ABSTRACT
Biocriminological theory has a dark, fantastical, and sometimes twisted history. It is riddled with debates concerning the role of free will, determinism, and religious control and the development and often-times shady execution of the scientific method and shifting perceptions of the purposes of punishment and sanctions. This chapter will trace the history of biocriminology through four significant points in time: philosophical theories from Ancient Greece, the development of the scientific method and human typology, explanations of feeblemindedness and hereditary selection, and a brief summarization of modernized concepts using neuroimaging and genetic tracing. The authors of the chapter hope to convey a single but meaningful message to budding criminologists and outside enthusiasts: even though the methods and outcomes of the past may have been misguided and unethical, they played a fundamental role in the progression of biocriminological thought and modern practice.
