Biosocial Approach Research Articles

Showcasing the Variety of Biosocial and Evolutionary Approaches in Sociology: Introduction to the Special Issue

This introduction to the special issue explores the increasing integration of biosocial and evolutionary approaches within sociology, highlighting the diverse ways in which these perspectives are incorporated into sociological research. In the past, sociology had reservations against or even rejected biological and evolutionary explanations of human behavior and often viewed them with skepticism. However, recent developments have seen a resurgence of interest in these approaches, leading to the emergence of interdisciplinary subfields such as biosociology, evolutionary sociology, neurosociology, and sociogenomics. This introduction provides a historical overview of biological and evolutionary thinking with regard to human behavior and sociality, tracing its roots from Darwinian theory to its contemporary applications within sociology. We discuss the conceptual and methodological differences between these approaches and offer an overview of key contributions that illustrate their relevance to core sociological topics. The articles in this special issue—which we summarize in this introduction—exemplify the variety of work being done at the intersection of sociology and the bio- and evolutionary sciences, from theoretical explorations to empirical studies. By presenting this range of interdisciplinary research, we aim to invite a broader sociological audience to engage with these perspectives, contributing to the development of a more comprehensive understanding of human behavior that sheds the dualism between nature and nurture—long overcome outside of sociology—for a consolidated effort to examine how nature and nurture are intertwined in multiple and complex ways.

'They will be like a person with a disease': a qualitative investigation of variation in contraceptive side-effect experiences in Central Oromia, Ethiopia.

Contraceptive side effects are consistently given as the main reason why women are dissatisfied with contraception or choose not to use it. However, why some women suffer more from side effects remains unknown. Through inductive analysis of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with 40 contraceptive users and 3 key informants in Central Oromia, Ethiopia, we explored women's rationales for variation in side-effect experiences. The data first reveal the wide diversity in type and severity of side-effect experiences reported by users of contraception. Second, we found that women's rationales for why some individuals suffer more side effects from contraception invoke economic and physical hardship (food insecurity and heavy workloads), as well as interindividual differences in biology (one's blood must 'fit' with contraception). Finally, the analysis revealed the tension many women face in trying to negotiate the trade-off between the consequences of these side effects and those of an unwanted pregnancy. The results show the value of using a biosocial approach, which centres women's voices and experiences, for informing the measurement of contraceptive side effects within population health surveys and clinical trials. Additionally, the findings helpgain an understanding of how an individual's social, biological, and cultural contexts drive variation in when and why different side effects manifest.

“The people here knew how I used to live, but now I have to start again:” Lived experiences and expectations of the displaced and non-displaced women affected by the Thwake Multipurpose Dam construction in Makueni County, Kenya

BackgroundDam construction and associated disruptive activities such as population displacement can have significant societal consequences, especially for those socially and economically disadvantaged. Though community-level health and social consequences of displacements have been documented, there is little understanding of the individual-level consequences and intra-household gendered dynamics. Objective/methodsWe sought to explore the experiences and expectations of displaced (n = 30) and non-displaced (n = 20) women in Makueni County, Kenya, where Kenya's second largest dam, Thwake Multipurpose Dam, is being constructed. We used qualitative techniques, including photo-elicitation interviews, go-along interviews, key informant interviews, and participant observation, to understand the lived experiences of women affected by the dam construction processes and their associated disruptions. ResultsWe found that both displaced and non-displaced women experienced the impacts of dam construction in four areas, i.e., economic (income loss), health (hearing damage), social (disrupted social networks), and environmental (flooding) domains. Though both groups described adverse effects, the displaced women perceived worse economic and social outcomes than non-displaced ones. Further, older and married women in both groups had the worst lived experiences and negative perceptions about the consequences for social well-being, e.g., loss of cultural identity, land ownership, and access to important religious sites. Changes in livelihood also transformed gender roles as women assumed economic responsibilities to cushion their families from hunger. ConclusionDevelopment projects such as dams negatively impact the host community—displaced and the non-displaced experience adverse health, social, and environmental effects. However, poor women who are smallholder farmers bear the greatest burden. Assessment of individual-level experiences and intrahousehold dynamics might enhance our understanding of the biosocial outcomes of these consequences. Therefore, integrative biosocial approaches should be considered when examining the impacts of dam construction.

