NCJ Number
179157
Date Published
1998
Length
335 pages
Annotation
Self-serving distortions of the criminal mind must be understood in order to treat antisocial individuals, and causes and characteristics of antisocial behavior and treatment needs of antisocial individuals are detailed.
Abstract
The author, a clinical psychologist, draws on his research and experience with hundreds of men, women, and children to offer perspectives on antisocial behavior and policy issues facing individuals, institutions, and governments. He contends that criminal behavior is the result of individual choice rather than the environment, that environmental factors do not cause crime, and that bad parenting does not cause crime. He also believes that people do not become abusers and criminals because they were abused and that biological and genetic contributions to criminality do not necessarily preordain incarceration. The author argues that laws, law enforcement, and deterrents can reduce crime and notes that individuals with a criminal mind view life differently from responsible people. Further, he feels that the criminal mind exists independent of particular laws, cultures, and customs and that after-the-fact excuses of criminals rarely reflect their true motives. Going on the assumption that criminals cause crime and they are neither mentally ill nor victims of addictions, specific suggestions are offered on how schools can combat crime, criminals can change, and criminal patterns can be identified early so that preventive steps can be taken. Directions for social policy related to crime control are noted. An appendix contains an overview of the criminal personality. 19 references