essay on evaluating 8 marker on personality as a biological explanation for crime and antisocial behaviour, including 2 PEEL paragraphs and a balanced conclusion for top band marks
Evaluate the bio expl. of personality in crime and antisocial bhv (8)
One strength of personality as a biological explanation for crime and
antisocial behaviour is that there is supporting evidence. Eysenck (1990) devised the
arousal theory which explains why some personality types may be more likely to turn
into crime compared to others. Cortical arousal via the ascending reticular activating
system (ARAS) triggers the release of hormones and neurotransmitters so as to
maintain the optimal arousal by exciting or dampening down the received sensory
information. Rushton and Chrisjon (1981) found support for the relationship between
high delinquency scores and high scores on extraversion and psychoticism. This
may be because of the underactive ARAS in extraverst that inhibits impulses, which
means the individual is chronically under-aroused, therefore they seek more external
stimulation compared to others with lower scores on extraversion. This may lead to
the individual pursuing more risk-taking behaviour such as crime and antisocial
behaviour. This is important as it suggests that degrees of extraversion and
psychoticism are fundamental in determining the likelihood of an individual
committing crime, therefore offering concrete support for the theory of personality.
On the other hand, Rushton found no support for the relationship between
delinquency scores and neuroticism, implying key differences between the 3
personality dimensions. This would make sense since many internalising emotional
disorders such as depression and anxiety may be characterised by high anxiety drive
and instability, which is what makes up a high degree of neuroticism. This means
that some individuals may not turn to crime and may instead decide to behave
differently, despite having high degrees of one of the 3 personality dimensions. This
suggests that personality may noy be a significant risk factor in determining
someone’s likelihood of committing a crime.
Furthermore, the personality theory fails to consider that an individual’s
reactions or behaviour may differ depending on the situation. Eysenck defines
personality as a “stable and enduring organisation of character, temperament,
intellect and physique which determine an unique adjustment to the environment”.
However, this may not be true since most individuals will change their behaviour
according to certain situations, such as in crowd behaviour where they may
demonstrate mob mentality, or when they conform to a social group so as to fit in
that group by giving up their personal beliefs and going along with that group’s
decisions. This implies that most individuals may not display high or low levels of the
3 personality dimensions all the time, but may behave differently from their usual
behaviour depending on which kind of situation they are in. This is a weakness as the
personality theory may not account for varying degrees of psychoticism, neuroticism
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