Reducing Crime Evolutionarily
Reducing Crime Evolutionarily
Most criminologists only study social influences on criminal behavior. That narrow-minded tradition should be in our past; the era of neurologically specific theories has arrived. These are theories that identify how the brains of offenders differ on average from the brains of nonoffenders, whether the causes are genetic or environmental. This chapter presents such a theory: the evolutionary neuroandrogenic (ENA) theory of criminal behavior. ENA theory asserts that genes have evolved ways of altering human brain functioning—particularly among males—to exhibit increased criminality during their early reproductive years. Theoretically, males as a whole have evolved greater tendencies than females to victimize others. These male victimizing tendencies have been naturally selected for, because females have been favored for choosing mates who are reliable and capable provisioners of resources.
Keywords: criminal behavior, social influence, brain, evolutionary neuroandrogenic theory, evolutionary psychology
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