At the age of three, most children will want to grow up to be a train driver, astronaut or princess.
But according to scientists, some toddlers are already destined for a life of crime. Disturbing evidence has emerged that the psychological seeds of a criminal career can be seen before they even reach nursery school.
Abnormalities in the parts of the brain that handle emotions, guilt and fear are far more common in criminals than in law-abiding members of society, it shows. It is unclear whether these abnormalities are genetic, the result of upbringing or both – but they can be measured at a surprisingly tender age. The finding means youngsters could potentially be screened to see if they are at risk – and then ‘treated’ to prevent criminal behaviour.
Boy, 12, behind mini-crime wave tells lawyer he would rather go to jail than return home Professor Adrian Raine, a former Home Office criminologist, agreed predictive scans were many years off. But the father-of-two added: ‘If you told me my son had an 80 per cent chance of being a psychopath, but that he could be treated for it, I would have him treated. But it has to be a decision made by individuals, not by scientists.’
Pre-crime? The findings raise the prospect that children could be screened to see if they are at risk of turning to crime - and then 'treated' to prevent criminal behaviour (pic posed by model) Professor Raine, who now works at the University of Pennsylvania, studied brain scans of prisoners.
THUGGISH TRAITS Psychologists have identified key personality traits in childhood which are linked to poor behaviour later in life. Seven-year-olds with unemotional and ‘callous’ traits were much more likely to be involved in anti-social behaviour at the age of 12, a study by Dr Nathalie Fontaine, criminal justice expert at Indiana University, Bloomington, showed. Other signs include not having at least one good friend, being unkind to other children and not being helpful if someone is hurt. The experts stress that not all youngsters with the traits turn into criminals – and not all criminals had the traits as children, but that they increase the risk of a life of crime. He found that murderers who kill in the heat of the moment are more likely to have a poorly functioning prefrontal cortex – which deals with reasoning and helps suppress base instincts. Psychopaths who lack remorse, guilt or empathy tend to have smaller amygdalas – a region that handles all three emotions, he told the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Professor Raine also tested the fear response of three-year-olds by playing them a neutral sound followed by an unpleasant one, until the children learned the nasty sound always followed the neutral tone.
For most, the sound of the first tone was enough to raise their pulse rates and start a sweat. But a few showed no ‘anticipatory fear’ – a possible symptom of an abnormal amygdala, Professor Raine said.
The prospect of scans suggests a serial killer such as Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe could be spotted and treated as a child – but it also poses dilemmas.
‘It raises the question to what extent should we develop new biological interventions to reduce crime,’ Professor Raine said.
Click for Full Text!