Children’s holistic learning during self-initiated outdoor play in a Norwegian kindergarten

ABSTRACT This article explores children’s self-initiated outdoor play and holistic learning in a Norwegian kindergarten. While children’s self-initiated play is valued in Nordic ECEC, it is rarely analyzed in relation to holistic learning. To explore how children’s self-initiated outdoor play contributes to children’s holistic learning in ECEC, we observed a group of twenty-four-five-year-old children during outdoor play in a Norwegian kindergarten, taking field notes and photographs. We analyzed it with a biosocial approach, where learning is understood as produced through an assemblage of social and biological forces. We found that with a creative and imaginative attitude, children sought intense and novel physical experiences and interactions with each other, other species, and things, while also navigating rules, relationships, and their own and others’ emotions. We discussed the strategies we observed in relation to ‘indirect pedagogy’ and teacher-led pedagogy, challenges relating to risk, and young children’s opportunities for holistic learning through self-initiated play in ECEC.

Allostatic load: historical origins, promises and costs of a recent biosocial approach

This article provides a critical and genealogical analysis of the allostatic load research framework. AL research is used as a case study to analyse how the current biosocial context is articulated in the field of health inequalities research. Providing a contemporary analysis of AL studies with a genealogy of the AL concept, we show that the ambition to use biological tools to improve measurements, predictions, and ultimately public health action, is rooted in a history that predates current biosocial entanglements. We analyse the conceptual and methodological grounding of AL studies in relation to the ambitious propositions to address health inequalities they often convey. The difficulties in translating AL research findings into public health policies and the risks of biomedicalisation that could emerge through the use of AL are also addressed. While acknowledging these risks, however, we nuance the risk of depoliticisation associated with the biomedicalisation of social inequalities in health. In light of the historical analysis, we qualify the risks associated to a biologisation of social life that could emerge from AL research: it appears that these risks are more specifically rooted in methodological and epistemological problems that researchers would need to consider in the pursuit of AL research.

Re-socializing pre-health education in the context of COVID: Pandemic prompts for bio-social approaches.

COVID-19 has underlined the critical importance of bringing biosocial and biopsychosocial approaches to pre-health education. Given the striking social inequalities that the pandemic has both exposed and exacerbated, we argue that bridging between the biomedical and social sciences with such approaches is now more appropriate and urgently needed than ever. We therefore call for the re-socialization of pre-health education by teaching to develop socio-structural competencies alongside physical and biological science knowledge. We suggest that community partnerships, which address local inequalities and their global interdependencies, should be encouraged as an essential element in all pre-health education. Educators should also support such partnerships as opportunities for students who come from more minoritized and impoverished social backgrounds to see their own social knowledge-including community-based knowledge of health-injustices revealed by the pandemic-as the basis of biopsychosocial expertise. By prioritizing this reconceptualization of pre-health education, we can empower future health workers to prepare more adequately for future health crises in ways that are socially aware and structurally transformative.

Interactive Instructor for a Synergistic Student-Centered and Personalized Teaching: A Biosocial Approach

With or without pandemics, successful knowledge transfers and instilment of critical thinking in learners are strategic to teaching delivery. To revolutionize teaching practice and profession, the specific needs of every group of learners (such as gifted and talented, depressed, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder students, minority ethnic pupils, and low attaining) must be met. Therefore, a new paradigm that employs the right teaching styles for the right student at the right time should be adopted. A plethora of research has shown that enhanced understanding, retention, and critical thinking are better promoted in active learning strategies as compared to conventional passive learning. On the other hand, students’ critical thinking is most effectively enhanced by instructional approaches that incorporate constructivist, active-learning, and student-centered philosophies, in addition to other concepts like biosocial, psychological, psychosocial, emotional, motivational, and sociocultural perspectives. The execution of such a holistic perspective would inevitably require concerted efforts from all relevant key players and stakeholders.

Paleosyndemics: A Bioarchaeological and Biosocial Approach to Study Infectious Diseases in the Past

