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How many of us have seen newspaper articles about child abuse? How about heroine addicts trying to raise children? How about infants who have died of heat exhaustion after being left in a locked car? Have you ever shook your head and said, "There should be some kind of license to have a child"?

David Lykken, a psychologist from the University of Minnesota, felt that there was a genetic link to criminality and other antisocial behavior. Due to Lykken's thoughts about genetics and the links to behavior, he proposed a very controversial solution: potential parents must acquire a license before they have children! The purpose of the licensing would be to certify people for parenthood. Potential parents who are underage, too poor, alcoholic, or ex-criminals would be turned down. One proposed result would be to ultimately decrease crime rates throughout the United States. Criminals would not be issued a license and therefore could not bear offspring. Lykken's idea was to "fight crime in the cradle."

What We Need to Know

1. What genetic evidence is there that links an alcoholic parent and offspring? How about criminal behavior? How about poverty?
2. What types of behaviors are directly linked to genetics?

Consider the Following Data

Consider the following evidence in Table 1. Many professionals such as R.R. Crowe, author of Archives of General Psychiatry, believe that the majority of children with criminal offenders as biological mothers are criminal offenders themselves. These children have all been brought up by adoptive parents.

Table 1. Arrest Records of the Biological Offspring of Female Criminal Offenders

Arrest Record	Probands	Controls
Number of subjects checked for records	52	52
Subjects with records	8	22
Total number of arrests	18	2
Subjects arrested as adults	7	2
Subjects with convictions	7	0
Subjects with two or more arrests	5	0
Subjects incarcerated for an offense	3.5	0

1. What does the data suggest to you?
2. If you were doing this research, what else might you have examined as evidence?
3. How do criminal records compare with antisocial behavior which could lead to criminality?
4. What is the genetic transmission of antisocial behavior? Is it linked to a gene?

Design a research project of your own that either supports or refutes Lyyken's work. Your study will involve twins and behaviors.

Pretend that you are in the House of Representatives serving in a high-crime area. You have been asked to look at a proposal to license potential parents for having children.

Even though you feel that certain rights will be restricted, it is your job to do something about the crime in your area. Present a case to go before the House to support Lyyken's proposal.

RESOURCES

Barker, Penelope, ed. 1995. The Reference Shelf: Genetics and Society. New York: The H.W. Wilson Co.

Colt, George Howe. 1998. Were You Born That Way? Life. April, pp. 39-50.

Shaie, K. Warner. 1975. Developmental Human Behavior Genetics. Lexington, Massachusetts: D.C. Heath and Co.

"Research Bits." http://www.umn.edu/~urelate/kiosk/9.25text/research.html

http://shadow.autono.net/sin001/violen.htm