Zachary Lincoln

Vanderslik
English 100 15
4 December 2014
The Neurobiology of Criminals
Criminals have existed since the dawn of man. A criminal is an individual who,
obviously, commits a crime. A crime, however, is an action or activity that is considered to be
evil, shameful, or wrong (Google Dictionary)1. Until recently, criminals were thought to have
committed their crimes by free will. With breakthroughs in modern science there is now reason
to believe that some criminals commit crimes because of a biological alteration in the brain, and
not out of free will. However, with this comes woes that it will create a system where those
criminals are no longer considered to be responsible for their actions. Whether or not it is agreed
with, neurobiology is attempting to solve the age-long problem of criminals and criminal
behavior.
Neurobiology is a relatively new field in the world of biological sciences. While its roots
can be traced all the way back to ancient Egypt, it was not until after 1891 when studies done by
Wilder Penfield were published on the localization of the brain, that neurobiology began to take
off (University of Columbia). The modern birth of neurobiology starts here, with the idea that
different parts of the brain control different functions of the body (Finger 17). Neurobiology is
the study of cells, specifically neurons, and how they relate to the nervous system. This includes
both neurons in the central, and peripheral nervous systems. Neurobiology is a science that is

Crime: an action or activity that, although not illegal, is considered to be evil, shameful, or
wrong.
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closely related to neuroscience, and is thus often confused with it. The main distinguishing
difference between neurobiology and neuroscience is that neuroscience tends to be the general
study of the brain, whereas neurobiology is concerned with the examination of the biological
side neurons. Although it is mainly focused on biology, there is a generous amount of crossover
with neurochemistry, making it difficult to find information on just the specifics of neurobiology.
While many in the neuroscience field see neurobiology as a rapidly developing field, it is
important to realize the technological limitations of our time. It is extremely difficult to observe
the brain through scans and tests, and without physically seeing it, nothing can be definite. Thus,
while there is research to strongly support theories, they are beyond difficult to gather enough
evidence to prove it. In reality, the brain is incredibly complex, with an incredible amount of
uncertainty and variation behind it; there are over one-hundred billion neurons in the average
human brain, and even more found throughout the body. Even if one could compile information
on a tenth of the neurons found in the body, the amount of variation person-to-person would take
a large amount of time.
Throughout history, many have tried to explain what results in criminal behavior.
Through the brief history of modern neurobiology and neuroscience study, criminology, The
scientific study of crime and criminals (Google Dictionary)2, has been a pressing issue. With the
worldwide rise of crimes (Associated Press), science is desperately searching for a reason, or
solution. However, the main purpose of study done on criminals thus far has been exploratory
research in order to find the differences in the biology of a criminals brain. It is also important
to note that far more research has been conducted on criminals who have committed violent
crimes, rather than those who commit crimes that would be classified as misdemeanors.
1.

Criminology: the scientific study of crime and criminals.

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Although many methods for collecting neurological data have been used over the years,
including radiology and live dissection, the preferred method of todays research is CT scans of
the brain. While the CT scans occur, it is helpful to stimulate the brain in some way in order to
force a chemical change within the brain that can be easily identified. Typically, violent
criminals are interviewed during the CT scan, and the questions asked are designed to stimulate
certain portions of the brain. Most of the scans have been localized in the pre-frontal cortex, an
area that is believed to be a powerhouse for the brain. Because these scans have been focused on
the pre-frontal cortex, it has been shown that criminals are likely, but not with certainty, to have
reduced amounts of grey matter in their pre-frontal cortex compared to an average individual.
This is consistent with further scans that have been conducted on individuals who display
psychopathic behavior, showing that they as well have reduced grey matter volume in the prefrontal cortex.
It has long been thought that there was a strong relationship between psychopaths and
violent criminals, and the recent research seems to strengthen that idea. It is important to know
that the lack of grey matter in the pre-frontal cortex is considered to be some form of damage in
the brain, whether it was founded in the brains initial development or not. Because it is
considered to be damage to the brain, it is all too possible that the hypothesis outlined by Adam
Lamparello in Using Cognitive Neuroscience to Provide a Procedure for the Involuntary
Commitment of Violent Criminals as a Part of or Following the Duration of Their Sentence: The
Model Statute that, Damage to the frontal lobes, lesions, tumors, injury, does produce impaired
critical judgment and an inability to develop normal social and emotional responses,
(Lamparello 270). With this, Lamparello suggests that, An individual then becomes more likely
to experience aggressive, violent, and impulsive behavior (271) This is similar to the common

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diagnosis of psychopathic behavior, as well as indicates that there could be a direct relationship
between violent criminals and the inability to control their behavior out of free will.
There are major concerns about delving into the biological differences in a criminal.
These concerns are mainly rooted in the effect it will have on current laws and the morals of
individuals. As current law stands, all criminals are impossible to indict based on brain scans
alone. In a majority of courtrooms, most criminals have to been shown to commit a crime in
order to be proven as a dangerous individual. However, neuroscience and neurobiology are
slowly working to fill in this gap in the legal system. Recent advancements in neurobiology have
shown that, one-day, there will be a definite way to prove whether or not an individual exhibits
signs and symptoms of a violent criminal and thus can be dealt with accordingly. There is,
however, the issue whereas individuals would start to believe that criminals have no free will
over the crimes they commit. This idea has long been rooted into criminology, and is certainly a
pressing one. If it is proven that all criminals have a biological difference in their brain compared
to non-crime committing citizens, there will certainly come a time where criminals are no longer
punished as severely, or at all, because they have no control over it. Until there is an
understanding of how true violence occurs, there will be little ability to control, predict and
punish those who exhibit it.
Neurobiology looks to improve firstly on the human knowledge of the brain. This
developed rapidly into the thinking that it could be a cure-all for the problems of the world, when
in reality; there is simply too much information to, at this time, solve social issues with it.
Neurobiology may be rapidly growing, but the results of it could have long-lasting or world
altering effects. With many people now realizing what they could find within the world of human
biology, is it reasonable to assume that neurobiology may one day help us be better individuals?

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Works Cited
PBS News Hour. Ed. Judy Woodroof. Associated Press, 24 Oct. 2013. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/survey-finds-violent-crime-increase-for-secondyear-in-a-row/>.
Finger, Stanley. Origins of Neuroscience. Vol. 1. Oxford: Oxford University, 1994. 13-20. 1
vols. Oxford University, Oxford.Google Scholar. Web. 27 Nov. 2014.
History of Neuroscience. University of Columbia, -. Oxford University, Oxford. Google Scholar.
Web. 27 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.columbia.edu/cu/psychology/courses/1010/mangels/neuro/history/history.ht
ml>.
Lamparello, Adam. Using Cognitive Neuroscience to Provide a Procedure for the Involuntary
Commitment of Violent Criminals as a Part of or Following the Duration of Their
Sentence: The Model Statute. Vol. 2. Houston: Houston Journal of Health Law & Policy,
2011. 270-80. 2 vols. Google Scholar. Web. 27 Nov. 2014.
<http://law.uh.edu/hjhlp/Issues/Vol_112/Lamparello.pdf>.