Deck 5: Biological and Psychological Theories

Question 1

This involves the attempt to determine a person's character by facial characteristics.

A) phrenology
B) positivism
C) physiognomy
D) personality

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Three factors intensified from the beginning of the 20th century until after World War II, contributing to a general increase in the crime rate. Which is not one of these factors?

A) industrialization
B) immigration
C) urban growth
D) automobile use

Answer 2

D

Question 3

This is the practice of divining character and mental faculties from the shape of the skull.

A) phrenology
B) positivism
C) physiognomy
D) personality

Answer 3

A

Question 4

This thinker's writings spurred the emergence of biological theories.

A) Cesare Lombroso
B) Earnest Hooton
C) William Sheldon
D) Charles Darwin

Question 5

Earnest Hooton was a proponent of this idea.

A) physiognomy
B) phrenology
C) eugenics
D) somatotypes

Question 6

According to William Sheldon, juvenile delinquents tended to belong to this group.

A) eugenomorphs
B) endomorphs
C) mesomorphs
D) ectomorphs

Question 7

What is idea that character can be determined by body shape called?

A) phrenology
B) somatotypes
C) eugenics
D) craniology

Question 8

What is the study of the brain and body as a source of antisocial behavior called?

A) psychoanalysis
B) somatotyping
C) behaviorism
D) biocriminology

Question 9

Which of these may be a biocriminological factor?

A) a genetic factor
B) a neurological factor
C) a hormonal factor
D) all of the above

Question 10

Which theory states that biological forms change over time through genetic inheritance?

A) theory of eugenics
B) theory of evolution
C) theory of social Darwinism
D) social learning theory

Question 11

Which of the following statements regarding social Darwinism is not true?

A) Social Darwinism holds that any type of public welfare helps the unfit survive to weaken society.
B) Social Darwinism involves the application of evolutionary theory to social issues.
C) Social Darwinists view society as an organism and crime a disease.
D) Social Darwinists use body type and facial features to determine character.

Question 12

This concept suggests that some people are throwbacks to an earlier stage of evolution.

A) atavism
B) behaviorism
C) somatotyping
D) genetics

Question 13

This case ended the practice of forced sterilization of criminal offenders.

A) Buck v. Bell
B) Skinner v. Oklahoma
C) Roper v. Simmons
D) Tennessee v. Garner

Question 14

Which best applies to XYY males?

A) They are all serial killers.
B) The tend to be property offenders.
C) They are no more likely to break the law than XY males.
D) They tend to end up in prison.

Question 15

Which of the following statements about the influence of genes on crime is false?

A) Genetics cannot explain antisocial behavior in individuals.
B) Genes may predict a propensity for antisocial behavior.
C) Genetically determined antisocial behavior is not immutable.
D) One gene is responsible for antisocial behavior.

Question 16

Which is true according to biocriminologists?

A) A genetic predisposition to antisocial behavior cannot be changed.
B) A geneticist can determine how much of an offender's behavior is due to genetics.
C) There is no "crime gene."
D) Criminality can be genetically determined.

Question 17

This is the study of biochemical signals that turn genes on or off.

A) epigenetics
B) eugenics
C) somatotypes
D) genetic propensity research

Question 18

Which of the following is not an example of status-striving behavior at the victimizing end of the competitive-victimizing continuum of behavior?

A) being better at sports than other teenagers
B) bullying younger children at school
C) getting into fights
D) breaking the law to be admitted into a gang

Question 19

Neurotransmitters are chemicals that transmit messages between nerve cells in which organ?

A) heart
B) brain
C) skin
D) liver

Question 20

Studies have shown that people with this condition are more aggressive and react more strongly to stress.

A) high levels of MAOA
B) low levels of MAOA
C) low hormone levels
D) high cohort factors

Question 21

Which of the following is not a neurotransmitter that controls mood and feelings?

A) serotonin
B) norepinephrine
C) histamine
D) dopamine

Question 22

Testosterone is a _____ that stimulates the development of male sex characteristics.