Skeletons drawn from archaeological contexts provide a fund of data for assessing disease in general and timing of epidemics in particular in past societies. The bioarchaeological record presents an especially important perspective on timing of some of the world's most catastrophic diseases, such as leprosy, tuberculosis, plague (Black Death), and treponematosis. Application of new developments in paleogenomics and paleogenetics presents new opportunities to document ancient pathogens' DNA (for example, Black Death), track their history, and assess their beginning and end points. Paleopathological documentation of disease terminus is complex, in part owing to circumstances where past communities experienced overlapping epidemics, such as leprosy and plague. For most settings, these syndemics-whereby there is an interaction between two or more epidemic diseases-both exacerbate and enhance the burden of morbidity in a community or region. Fundamental to understanding the severity and duration of epidemics is the consideration of multiple factors that simultaneously influence the severity and duration of the specific infectious diseases in a community or region, including poor oral health, under-nutrition, iron deficiency anemia, and elevated parasite load. In our view, comprehending the beginning, the middle, and the end of epidemics requires understanding the wider context of syndemics, the multiple challenging circumstances that undermine health and community stability, and how biosocial factors differentially affect the immune competence of individuals. This article provides several examples of the application of bioarchaeology and syndemics theory in achieving an understanding of how epidemics end. Pathogens continue to circulate, even after what appears to be the end. In effect, then, there is no “end,” just evolution of opportunistic pathogens and our ability (or not) to mitigate them.

Stress and emotional arousal in urban environments: A biosocial study with persons having experienced a first-episode of psychosis and persons at risk.

This article examines the entanglement between feelings of stress and discomfort, physiological arousal and urban experiences of persons living with early psychosis. It adopts a biosocial approach, using mixed methods combining ambulatory skin conductance monitoring, mobile interviews and contextual data, collected through GPS and video recordings. The study draws on and strives to cross-fertilize two recent strands of research. The first relates to the use of digital phenotyping in mental health research. The second explores stress and emotional arousal in cities using ambulatory physiological measures. Empirically, the paper is based on fieldwork in Basel, Switzerland, with nine participants recruited within the Basel Early Treatment Service (BEATS), and four controls. We focus on three salient elements in our results: visual perception of moving bodies, spatial transitions and openness and enclosure of the built environment. The analysis shows how these elements elicit physiological responses of arousal and expressed feelings of discomfort. In the concluding section we discuss the methodological implications of these results and suggest the notion of regime of attention as a focus for future biosocial research on urban mental health.

Гендерный фактор в спорте: маскулинность/феминность ценностей спорта как социального института

The problem of clarifying the content of social roles in conditions of high dynamics of the transformation of society necessarily raises the question of revising the content of gender differences as a set of social indicators of gender. A particularly controversial problem field in the context of gender relations is sports, which is an important institution of socialization and an instrument of social success. The masculine nature of sports activity leaves an imprint on their social status in the context of gender guidelines and raises questions about the gender status of sports and the problems of gender identity of athletes. The aim of the article is to study the gender factor in sports and to study the gender orientation of the values of sports as a social institution. The methodology of the study is determined by its problem field. When considering subjectobject relations in the system of gender identification, the methods of a dialectical approach were applied, where gender was studied as a unity of subjective-personal and objective-cultural factors of thinking and behavior. When considering the problem of masculinization of female athletes, a structural approach was employed, where gender is considered as a cultural and historical code, as a special case of an episteme in gender-role discourse. In the study of the initial masculinity of sports values, a biosocial approach was used, where the phenomenon of sports was considered from both biological and social positions. The development of the problem of gender factor research in sports included consideration of the following issues: masculinity of sports as their typical feature, the impossibility of their feminization; the problem of masculinization of female athletes; sport as an area of female emancipation. As a result, the historical and physiological reasons for the masculinity of sports are considered. The archaic criteria for assessing gender identity and the inclusion of gender-specific personality traits characteristic of modern people in masculinity indicators are substantiated. The role of sports in the phenomenon of women’s emancipation is considered: the role of infrastructural and cultural factors of women’s inclusion in sports. The ambiguity of the phenomenon of masculinization of female athletes, the symbolic nature of the criteria, and the formulation of this problem are revealed. The role of the historical development of sports in the direction of universal needs and opportunities is shown, where the differentiation of sports disciplines and its qualitative diversity play a special role. This evolution has ensured an equal participation of women and men in sports activities.

