NCJ Number
118247
Date Published
1979
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This chapter examines the etiology of violence in general and then considers manifestations of violence in the offenses of murder, rape, child abuse, and armed robbery, concluding with a discussion of the emergency treatment of the pathologically violent offender.
Abstract
Studies of sociological correlates of violent crime have shown it occurs in areas characterized by low income, concentrations of racial and ethnic minorities, broken homes, working mothers, low education levels and vocational skills, high unemployment, high proportions of single males, overcrowded and substandard housing, low rates of home ownership and single family dwellings, mixed land use, and high population density. General theories of violence that focus on the individual encompass such factors as genetics, brain damage, response to frustration, and sociopsychological stimuli. The discussion of murder addresses Megargee's typology of murderers as having "overcontrolled" and "undercontrolled" aggression. Typologies of rape and sexual assault are labeled "displaced aggression," "compensatory," "sex-aggression fusion," and "impulse." Characteristics of parents who abuse their children are outlined, followed by a brief consideration of the crime patterns of armed robbers. The suggestions for the emergency treatment of the pathologically violent offender are from Lion (1972) and are patterned after typical crisis intervention techniques. 65 references.