Psychoanalytic criminology

Psychoanalytic criminology is a method of studying crime and criminal behaviour that draws from Freudian psychoanalysis. This school of thought examines personality and the psyche (particularly the unconscious) for motive in crime. Other areas of interest are the fear of crime and the act of punishment.
Criminal behaviour is attributed to maladjustment and dysfunctional personality. According to Buhagiar, "psychoanalytic criminologists were not adverse to the principle of confinement, and often favored increased penality".
Freudian Psychoanalysis.
Sigmund Freud is the established original psychoanalyst to form theories and concepts surrounding the existence of mental illness and its interconnected nature with human behaviour (McLeod, 2018). Throughout his research, Freud concluded that behaviour can be explained through the analysis of one’s experiences and trauma giving accountability to the motivation of a person’s actions. The interpretation of his findings concluded a person can adapt his/her behaviour from childhood experiences to become a part of the hidden consciousness state (Lacan, 1996). He studied unobservable behaviour, parts of the personality that are not visibly noticeable within one’s nature and on a basic level cannot be explained (Jay, 2020). 
In 1923, Freud formed an idea that the theoretical human mind had three elements that conceptually make up ‘The Psyche’. Id (instincts), Ego (reality) and Superego (morality) are not tangible physical areas within the brain, rather, entities that Freud concluded make up the human personality (Cherry, 2020). What Freud referred to as the “psychic apparatus”, three elements of the human personality are now established as the unconscious level that dictates one’s desires and biological instincts (Gerber, 2019) (see section ‘Attributed Neurobiological Factors’ for more details). 
Freud did not directly use his research and theories to explain how a person is led to commit a crime, but the application of his theories has been adapted by psychologists and psychoanalysts to understand the connection between the unconscious mind and criminalistic tendencies and actions. 
Within the realm of science, the study into psychoanalysis has been contested and debated according to its validity (Cherry, 2020). 
History.
Psychoanalytic criminology may be said to have begun with a 1911 study of parricide; but its real foundation came in 1916 when Freud published "Criminality from a Sense of Guilt", in which he maintained that many criminals were driven by unconscious guilt which "preceded" the crime and led to a need for punishment. In applying psychoanalysis to the question of "determining" guilt or innocence in any given case, Freud was insistent however that analysis could only identify the guilty impulse, not necessarily the act itself.
Another major contribution came in 1929 with the book by Franz Alexander and Hugo Staub entitled "The Criminal, the Judge and the Public". They drew a clear distinction between the normal criminal, for whom retribution was appropriate, and the neurotic criminal who needed treatment instead.
Otto Fenichel added the point that while some criminals actively sought punishment to relieve their unconscious guilt, others sought to "avoid" punishment in order to prove their guilt feelings were unjustified.
He also stressed that criminality was a legal, not a psychological category, and considered most criminals were normals rather than neurotics (if still with unconscious motivations and possible lacks in normal consciences).
Psychoanalytic criminology was further developed by August Aichhorn, Melanie Klein, Fritz Redl, and David Wineman.
Sociological Association to Crime.
The sociological and environmental association to crime represents the ‘nature’ element of the term ‘Nature vs Nurture. An individual’s social environment has a central effect on a person’s moral compass, political ideology and potential personality traits (Hegger, 2015). These aspects mould the identity of a person and inflict subconscious psychological effect on everyday behaviour, attitudes and criminogenic needs (McLeod, 2018). 
Research over the past 5 years indicates that a victim of a crime becomes more susceptible to expressing their trauma and/or psychological through violence and aggression. This is widely accepted as being the result of fostered trauma such as sexual assault or domesticated violence from early childhood (Hegger, 2015). Consistent subjection to violence and abuse have shown correlative data that reflect dysfunctional behaviour and antisocial personality traits later on in life (Orbach, 2011). Correlative variables do not indicate direct causation but lead to an additional variable leading to crime, for example, aggression and violent behaviour. 
Research has been conducted in both adult and children populations to investigate if there is a link between abuse in early life and incarcerated individuals. A published paper in 1999 explored an investigative review of 150 female inmates within maximum-security facilities. Browne, Miller and Maguin conducted interviews with each female individual and their results showed a high correlative pattern of early domesticated abuse leading to the motivation of crime. 70% of incarcerated women within the facility reported having experienced child sexual molestation, severe physical violence by parents and/or sexual violence by an acquittance or partner at some point in their life (Ardino, 2012). Within the same sample, 78% claimed to have experienced a traumatic event within their life that had resulted in being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Ardino, 2012). 
Attributed Neurobiological Factors.
The study into the unconscious motive for criminal behaviour takes into account the uncontrollable variables human possesses such as the neurobiological pathways and reactions. The biochemical association towards crime must acknowledge psychophysiology, brain mechanism and genetic factors that contribute towards dysfunctional personalities (Hegger, 2015). 
Blunted autonomic functioning (BAF) has been linked to individuals with antisocial behaviour and criminalistic tendencies. BAF is the state in which an individual has a reduced response to stimuli resulting in a low arousal capacity towards material that would otherwise cause distress and fear within the standard person (Ling Shichun, 2019). This has been recorded to induce a positive feedback loop, the low arousal level creates a low resting heart rate which then accounts for a reduced psychical response. This physiological trait creates a sense of fearlessness as the individual with BAF does not experience the standardised physiological responses to distress that can be associated with discomfort. The lack of discomfort arouses the individual to engage in criminalistic behaviour to increase their arousal state as the person tends to have high levels of proactive aggression which does not deter the individual in carrying out criminal acts. Proactive aggression is the act of violence and rebel with little to no provocation (Choy, 2017). 
