NCJ Number
54843
Date Published
1975
Length
6 pages
Annotation
AN EPIDEMIOLOGIST EXAMINES FOUR STUDIES DONE IN THE FIELD OF GENETICS AND CRIMINALITY AND PSYCHOPATHY, SUGGESTS NEW IDEAS FOR RESEARCH, AND CONCLUDES THAT THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN GENETICS AND CRIMINALITY IS WEAK.
Abstract
THE STUDIES CONCERNING CRIMINALITY AND XYY CHROMOSOMES AND CRIMINALITY ASSOCIATIONS AMONG ADOPTED MALES, THEIR BIOLOGICAL AND ADOPTIVE FATHERS, AND SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS ATTEST TO THE DIFFICULTIES THAT ARISE IN TRYING TO DEVELOP RESEARCH METHODOLOGY FOR DETERMINING GENETIC CONTRIBUTIONS TO CRIMINALITY. CHANGES IN KARYOTYPES OCCURING OVER LIFETIMES MAKE IT DIFFICULT TO COMPARE CHROMOSOMES OF NEWBORN BABIES WITH THOSE OF AGGRESSIVE ADULTS. CHROMOSOME ABNORMALITIES MAY BE OBSERVABLE IN BODILY TISSUE THAT CANNOT BE EXAMINED EASILY, AND NOT IN THE BLOOD AND SKIN. THE PROBLEM OF MOSAICISM MAY REDUCE THE VALIDITY OF LABORATORY TESTS. ENVIRONMENTAL AND ADOPTION SCREEN PROCEDURE VARIABLES INTERFERE WITH SELECTION OF MATCHED SAMPLES IN ADOPTIVE STUDIES. THE EVIDENCE FOR ASSOCIATING ABNORMAL GENES WITH ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR, HOWEVER, IS WEAK AND NO ESTIMATE HAS BEEN MADE OF THE PERCENT OF PERSONS WITH ABNORMAL CHROMOSOMES IN THE TOTAL POOL OF AGGRESSIVE PERSONS. THESE TECHNIQUES COULD SOLVE SOME RESEARCH PROBLEMS: (1) AUTOPSY MATERIAL FROM BRAIN AND BLOOD COULD BE STUDIED IN RELATION TO THE DECEASED'S POLICE AND SCHOOL RECORDS; (2) ONE COULD DO CYTOGENETIC STUDIES OF AGGRESSIVE DELINQUENTS, COMPARING THOSE FROM GOOD AND BAD HOMES; AND (3) ONE COULD USE FBI FINGERPRINT FILES TO DETERMINE WHETHER FINGERPRINTS OF CRIMINALS ARE MORE OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH XYY AND XXY ABNORMALITIES THAN THOSE OF NONCRIMINALS. REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED. SEE NCJ 54839-54842. (DAG)