An important classic, especially useful for courses in criminal behavior and personality, this text begins with a discussion of the construction of types of crime and then formulates and utilizes a typology of criminal behavior systems.

Saney cogently argues that in the absence of adequate support within social and legal norms, a heavy burden is placed upon the criminal justice system, a burden that it cannot carry. Criminal law and the courts fail to provide for either swiftness or certainty of punishment; police have failed to overcome the basic American distrust of authority to gain the comparable support enjoyed by police in other countries; and the penal system operates under contradictory goals, isolated from public view or support. The final chapter presents a succinct set of proposals for changing the justice system to one that would be humane and more just. Choice This thought-provoking study of the crime problem in America provides an in-depth look at the sociological forces that are dominant in today's society and examines the possible influence of certain contemporary values and perceptions on criminal activity, the quality of justice in the American courts, and the attitude of the general public. The author discusses the various factors that can affect or encourage criminal behavior and relates these directly to the way people feel and respond to the incidence of crime and its punishment, and to a growing lack of confidence in the criminal justice system. Crime in America is first presented in a factual context, followed by a discussion of its cultural influences, and finally with a consideration of its criminal law aspects.

This textbook provides an interdisciplinary overview of theories of crime, explanations of how and why criminal typologies are developed, literature reviews for each of the major crime catagories, and discussions of how theories of crime are used at different stages of the criminal justice process.

Criminal Behavior explores crime as a developmental process from birth through early adulthood. It further examines the role that legal, political, and criminal justice systems play in the development of criminal behavior.

This book represents a brief treatise on the theory and research behind the concept of desistance from crime. This ever-growing field has become increasingly relevant as questions of serious issues regarding sentencing, probation and the penal system continue to go unanswered. Rocque covers the history of research on desistance from crime and provides a discussion of research and theories on the topic before looking towards the future of the application of desistance to policy. The focus of the volume is to provide an overview of the practical and theoretical developments to better understand desistance. In addition, a multidisciplinary, integrative theoretical perspective is presented, ensuring that it will be of particular interest for students and scholars of criminology and the criminal justice system.

Contributors to this volume present and discuss new data which suggest that major mental disorder substantially increases the risk of violent crime. These findings come at a crucial time, since those who suffer from mental disorders are increasingly living in the community, rather than in institutions. The book describes the magnitude and complexity of the problem and offers hope that humane, effective intervention can prevent violent crime being committed by the seriously mentally disordered.

Criminal Justice Theory, Second Edition is the first and only text, edited by U.S. criminal justice educators, on the theoretical foundations of criminal justice, not criminological theory. This new edition includes entirely new chapters as well as revisions to all others, with an eye to accessibility and coherence for upper division undergraduate and beginning graduate students in the field.

Even though youth crime rates have fallen since the mid-1990s, public fear and political rhetoric over the issue have heightened. The Columbine shootings and other sensational incidents add to the furor. Often overlooked are the underlying problems of child poverty, social disadvantage, and the pitfalls inherent to adolescent decisionmaking that contribute to youth crime. From a policy standpoint, adolescent offenders are caught in the crossfire between nurturance of youth and punishment of criminals, between rehabilitation and "get tough" pronouncements. In the midst of this emotional debate, the National Research Council's Panel on Juvenile Crime steps forward with an authoritative review of the best available data and analysis. Juvenile Crime, Juvenile Justice presents recommendations for addressing the many aspects of America's youth crime problem. This timely release discusses patterns and trends in crimes by children and adolescentsâ€"trends revealed by arrest data, victim reports, and other sources; youth crime within general crime; and race and sex disparities. The book explores desistanceâ€"the probability that delinquency or criminal activities decrease with ageâ€"and evaluates different approaches to predicting future crime rates. Why do young people turn to delinquency? Juvenile Crime, Juvenile Justice presents what we know and what we urgently need to find out about contributing factors, ranging from prenatal care, differences in temperament, and family influences to the role of peer relationships, the impact of the school policies toward delinquency, and the broader influences of the neighborhood and community. Equally important, this book examines a range of solutions: Prevention and intervention efforts directed to individuals, peer groups, and families, as well as day care-, school- and community-based initiatives. Intervention within the juvenile justice system. Role of the police. Processing and detention of youth offenders. Transferring youths to the adult judicial system. Residential placement of juveniles. The book includes background on the American juvenile court system, useful comparisons with the juvenile justice systems of other nations, and other important information for assessing this problem.

Despite the continuing controversies surrounding ADHD, voluminous research has incontrovertibly established that it is a valid disorder that results in an increased risk for adverse outcomes in multiple areas of life. One of these is increased risk of criminal behavior. An astounding 25 percent of young adult males who are incarcerated in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other Western countries have ADHD. Treatment of individuals with ADHD with stimulant medication can result in a 31% reduction in their criminal behavior and a 43% reduction in violent crime in offenders after release from prison. However, despite the widespread prevalence of ADHD and the remarkable effectiveness of its treatment on reducing crime, the systematic identification and treatment of ADHD in the criminal justice system is virtually non-existent. This is the first book written for professionals in the criminal justice system to help them better understand and work with people who have ADHD. It will provide criminal justice professionals with what they need to know about ADHD based on the best of current science. This knowledge will serve to significantly enhance their effectiveness in working with the 25% of offenders who have ADHD.

Readers of this book can gain novel insight into the various theoretical perspectives of psychology and law. It is demonstrated that psychology is not simply an applied discipline in the legal area, but that it contains its own concepts and paradigms for basic research. Legal psychology proves to be an independent, interdisciplinary part of psychology. The contributions represent the experience of different nationalities and judicial systems; emphasis is placed throughout on criminal law. Topics considered include: prediction and explanation of criminal behavior; legal thought, attribution, and sentencing; eyewitness testimony; and correctional treatment with clinical and organizational aspects.