The studies cited show that positive and negative reinforcements from the environment condition learned responses in both animals and humans. Thus, violence is an acquired characteristic, emanating from the adaptive mechanisms with which living beings respond to threatening environmental stimuli. Studies of neurobiologically damaged individuals show that emotional hyper-reaction can be elicited from incorrectly perceived stimuli. This insight is deemed important for parents, educators, psychologists, doctors, and criminologists to recognize. It implies that treatment methods should be developed to rectify the neurological distortions causing violent behavior rather than continuing to rely on practices of incarcerating and punishing delinquents who perpetrate acts of violence. The reference lists contains 63 items.