Psychological explanation: Eysenck's theory

What is Eysenck’s personality theory of crime?

Hans Eysenck argues that the typical criminal has high scores in:

• psychotism (impulsive, aggressive)

• extroversion (outgoing, sociable)

• neuroticism (anxious, moody)

What does this explanation suggest about our personality traits?

that they are biological and happen due to the type of nervous system we inherit (therefore personality is innate)

What kind of nervous system do extraverts have?

an underactive nervous system so they constantly seek excitement, stimulation and risks. They do not learn from their mistakes

How would you describe neurotic individuals?

nervous, jumpy, and anxious, behaviour is difficult to predict

How would you describe someone that is neurotic in the criminal personality?

high reactivity in the fight/flight response, nervous, jumpy, overanxious, unpredictable

How would you describe someone that is extravert in the criminal personality?

seeking excitement, risk-taking, do not learn from their mistakes

How would you describe someone that is psychotic in the criminal personality?

high levels of testosterone, cold, unemotional, prone to aggression

How did Eysenck argue you can measure someone’s personality?

using Eysenck personality questionnaire (EPQ) which is a test where respondents’ answers land them along the dimensions.

Includes ‘are your feelings easily hurt?’ and ‘are you a lively person?’

How did Eysenck describe criminal behaviour?

as developmentally immature as it is selfish and centred around immediate gratification (impatient). People with high E and N scores have nervous systems making them difficult to condition

What is socialisation?

where children are taught to become more able to delay gratification

What does this result in?

they do not learn to response to antisocial behaviours with anxiety and are more likely to act antisocially in situations where the opportunity presents itself

How is the fact that Eysenck’s theory is supported by empirical research evidence a significant strength of the theory?

because it provides supportive evidence for the predictive validity of the theory. The findings suggest that certain personality profiles are more common among offenders,, increasing the scientific credibility of Eysenck’s theory

Give an example of this strength

for example, Eysenck used the EPQ to compare 2070 male prisoners with 2422 males from the general population. He found that prisoners scored significantly higher on extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism - exactly the traits Eysenck predicted would be linked to criminal behaviour

How is the fact that the research linking personality to criminal behaviour is correlational and no cause and effect can be established a major weakness of the theory?

as it is equally possible that engaging in criminal activity, prison environments or exposure to stress and violence could shape personality over time. Other variables such as poverty, trauma, or peer influence may also affect both personality development and offending behaviour. As these extraneous variables cannot be fully controlled, the internal validity of the explanation is limited

Give an example of this weakness

for instance, studies show that offenders tend to score higher on traits such as extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism, but these studies do not demonstrate that these traits cause criminal behaviour

How is the fact that Eysenck’s theory is centred around the idea of personality being measurable a weakness when many argue that personality is not measurable?

as the theory struggles to account for situational influences on personality and behaviour, so it may not provide a complete picture of an offender’s personality, potentially leading to inaccurate predictions or explanations of criminal behaviour

Give an example of this disadvantage

for instance, Mischel stated that personality might change on a daily basis depending on the situation and who surrounds us

How is the fact that the way in which Eysenck’s theory measures personality traits of an offender (PEN) is flawed as a measurement a limitation?

because it oversimplifies the complexities of human behaviour and can lead to an incomplete understanding of and offender’s behaviour, potentially overemphasising the role of certain traits whilst neglecting others

Give an example of this limitation

for example, many have argued it’s a reductionist method of measuring personality and that personality is too complex and dynamic to reduce down to a series of simple numbers