedtheideathatmaterial,objectivecriteriacouldscientifically
groups. However, it also justified a moral apartheid.and wen
el,ilina on ofthose danger-
This r linked to the social
irr* that threatened the health and safety ofthe nation'
"lurr", including ial ciasses and gen-
Darwinist perspective that claimed that sociai hierarchies'
forces r in "natutal" se-
der distinciionr, *.r. the biological product of evolutionary
was mobili as a "princiPle of
lection. The scientific theory oi progressive degeneration is no-
approaches in the h sciences
causation." The misappropriation of evolutionary
research a theories.
table and also made a particularly strong mark Lombroso's
many bio- and
The influence of Lombroso's "positive criminology" remains ir tire
ual differences are
psycho- scientific approaches. Whatever the .specific "lp:"":ll,i1l
of lity that are as-
*"usrrrrd and classified according to culturally defined standards
socially defined at produced. Focus ts
sumed to be universal rather than historically and
of the individual in biological terms' psyclo-lc ical terms or both'
piut"O on the nature
individual de ies and innate
bmphasis is placed on personal characteristics or traits'
deficits are accentuated and explained as by-product of anY
pr"dispositions. Personal
heredity, environment and so forth' The s of this aPProach
trr., o. a combination of,
by ined exPerls.
ut" iit" diagnosis, classification and treatment or cure ofoffenders

I NVENTI NG NORMAL
Measurement and quantification became hallmarks
of the positi ist approach in the
Adolphe Quetelet
human sciences. In the i840s, the Franco-Belgian statisticia
notion of I'homme moyenl which trans tes to "the average
(1196-1894) created the
human lation. Through
*un" o. "the normal man," as a way to measure traits in the to establish the
thecollectionofstatisticaldataonsocialcharacteristics,Queteletsr
statistical technj ues to find Patterns
basis of the average cr normal man by employing
rnan" was a matt maticai abstraction
and regularities in the population' The "nortnal form of
and duct in the
which irought together the diversity of human characteristics
j the criminal-
"the mean.'iUsing the noncriminality of the average man' Quetelet
primitive s, gypsies, the "inferior classes"' erlain
ethnic groups
ity
"it"g"U"ndsivagrants, (Bi e,1987, P' 1159).
oi "irrf"r]o, moral stock" u,td "ptttont of low moral character"
al" as scientific, brtt
Quetelet's invention helped
to institution ahze the notion of "the nort
ial judgments and
"iormal" is always already socially defined because it is based upon
the ility of universal
prescriptions ofiesirability and respectability, thus defying
average person as a
iui and neutrality. The practi cal^outcome of c once1vl1s
"o*ity those who devi ed from it as criminal
,

mathematical mean was tihe justification for defining

86 Heidi Rimke

not just as a ciuster

abnormal' Criminality could th refore be defined
types or otherwise vart-
as an example of pathological
personal
Jf rign, signifving Yt^fttj
:l ::t:,::l:
t ,i", thu, sei out to clemonstrate that
;;;il;; ;;.,,i1uucting, 1 eeo)' Pathologrcal
. measurable PhYsicai
traits'
.t*i""fit".ou1<1be identified and verified by dis