Changing the Landscape of Identity in Forensic Anthropology

1 SNA International supporting the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Joint Base Pearl Harbor, Hickam, Hawaii, USA. 2 Humanities and Sciences Interdepartmental Programs, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA. *Correspondence to: Briana T. New, SNA International supporting the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, 590 Moffet St., Joint Base Pearl Harbor, Hickam, HI 96853 USA. E-mail: btrnew@gmail.com. KEY WORDS: forensic anthropology, identity, casework, multidisciplinary. Human Biology, Winter 2021, v. 93, no. 1. doi: 10.13110/humanbiology.93.1.04. Copyright © 2021 Wayne State University Press, Detroit, Michigan 48201 Changing the Landscape of Identity in Forensic Anthropology Briana T. New1 * and Bridget F. B. Algee-Hewitt2 The articles that comprise this special issue, “Changing the Landscape of Identity in Forensic Anthropology,” grew from a symposium titled “ExpandingBoundaries :EmbracingtheIntersectionality of Forensic Anthropology to Account for the Changing Landscape of Identity in Current Casework .”These papers were intended to be presented at the 2020 meeting of the American Association of PhysicalAnthropologists(nowtheAmericanAssociation of Biological Anthropologists). However, whentheCOVID-19pandemicnecessitatedcanceling the conference, we offered the opportunity for researchers to expand their intended presentations . We are grateful that, despite the events that changed many of our personal and professional lives over the last few years, many symposium participants transformed their contributions into the rich body of research presented here. This two-part special issue focuses on the expanded potential of forensic anthropological research as the discipline continues to develop multidisciplinary approaches for understanding identity, incorporating new sources of information andnewmethodologies,andleveragingpreexisting approaches in new ways. The research showcased here uses diverse data and forward-thinking applications—historical, demographic, dental, skeletal, and genomic—to tackle the complexities of identity in forensic casework. These studies engage critically with parameters of the biological profile from many different perspectives but with shared concern for practical applications within the field. Operating in the context of this theme, all of the contributions highlight the need for a renewed dialogue in the field. Kenyhercz, Konigsberg et al., and Spake et al. problematize the straightforward adoption of prevailing methodologies through their presentations of advanced theory. They demonstrate risks of methodological misuse and misidentificationthatresultfromuncriticalacceptance of standard practice. Kenyhercz challenges the ancestry estimation methodology used by forensic anthropologists for decades by providing anexploratorymethodologyof unsupervisedlearning techniques, an approach that does not require a priori group selection or assumptions when comparing an individual against different groups. Indoingso,theauthorconteststhenormsof analysis , encouraging practitioners to broaden their perspectives on what it means to assess human variation at the level of the individual or group. Konigsberg et al., in surfacing procedural fallacies, underscore the sobering reality of the real human consequences in poor methodology. Asking us to rethink our role as experts in the production and acceptance of forensic evidence, the authors analyzetheconsistencyindevelopmentof thefirstand secondmandibularmolarsforpredictingminimum age thresholds.They thus demonstrate the bounds of juvenile age estimation within this context and assert that use of biological markers for minimum age of criminal responsibility is not reliable. Spake et al. explore the potential of incorporating into the forensic tool kit formulas that estimate body mass for use on modern juvenile remains. Their Changing the Landscape of Identity in Forensic Anthropology New and Algee-Hewitt 000 ■ New and Algee-Hewitt and approaches to race and ancestry within biological anthropology. Through this research, the authors provide a variety of recommendations to address discordances their survey identified in teaching modes, research techniques, and public engagementstrategies,fromthelanguageusedand how our discussions are structured to the modernization of communication methodologies. Taylor et al. deliver case discussions that, while learning tools themselves, drive home a bigger message that forensic casework should be first informed by the fundamentals of “doing” anthropology. In this light, they encourage readers to reevaluate how we reconcile discordant lines of evidence and to embrace how the often-muddied waters of culture can bring unexpected clarity to our understanding of biology. Their research addresses the complexities and possible inconsistences across different lines of biological, social, and material evidencethatmustbeaddressedforidentifications to move forward. Furthermore, the authors show how mobilizing social theory in casework and case building can help contextualize or ground fluid social identities through time. This article advocates for a holistic biosocial anthropological approach to identity building, arguing that it is necessary for facilitating forensic identifications not just...

Combining stool and stories: exploring antimicrobial resistance among a longitudinal cohort of international health students

BackgroundAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health concern that requires transdisciplinary and bio-social approaches. Despite the continuous calls for a transdisciplinary understanding of this problem, there is still a lack of such studies. While microbiology generates knowledge about the biomedical nature of bacteria, social science explores various social practices related to the acquisition and spread of these bacteria. However, the two fields remain disconnected in both methodological and conceptual levels. Focusing on the acquisition of multidrug resistance genes, encoding extended-spectrum betalactamases (CTX-M) and carbapenemases (NDM-1) among a travelling population of health students, this article proposes a methodology of ‘stool and stories’ that combines methods of microbiology and sociology, thus proposing a way forward to a collaborative understanding of AMR.MethodsA longitudinal study with 64 health students travelling to India was conducted in 2017. The study included multiple-choice questionnaires (n = 64); a collection of faecal swabs before travel (T0, n = 45), in the first week in India (T1, n = 44), the second week in India (T2, n = 41); and semi-structured interviews (n = 11). Stool samples were analysed by a targeted metagenomic approach. Data from semi-structured interviews were analysed using the method of thematic analysis.ResultsThe incidence of ESBL- and carbapenemase resistance genes significantly increased during travel indicating it as a potential risk; for CTX-M from 11% before travel to 78% during travel and for NDM-1 from 2% before travel to 11% during travel. The data from semi-structured interviews showed that participants considered AMR mainly in relation to individual antibiotic use or its presence in a clinical environment but not to travelling.ConclusionThe microbiological analysis confirmed previous research showing that international human mobility is a risk factor for AMR acquisition. However, sociological methods demonstrated that travellers understand AMR primarily as a clinical problem and do not connect it to travelling. These findings indicate an important gap in understanding AMR as a bio-social problem raising a question about the potential effectiveness of biologically driven AMR stewardship programs among travellers. Further development of the ‘stool and stories’ approach is important for a transdisciplinary basis of AMR stewardship.

Social inequalities in accelerated aging among southern U.S. women: an analysis of the biosocial and behavioral pathways linking social determinants to telomere length

ABSTRACT Few studies have examined the biosocial pathways linking socioeconomic status (SES) to accelerated aging in a population-based sample of southern US women. Even fewer have examined the importance of chronic compared to perceived stress in linking SES to women’s salivary telomere length (STL). Using data from a probability-based sample of 156 US women and structural equation modeling, we examined three pathways – chronic stress exposure, stress appraisal, and coping behavior – linking SES to STL. SES was positively associated with STL (βTE = 0.16, p < .05). Everyday discrimination was negatively associated with STL (βDE = −0.21, p < .05), but perceived stress was positively associated with STL (βDE = 0.20, p < .05). Current smoking decreased STL (βDE = −0.19, p < .01). Perceived stress acted to suppress the negative relationship of chronic stress exposure on STL. Given the dearth of STL studies that include measures of both perceived and chronic stress, our study supports the importance of disentangling stress measures and a biosocial approach to the study of accelerated aging.

Aktuelnost biosocijalnih istraživanja u kriminologiji

New scientific and technological developments have provided a clearer insight into the functioning of the human body. Research into human genetic predispositions, genome mapping, and brain function research have all contributed to explaining human behavior. The results of studies in recent years have unequivocally shown that genetic and social factors of crime act individually but also in interaction. Biosocial criminology is considered to be a more recent paradigm in the explanation of criminal behavior, which underlines the mechanism of the cooperation of biological and social factors in the explanation of crime. The aim of the paper is to review the conceptualization and key aspects of biosocial criminology, key factors in the explanation of crime, and the most important biosocial interventions that are applied. Genetic, neuropsychological, neurophysiological and endocrinological factors are crucial in explaining criminal behavior within the biosocial approach. The results show that programs resulting from the biosocial paradigm are more effective in preventing criminal behavior than interventions implemented within traditional criminology and neglecting the influence of biological factors.

The TB REACH Initiative: Supporting TB Elimination Efforts in the Asia-Pacific.

After many years of TB ‘control’ and incremental progress, the TB community is talking about ending the disease, yet this will only be possible with a shift in the way we approach the TB response. While the Asia-Pacific region has the highest TB burden worldwide, it also has the opportunity to lead the quest to end TB by embracing the four areas laid out in this series: using data to target hotspots, initiating active case finding, provisioning preventive TB treatment, and employing a biosocial approach. The Stop TB Partnership’s TB REACH initiative provides a platform to support partners in the development, evaluation and scale-up of new and innovative technologies and approaches to advance TB programs. We present several approaches TB REACH is taking to support its partners in the Asia-Pacific and globally to advance our collective response to end TB.

Village Response to Mass Drug Administration for Schistosomiasis in Mwanza Region, Northwestern Tanzania: Are We Missing Socioeconomic, Cultural, and Political Dimensions?

