NCJ Number
53199
Journal
Law and Human Behavior Volume: 2 Issue: 1 Dated: (1978) Pages: 25-36
Date Published
1978
Length
12 pages
Annotation
THE EMPIRICAL LITERATURE ON THE LINK BETWEEN MENSTRUATION AND CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR BY FEMALES IS ASSESSED, WITH A VIEW TO DETERMINING THE APPROPRIATENESS OF AN INSANITY DEFENSE BASED ON MENSTRUAL SYMPTOMOLOGY.
Abstract
PROPONENTS OF AN INSANITY DEFENSE BASED ON DIMINISHED CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY AS A CONSEQUENCE OF PREMENSTRUAL TENSION HAVE RELIED ON REPORTS INDICATING INCREASES IN CRIMINAL, AGGRESSIVE, AND RULEBREAKING BEHAVIOR AT CERTAIN PHASES OF THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE. ALTHOUGH THE CONCLUSIONS REACHED IN THESE REPORTS AND THE PROPOSAL BASED ON THEM ARE NOT NECESSARILY WRONG, THEY DO APPEAR TO BE PREMATURE. THERE HAVE BEEN ONLY A FEW STUDIES RELATING TO THE QUESTION, WITH ONLY ONE STUDY ACTUALLY DEALING WITH CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR. THERE HAVE BEEN METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS, SUCH AS THOSE STEMMING FROM RELIANCE ON SELF-REPORT DATA ABOUT MENSTRUAL CYCLE DATES. STUDY RESULTS AND THEIR INTERPRETATIONS HAVE BEEN EQUIVOCAL. FOR EXAMPLE, RESEARCHERS FAILED TO NOTE THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE TRAUMA OF BEING ARRESTED AND JAILED MIGHT BRING ON EARLY MENSTRUATION, RESULTING IN THE INCORRECT CONCLUSION THAT THE SUBJECT IN QUESTION HAD BEEN IN THE PREMENSTRUAL PHASE OF HER CYCLE AT THE TIME OF HER CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR. ALTHOUGH SOME COMPLAIN THAT THE LEGAL COMMUNITY IS TOO SLOW TO INCORPORATE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE INTO ITS THINKING, THE PROBLEM HERE SEEMS TO BE QUITE THE OPPOSITE. IN FURTHER ASSESSING THE WISDOM OF AN INSANITY DEFENSE BASED ON MENSTRUAL SYMPTOMOLOGY, CONSIDERATION SHOULD BE GIVEN TO THE POSSIBLE IMPACT OF SUCH A DEFENSE ON GENERAL ATTITUDES TOWARD WOMEN. IN LIGHT OF EVIDENCE THAT NEGATIVE ATTITUDES ABOUT MENSTRUATION MAY ACTUALLY BE THE PRIMARY CAUSE OF WHATEVER PREMENSTRUAL SYMPTOMS DO EXIST, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT OFFICIAL RECOGNITION OF A LINK BETWEEN MENSTRUATION AND CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR MAY SERVE TO EXACERBATE THE PROBLEM. A LIST OF REFERENCES IS INCLUDED. (LKM)