GENETICS AND CRIMINALITY

heredity' The no-
biological normality and de iance rvere linked to
Srudies of supposedly selecti:"
be improved-i not, p.rt "t.d-bY 9*"qit
tion tttat trumanity can and shonld deerned undesirable is called
il * of certain individuals and
.ilrninorion tralts so
*l1fi::.itl rllv identify heritable inferior
;;;'. ilenicists claim"d'1:Y,
popuiatiotr could be improved
b fr.u.nting inferior individuals from
;":;;ilffin n'.ura"rution, sterilization
and even ex-
;;; ;;iteir inierioriti" tt':,1q1:'::11::: itr. ttotf. of the hurnan race' Not only
was to llnpro
t.rmin'ation. The goal ol eugenics as inferior stock of their
most
were eugenicists willing to strip 1]to.se lnon,t-leV
had distinctiy ractst- nd murderous-aspects'
"-" ,ift',tr, the movetnent
Uo*i. nutity the heritability of crimi-
C.r[ti. upproaches to studying cryne 1a 1,nn ;; ;""y "*u*ine
comPeting fi'ameworks within
As for other individualist theones'
nal conduct' Alf.t gt.xfyin aim and methodology'
tftir rriro"f of thought' Although research.appr **ining toi. in the mentai' moral and
that geneti:: t
,fr"V tft*" tn. basic assumption
{1t" seek to differentiate genetlc
indwiduais' Such
behavioural differences among i'soositions to criminal behaviour
due to
in order to determine pr
il;;;;L"t*ental effects
,q";ur o.ur of t'esearch is conducted
i"ft.ti"a factors (Wasserman & Wachroit' of imiiuflry. Key methodologies have been
2.00.1

,.^*f,itg for eviclence of a genetic component g;t.titt rerearch that search for mark-
ir*trv v'"-'
t*ai"s, twin and adoption t*11e1:ll?t^l to
'q'LLt'r neurobiological ap iches that examine neural pathways
and vlcrlence'
ers of aggresslon
, fu.t of *ia.nce
of causal genetic mech-
so forth'
,*AV i,iiuftitiry aggression and ?::ll:: transmission accounts for
of any conclusive resea f, ,ftut-g.n.ri.
u;it-t and the absence
t1c1 is stiifwideiy held today' Further'
tt ap-
criminatiry the idea that genes nredistrose years has occurred'
and net olutionism in recent
nears that a resurgence ofbiocriminology dates back to the mid-19th-century
"'-irt. ** heli ttntt that "crime nrns in fam ies"
now infamous ;.t ;f a small number of suPPosedlY
ao.oin" ofloral insanity an<l
;;J.k.t (Rimke & Hunt' 2a0l'The
Kallikaks' the Chesters a
.rf-f"* famiiies: the
for criminality has been a consistent
differences acco
idea that individual inherited
-- since Lombroso'
trend seek to identify, classify,
treat and cure
X"rl public health programs of crime , ."tOt*r. The search for biological.dis-
or. impuls
ino*ii.tui, predisp osed to ag gre ssive ntive detention, ffeatment
as a condition
also played an increased role in pre in-
has and other preemptlve
""ri,.".
Lf u non.orrodial sentence'
genetic screenlng ln sk assessments
21st century
protection d pubiic safety in the early
terventions in the name of security'
)
iii"r., looo, Tavlor, 2001; Rafter' 2004'2006'

ITY
PSYCHOLOGY AND CRIMINA qualities of
the causati olcrirlinal activity to specific
Psvchological explanations reduce
identifli uu.io"t internal factors or determinants:
,lrJ t"*J?t pry.tlt ol the offender' ,r.itt impulsivity' childhood
personality types a "tt*t.ion,
low intelligence, abnormal

:q,qii,fi1
ri:i;ililt:,i
,l,r,r i'li.i:l1'lii j.i-r,rii:l
 Chapter Five: The Pathological Approach to Crime 87

trauma, failures of psychosociai development, stress or cogni ve dysfunction, for exam-

ple. Cognitive psychologists see crimes as resulting from cri nals'deficits in cognitive
processing, while psychoanalytic theorists have suggested cri are the resuit of uncon-
scious psychodynamics.
Psychologically based explanations grew out of human scie tific knowledge, from ob-
servation of prisoners, animal sfudies and academic research. B ly speaking, the major
difference between biologicai and psychological explanation is that the former views
crirninality as inbom or imate, while the latter approaches it as an effect of psychological
processes or external factor(s) influencing the mind or psyche Stiil, psychoiogical theo-
rists view crimes are the direct product of some internal flaw or t, rvhatever rts cause
As a result, psycholcgical and biological approaches are not rn lly exclusive; in fact, an
increasing number of studies are examining the interrelation p between the two, rvhere
the growing focus appears to be on nurture and nafure rather n one or the other.