BAF impairs emotional intelligence by disallowing the development of feelings of shame, guilt and empathy hence resulting in psychopathic tendencies, behaviours and traits (Ling Shichun, 2019). 
Physical somatic markers such as sweat conduction, give insight into the inter-relation between the emotional and physical state of an individual. The somatic changes of a person indicate the emotional state of a person while undergoing or viewing distressing material. The lack of somatic changes increases the likelihood to engage in crime as the individual cannot experience physical or emotional states that signal emotional discomfort to dissuade a person from committing violent crimes or generally violating the law (Sobhani & Bechara, 2011). 
The brain is acknowledged for contributing a key role in increasing tendencies that will ultimately lead to crime. The pre-frontal cortex and amygdala have a combined role in determining an individual’s emotional state and his/her ability to recognise expressive emotions from the facial and auditory stimulus, particularly from negative and fearful emotions (Ling Shichun, 2019). 
Freudians theories are applicable within the biology realm as his concepts of the Id are associated with biological tendencies. Eros and Thanatos are believed to be under the unconscious set of instincts that are related to survival strategies, ones that drive humans to act on pleasure and desire (Cherry, 2020). 
The internal conflict between Eros and Thanatos as they have contrary objectives within the mind. 
Psychoanalysts believe that Eros operate on the basis to assist in sustaining the mind by fuelling the human mind with a motive to engage in sex, eating and respire. Thanatos is responsible for driving the aggressively instinctive and violent impulses within human behaviour (McLeod, 2018). 
Dysfunctional & Antisocial Personality.
The relationship between personality and criminalistic traits is assessed using a variety of independent measure to detect psychopathic traits. Assessing a dysfunctional lifestyle is carried out through the measure of, lack of empathy, wide mood swings, impulsive and egocentric behaviour (Sinha, 2016). 
Investigations into the interlink between murderers and their dysfunctional and antisocial personality explore their psychological and behavioral traits. They revealed that there was a lack of standard productivity levels, reduced imaginative and intellectual capacity and the disability to form relationships (Sinha, 2016). A weak social identity was also recorded as a result of inmates with drug-dependent behaviour and higher rates of emotional instability, leading to suicidal thoughts and behaviours. The lack of potent social skills is strongly associated with poor self-esteem and intense psychological anxiety and hostility (Krueger, et al., 1994). 
Criticism.
Forensic psychiatry saw psychoanalytic criminology in a relatively negative light, with the twin dangers of acting as an apologist for the criminal and over-simplifying criminal motivation at the fore.
Others have seen an inherent contradiction between value-neutral psychoanalysis, committed to healing, and the demands of the legal system; while Thomas Szasz objected to the open-ended, paternalistic concept of 'treating' the neurotic criminal as an infringement of human rights in the name of social control.
References.
Ardino, V. (2012, July 20). Offending behaviour: the role of trauma and PTSD. Retrieved from US National Library of Medicine : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3402156/
Choy, O. (2017). Understanding Antisocial Behavior Through Autonomic Arousal, Nutrition, And Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation. Retrieved from University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4011&context=edissertations
Gerber, T. (2019, Feburary ). Eros and Thanatos: Freud’s two fundamental drives. Retrieved from Epoché : https://epochemagazine.org/20/eros-and-thanatos-freuds-two-fundamental-drives/
Hegger, J. (2015, July 22). Nature vs. nurture: Which causes crime? Retrieved from Corrections1: https://www.corrections1.com/probation-and-parole/articles/nature-vs-nurture-which-causes-crime-u7qC7V8v1F69l0Y7/#:~:text=nurture%3A%20Which%20causes%20crime%3F,-A%20combination%20of&text=They%20involve%20the%20belief%20that,eventually%20lead%20to%20crimi
Jay, M. E. (2020, September 19 ). Psychoanalytic Theory . Retrieved from Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sigmund-Freud/Psychoanalytic-theory 
Krueger, R. F., Schmutte, P. S., Caspi, A., Moffitt, T. E., Campbell, K., & Silva, P. A. (1994). Personality traits are linked to crime among men and women: Evidence from a birth cohort. Retrieved from APAPsychNet: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1994-33914-001 
Lacan, J. (1996). Journal for the Psychoanalysis of Culture & Society . Retrieved from A Theoretical Introduction to the Functions of Psychoanalysis in Criminology: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5d52d51fc078720001362276/t/5dfce41c2cd55764c04e64a3/1576854557405/19500529+Lacan+%26+Cenac+A+theoretical+introduction+to+the+functions+of+psychoanalysis+in+criminology+IPCS+Vol+I+%282%29+Fall+1996.pdf
Ling Shichun, R. U. (2019, July 19). US National Library of Medicine. Retrieved from Biological explanations of criminal behavior: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6640871/
McLeod, S. (2018). Sigmund Freud's Theories. Retrieved from SimplyPsychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/Sigmund-Freud.html
Orbach, S. (2011, November 16). How Psychoanalystical Theory can be Used in Social Policy . Retrieved from Centre for Crime and Justice Studies : https://www.crimeandjustice.org.uk/resources/how-psychoanalytic-theory-can-be-used-social-policy
Sinha, S. (2016, January 25). US National Library of Medicine . Retrieved from Personality correlates of criminals: A comparative study between normal controls and criminals: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5248419/
Sobhani, M., & Bechara, A. (2011, September 15). A Somatic Marker Perspective of Immoral and Corrupt Behavior. Retrieved from US National Library of Medicine : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3445329/
Further reading.
S. Freud, 'The Expert Opinion in the Halsmann Case' (SE 21)
A. Aichhorn, "Wayward Youth" (1957)
D. W. Winnicott, 'The Anti-Social Tendency' in "Collected Papers" (1958)