.Praziquantel (PZQ)-based mass drug administration (MDA) is the main approach for controlling schistosomiasis in endemic areas. Interventions such as provision and use of clean and safe water, minimizing contacts with infested water, disposal of human waste in latrines, and snail control provide additional key interventions to break the transmission cycle and could complement and perhaps sustain the benefits of MDA. However, all interventions deployed need to be accepted by the targeted communities. A qualitative study was conducted to examine factors that might differentiate villages which did not show a substantial decrease in Schistosoma mansoni prevalence despite repeated, high treatment coverage referred to as “persistent hotspot (PHS) villages” from villages which showed a substantial decrease in prevalence referred to as “responding (RES) villages.” A convenient sample of adults was drawn from eight villages. Thirty-nine key informants were interviewed and 16 focus groups were held with a total of 123 participants. Data were analyzed manually using a thematic content approach. In both PHS and RES villages, schistosomiasis was not considered to be a priority health problem because of its chronic nature, lack of knowledge and awareness, and poverty among study communities. Persistent hotspot villages exhibited poor leadership style, lack of or insufficient social engagement, little or lack of genuine community participation, little motivation, and commitment to schistosomiasis control compared with RES villages where there were commitment and motivation to fight schistosomiasis. We support the view of scholars who advocate for the adoption of a biosocial approach for effective and sustainable PZQ-based MDA for schistosomiasis control.

The Logarithmic Spiral of Networks of Care for Expectant Families in Rural Nepal: A Descriptive Case Study

ABSTRACT This case study utilizes the four domains of effective Networks of Care (NOC) as a lens to describe the suite of interventions of a biosocial approach to maternal and neonatal health services in rural Nepal: The Network of Safety model, created by the non-governmental organization One Heart Worldwide (OHW) in collaboration with the government health system in Nepal. This approach provides essential guidance in the areas of health financing, governance, sustainability, reflection of user preference, and scalability. OHW addresses the reproductive health needs of women living in remote areas of Nepal in collaboration with local-level health and government workers by emphasizing clinical skill development and mentorship in management and leadership. With Nepal’s shift to Federalism, the OHW approach proved flexible and able to deepen its support to leaders in new local-level government structures. The results on the ground were remarkable: using analytic skills gained from their OHW partnership, municipality leaders and health workers demonstrated effective communication and proactive responses to challenges, while maintaining fidelity to the Network of Safety model. The six-year commitment made by OHW to partner municipalities promoted active learning and adaptation and is a clear contributor to the scalability of the OHW Network of Safety. Observing the Network of Safety work through the domains of NOC highlights the interdisciplinary effort required to successfully transform Maternal and Neonatal Health (MNH) services in rural Nepal.

Why Sociology Matters to Race and Biosocial Science

Recent developments in genetics and neuroscience have led to increasing interest in biosocial approaches to social life. While today's biosocial paradigms seek to examine more fully the inextricable relationships between the biological and the social, they have also renewed concerns about the scientific study of race. Our review describes the innovative ways sociologists have designed biosocial models to capture embodied impacts of racism, but also analyzes the potential for these models normatively to reinforce existing racial inequities. First, we examine how concepts and measurements of difference in the postgenomic era have affected scientific knowledges and social practices of racial identity. Next, we assess sociological investigations of racial inequality in the biosocial era, including the implications of the biological disciplines’ move to embrace the social. We conclude with a discussion of the growing interest in social algorithms and their potential to embed past racial injustices in their predictions of the future.

An appeal for practical social justice in the COVID-19 global response in low-income and middle-income countries

An appeal for practical social justice in the COVID-19 global response in low-income and middle-income countries

The Personality of a Criminal in Criminological Studies of the Soviet Period

The paper describes the evolution of the views of Soviet criminologists on such element of its object as the personality of a criminal. As the anthropological approach to the personality of a criminal was dominant in the criminology of the pre-Soviet period, the first Soviet criminological studies of criminal personality were based on viewing a criminal as a person with metal deviations which should be corrected therapeutically. It is noted that the social character of the Marxist doctrine, its understanding of crime as a legacy of the exploitative society, as well as the fallacy of substituting the personality of a criminal by a that of a person who committed publically dangerous acts due to mental deviations in the early Soviet criminological studies led to the termination of such research. After the renaissance of criminological studies in mid-1960s, the personality of a criminal was not immediately included in the object of criminology as an independent element. The author singles out three approaches to researching the personality of a criminal in Soviet criminology: the psychological approach that identifies certain psychological features in the personality of a criminal (defects of legal consciousness, distortions of the value system, etc) or defines a criminal as a person alienated from society; the bio-social approach that characterizes a criminal as person who is genetically or psycho-pathologically predisposed to crime and who acts on this predisposition in an unfavorable social environment. It is concluded that, in the modern period, these approaches have created a basis for a complex study of the personality of a criminal, according to which it is viewed as an aggregate of social, biological and psychological features.