BIO-PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES OF C IM E:
THE INFLUENCE ON CORRECTIONAL ORK
The pathological approach to crime relies upon the medical r ei by characterizing the
offender as "abnormal" or "sick" and in need ofa cure or tre . Because criminality is
understood as determined by a scientifically identifiable cause, is approach is described
as deterministic. This can be seen in the psychicai determin sm of psychoanalytic or
personality theory or the genetic or neurochemical determi ism found in biological
approaches. The issue of legal responsibility in criminal law i based on a conception of
the free wiil of the individual, not the determinisrn that defines t positivist approach. The
scientific determinism of the pathological approach is thus at with the legal practice
of holding the individual responsible.
The debate on criminality and responsibility dates back years. The insanity de-
lence is best knorvn as the M'Naghten Rules due to the highi publicized 1843 trial of
Daniel M'Naghten, who shot and killed Edward Dru the secretary to
Conservative English prime minister Robert Peel. M'Naghte lawyers argued that he
was not guilty of murder by reason of insanity. He was ex ng paranoia and delu-
sions and did not rationally understand the nature of his , and even if he did,
M'Naghten hadno undersfanding that it was wrong. He beli that Peel was otganizing
a conspiracy against him and that he was acting in self-defence The case gave rise to the
most thorough debate on criminal responsibility and the le I test of insanity largely
because the verdict roused a great deal of opposition. This in large part fi'om
accusations that the doctrine condoned criminai behaviour a determinist model
ofdisease which contradicted the rvidely endorsed doctrine oft e free will and moral re-
sponsibility. The practical consequences of using the insanity plea based on a medical
condition undermined the iong-held belief in the necessity of ishing the dangerous
with "a just measure of pain." Psychiatrists exciaimed that it w unjust and inhumane to
punish, legally or otherwise, an individual for a biological ition. Objections to the
doctrine involved charges that it subverted the doctrine ol free ill
and by extension the
cherished classical liberal discourses ol moral responsibility, ountability, rationality
and calculability-in short, the free agency of the subject. An clear challenge was
the difficulty of distinguishing criminality from sin and the em of drawing a clear
conceptual boundary between willful vice and disease (Va , 1998; Rimke, 2003)

:ti{!tll;jr,,,:

i;:,l]:..lilrr
,,i!:,.1 i:r:i.
88 Heidi Rimke

as Foucaul (1978) has Pointed out'

the
The rise of positivist science not only signaled
mad; it therel transformed the ungovern-
modern traniformation of the criminal into the
r'viro needed rnedi a1 attention bY scientific ex-
abie sinner into a moraliy mad degenerate
scienc would begin to address the
perts above all eise (Rimke & Hunt, 2002)' Modern
old social evils and ills in new ways'
life to psYchological dis-
Psychocentrism, or the reduction of human probiems
The rise of PsY-
.o,r.*, should be understood as the cultural corollary of oiiberaiism.
or both ali forms of human
chocentrismhashadtheeffectofrecuperating,nuilifyir
pathology' As n enduring characteristic of
challenges, differeirces ancl difficuities as
as the com lsory ontoiogY of PathologY'
Western"societies, psychocentrism can be seen
thror the lens of the PsY comPiex
Culturally, we are expected to view human existence
and ting. To date, there exists no
rather than alternative frameworks for understanding
P ychiatric theories are flawed
ih"o.y of criminality that explains ail criminal conduct'
i11, and ferv i ividuals diagnosed as men-
beca..,e not all convicted persons are mentaliy
are "psYchoPathic" or
n have criminai records' Similarly, not ali convicted
:torioputttit," related diagnoses most directly. associated ith criminalitY, so PsYchiatric
"fiy
theories of crilre also are inadequate. Yet
psychiatric and bi psychological aPProaches to
is a key aspect of these aP-
corrections temain immensely influential' Individualisn
offender' T e punishment came to be de-
p.ou.tt", because the focus is on the individual
t*plut1t,: the supposed characteristics
iG".a to suit the riminai, not the crime' This dangerous offender
rtencing,
oithe criminal is seen in probation, parole' indeterminate
t

her entrenched bY the dts-

legislation and community sentences' Individuahztil:l]:
using a
cretionary powers exelcised by expert authorities
work i
Vuriants ofpsychology influencing correctional

