Question

the social and ethical ramifications of a wider acceptance for biological explanations of crime. Identify how the consideration of biological explanations of crime could affect policy development, policing, and the adjudication of offenders.

Answer 1

Biological explanations are sometimes used in order to explain the reasons for a crime. However, although this might appear to be a good idea on the surface, it can actually carry a great variety of problems. When we accept biological explanations, we are giving great respect and consideration to science. Although this is not necessarily bad, excessive respect for science can make us this that this is objective, when it is not. It can also make us forget that scientific interpretations can be polluted due to bias, misunderstandings and misinterpretation of evidence, to name a few. This could affect policy development, policing, and the adjudication of offenders, as scientific concerns would be placed much higher up than ethical or social concerns.