Annual Lecture: The Neurobiological Basis of Offending: Implications for Treatment

Tony has worked extensively in the area of forensic science/criminal justice. His research interests are: risk assessment; the neurobiological bases of offending; reducing online exploitation of children; and increasing psychotherapeutic effectiveness of the treatment given to offenders.

Abstract

The brain is organized and sculpted by a life-time of experiences, these being especially important pre/peri-natally, and in infancy and adolescence. Evidence would suggest that early adverse experiences, in an interaction with genetic and biological factors, can adversely affect brain development. The ensuing atypical morphological organization could result in social withdrawal, pathological shyness, explosive and inappropriate emotionality, and an inability to form normal emotional attachments and this sets the scene for later criminality. Evidence for this is that a number of pre/peri/postnatal risk factors have been identified in offenders. It is argued in the talk that understanding how these risk factors affect the brain is the first step in being able to ameliorate such risk factors, by the use of appropriate brain-based interventions.