| Several theorists (Rowe 1996, Harpending and Draper 1988, Rushton 1985) have proposed a connection between mating effort strategy and antisocial behavior. Criminologists are also interested in antisocial behavior. The leading criminological theory (Gottfredson and Hirschi 1990) proposes that most crimes and analogous behaviors (drinking, smoking, promiscuity, increased susceptibility to accidents and illness) spring from a single cause. This cause, according to Gottfredson and Hirschi, is low self-control, the elements of which include impulsivity, immediate and easy gratification of desires, the thrill of risky behavior and few long-term benefits. Gottfredson and Hirschi emphasize the description of all these behaviors but suggest only socialization as a cause. They pay no attention to individual differences. We propose that there is a convergence between evolutionary and criminological theory. We show that Gottfredson and Hirschi are describing phenotypes; the evolutionary theorists we have mentioned are suggesting underlying causal mechanisms that produce these behaviors. |
Updated 05/20/2006