Freud. P sYchoanaiYtic the-

1. Psychoanalytic tlteory, developed initially by Sigmt
stems from ur ved unconscious conflicts
ory basically assumes that criminai conduct
or lfunction in the ego (realitY-
inihe psyche or stnrcture of the personality' Disfurbances
instincts) to satisfY its urges
U"r.Oj and sup".rgo (conscience) allorv the ld.(p:i-1ti":
rules. For examPle, criminal
laws and the consequences of violating le;
,.gurii"r, of
tification due to an underde-
biaviour is viewed as the resuit of an inability to delay
d. Other psYchoanalYsts have
t"f"p"A superego that cannot reguiate the desires of
the
superego xperience excessive guilt and
claimed ttrat inJivlauals with an overdeveioped
in efforts ) restore psYchical balance' In
anxiety and thus unconsciously seek punishment
because they have unconscious and comPulsive
othe, wordr, individuais commit crimes
f mework, unconsclous motlva-
r."J t" punishment' In the psychoanailtical
"*plri"n." nt issues, are taken as the driv-
tionsandinternaiconflict,oftenrelatedtoparentalattac
- forces of criminal behaviour'
ing
' mplex set of emotional, men-
2. Purronatity theoty Per:sonality can be defined.as.a
remain stable ist over a long Period of time)
tal and behavioral attributes that generaliy
and constant (in different situations)'
Psychiatrists require m-1di1t and sp.ec ized training and iegallY Pre-
3. Psychiatty'
interventi (lobotomy, electro-convulsive
scribe medication and other forms of medical
-shock theraPY', etc.)' personai itive develoPment fhrough
4r. Socia'l psychology' Focus is placed on
criminaliry incl , poor parenting,
lack of suPer-
childhood .tp"ri"n..,. Expianations for
vision and emotional, physical and sexual abuse'

1,
.ri, :
'.1t:':1.
 Chapter Five: The Pathological pproach to Crime 89

PSYCHOLOGY AND WILL: NEW MORAL DISCOURSES

If one examines concepts such as "lack of willpower," one can how both the religious
and philosophical still operate in the academic biogenic and ychogenic explanations.
Hirschi and Gottiiiedson's (1990) control theory reduces crimi I activity to impulsivity,
self-centeredness, the inability to delay gratification, the propens for risk-taking and low
threshold for stress. The inability to resist a sinful temptation the metaphysical notion
of "will" are retained within this contemporary approach.
The partly deterministic individualism of this approach can criticized for avoiding
the consideration of broader structural factors which might help piain crimes. For exam-
ple, Marc L6pine, who gunned down 13 women engineering ts at Montreal's Ecole
Polytechnique on December 6, 1989, is often described in main media as suffering
ffom antisocial personality disorder (psychopathy, sociopathy, ial disorder) or from
having a bad relationship with his mother. Feminists and critical t inkers have provided so-
cial and poiitical explanations claiming that his act of violence an extreme expression
of the general and systematic physical, sexual, emotional and ic violence against
women that occurs regularly in a patriarchal society. Asociai ex nations chose to ignore
that fact that Lepine wrote in his suicide letter that he all feminists" and that
"women were the reason he failed at life." A social perspective ld explain that the mur-
der of explicitly females is an occurrence is an explicit act of mi , the hatred of fe-
males. An individualist explanation would argue his crime wa the result of an innate
pathology or perhaps blame his mother (rtself considered a mi ist and otherwise prob-
lematic theory; why not blame the absent father, for example?), a socially based
theory would point to the social factors that influence and shape

