A mind to crime : the dangerous few.

Can potential criminals be identified in childhood by abnormalities in their brain function? Prof. Adrian Raine (clinical neuroscientist), Dr. Breena Satterfield (child psychiatrist) and others examine some cases of violent behaviour in children, looking at their EEG patterns and at the history of their health and behaviour. Hyperactivity, attention deficit and conduct disorder are identified as warning signs. Overactive children tend to have underactive brains, a result of abnormally low arousal of the frontal cortex so that normal reactions, such as fear, are hard to arouse. They lack the brain's "braking system" and are victims of their urges. Methods of treatment include, controversially, chemotherapy while biofeedback can help the brain to develop more constructive behaviour patterns. In Britain treatment is difficult to obtain and likely to be expensive but it is argued that it can prevent the child from becoming a criminal and ending up in prison where no treatment is available.