A) hormone
B) neurotransmitter
C) drug
D) blood serum

Question 23

According to this theory, male sex hormones affect the brain to increase the probability of violent criminal offending.

A) routine activities
B) evolutionary neuroandrogenic
C) genetic predisposition
D) epigenetics

Question 24

Cortisol is a hormone released during stress that activates a _____ response.

A) angry
B) meditative
C) happy
D) fear

Question 25

Childhood lead exposure has been linked to this.

A) significant increases in brain tissue in areas responsible for impulse control and judgment.
B) significant decreases in brain tissue in areas responsible for impulse control and judgment.
C) an increased amygdala response to physical stimuli
D) a reduced likelihood of adult violence

Question 26

Which of the following statements about drugs and alcohol is true?

A) Inebriation causes antisocial behavior and crime.
B) Most people who become drunk break the law.
C) Drugs and alcohol are closely associated with crime.
D) Drug abuse in the United States is a bigger problem than alcohol abuse.

Question 27

Which of the following is not a reason why alcohol is related to behaviors likely to lead to arrest?

A) Alcohol is disinhibiting.
B) Alcohol impairs physical functioning.
C) Alcohol increases sensitivity to pain.
D) Alcohol impairs mental functioning.

Question 28

This model of the drug-crime connection suggests that drug abusers and addicts must commit economic offenses to get the money to support their addiction.

A) intensification
B) enslavement
C) predisposition
D) offending

Question 29

The view that offenders turn to drugs, rather than drug users turning to crime, is typical of this model of the drug-crime connection.

A) intensification
B) enslavement
C) predisposition
D) offending

Question 30

This behavior is an element that connects drug and alcohol use and criminal offending.

A) risky, sensation-seeking
B) calm, contemplative
C) logical
D) quiet, strange

Question 31

This approach focuses on cognition.

A) psychiatric
B) psychological
C) biological
D) athletic

Question 32

According to behaviorism, through ______ reinforcement we engage in behavior designed to gain something we want.

A) positive
B) negative
C) neutral
D) extinction

Question 33

Skinner believed punishment to be less effective than this.

A) positive reinforcement
B) negative reinforcement
C) neutral reinforcement
D) extinction

Question 34

According to Kohlberg, transition to the post-conventional level ideally occurs during this time.

A) middle childhood
B) late childhood
C) early adulthood
D) middle adulthood

Question 35

Which type of reasoning is at the lowest stage of Kohlberg's stages of moral development?

A) social contract
B) avoidance of punishment
C) law and order
D) individualism

Question 36

Which of the following is not a behavior characteristic of antisocial personality disorder?

A) frequent lawbreaking
B) impulsivity
C) remorse or guilt for wrongdoing
D) disregard for the safety of oneself or others

Question 37

According to this rule, a defendant is insane when it can be shown that he or she was so delusional at the time of the offense that he or she did not know right from wrong.

A) Brawner
B) Durham
C) GBMI
D) M'Naghten

Question 38

This defense holds an offender responsible for the action but recognizes the presence of a mental disorder.

A) Brawner
B) Durham
C) Guilty but Mentally Ill
D) M'Naughten

Question 39

Discuss the concept of an antisocial personality and the two perspectives that attempt to explain how it may be linked to crime. Outline the main personality traits characteristic of individuals with APD. Why has the diagnosis fallen out of favor among some criminal justice professionals?

Question 40

Why do criminologists want to study the issue of nature and nurture? Explain how twin and adoption studies help examine this question. Discuss each type of study, how it is conducted, and the conclusions that may be drawn from each type.

Question 41

What does "insanity" describe under the law? What is the purpose of the insanity defense and why is it so controversial? List and explain two major standards of insanity, and describe their similarities and differences.

Question 42

What was the eugenics movement? How has that movement affected modern criminological attitudes towards biocriminology?

Question 43

Explain how biological research is affecting public policy today.