Conclusion: Crime and the "Psy Scie cestt

Positivists rejected the claim that criminality was the result of c possesslon or to
the calculated decision to do evil. This was a kev transformation in the history of expla-
nations for criminal conduct. The respectability of science ed upon objective and
testable theories of criminality rather than upon superstition and subjective claims char-
acteristic of the demonological iiamework that dominated for centuries. With the
rise of positivism, previous definitions of sinful conduct (crime) me reconfigured as
abnormal conditions which required attention by human scienti ic experts, not theolo-
gians or philosophers. Rather than attribute the cause of crimi lity to an exogenous
demon, the new and modern sciences insisted that crime must be an effect ofan internal
disordered state, initially identified by Lombroso and others a pureiy biological or
physiological. Criminality, like other human pathoiogies, was thu taken to be caused by
organic or endogenous factors rooted in the body itself. As such, soul-eventuallv the
psyche, mind or personality-became the object to sfudy, know, regulate, reform, treat
and cure. At first, these mental phenomena were seen as purely e ts ofthe disordered
or abnormal body, aithough later psychological theories also asized the traumatic or
deficit-producing effects of a dysfunctional biography. The igm shift produced by
positive criminology introduced a medical model of crime where iminalitv became seen
as a mental or biological pathology.
The history of individualist theories of crime and criminality monstrates that a uni-
linear or progressivist analysis of the progress of science so cha teristic of scientists'
 90 Heidi Rimke

understanding oftheir otvn places in history insufficient

to account for the muitipie and
often contradictory claims advanced within pert domains
of knowledge. The heteroge_
neous and often inconsistent or contradi expert claims and tlie reigning ambiguity
and claims about the scientific discourses ca be seen
in the problematic theoretical dis-
tinctions between disease/depravity, responsi ilifylnonculpability,
freedom/determinism
and normal/pathologtcal, not to menfion the n ind-body
relationship.
Forensic psychologists and psychiatrists, qualified specialists. today dominate the
most recent developments in the field. Forensi psychoiogy
and psychiatry can be defined
as pathological approaches in service to the iminal justice system. That is, the field of
"psy forensics" works explicitly for the in clinical and administrative capacities
rather than engaging in the pursuit of empiri I knowledge
or the improvement of social
conditions, for example. Many roies are pia d by forensic psy
expertsj predicting and
classiSring risk (of reoffending), interpreting culpability, providing presentence
reports, acting in the capacity of expert witne es, providing
expert testimony and imple_
menting treatment programs. Crime prevention is based on
early diagnosis and determin-
ing individuals "at risk" of committing . The task of the expert is to identify and
correct or fix the pathology.
Psychological and biologrcal theories of me and criminality are contentious and
problematic owing to classificatory ambiguity, ack ofphysical/organic
evirlence and the
highly subjective nature of notions such as ri , threat and dangerousness.
To date, no
known biological or genetic factors have been rmined to cause crime, yet the popu-
larity of this approach appears to be growing i both the academy
and everyday culfure.
Pathological theories of crime causation have criticized on numerous grounds. The
long and controversial history of individualist reories, the lack oftheoretical
and disci-
plinary consensus on the mind-body reiationsh
, fhe political history of its use and im-
plications, etioiogical uncertainties, the long list of human
rights abuses by the authorities
and inconclusive empirical data highlight the blematic nature of individually based
theories of crime and criminalify. Theories that criminality is a pathological condi-
tion remain questionabie and highly controversi
, not least of all because of the impiica-
tions these conceptions have on criminal justir policies that affect
many individuals in
custodial and noncustodial settings. The return biogenic explanations signals the need
to understand their histories, for those who do t learn fi'om the past are destined to re-
peat the worst of it.

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