Verified Document

Forensics As Bartol & Bartol Discussion Chapter

If the question must be answered with a clear yes or no, then the answer would be no: criminal behavior is not in and of itself a mental disorder. Criminal behavior can be used as a warning sign to test for mental disorders, and then that would allow psychologists to treat the underlying cause of the criminal behavior. As Cauffman (2008) puts it, "effective prevention efforts should target the mental health needs of at-risk females before they lead to chronic behavior problems," (p. 119). Some criminal behaviors are not indicative of mental illness because they are acts arbitrarily defined as crimes. When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was put into a Birmingham jail, he wrote a letter that describes why some laws are unjust and simply meant to be broken. It takes a mentally ill person to obey laws related to segregation, and a mentally healthy person to break laws related to segregation. Therefore, crime cannot be used as a universal indicator of mental health. Likewise, mental health cannot be used as a blanket stigma...

Parts of this document are hidden

View Full Document
svg-one

This is not what researchers are trying to say, however, because there are a host of mental illnesses that are not linked to criminal behaviors at all. The mental illnesses that are linked to criminal behavior are often not linked in as causal or direct manner as anti-social (psychopathic) personality disorder. Some mental illnesses are only correlated with criminal behavior, such as substance abuse disorder. Most persons who use drugs will never commit a violent or property crime at all.
References

Bartol, C.R. & Bartol, a.M. (2008). Crime and mental disorders. In Criminal Behavior: A Psychosocial Approach. Prentice Hall.

Cauffman, E. (2008). Understanding the female offender. The Future of Children, 18(2), 119 -- 142. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/EJ815076.pdf

National Criminal Justice System Reference Service (n.d.). Women & Girls in the Criminal Justice System http://www.ncjrs.gov/spotlight/wgcjs/Summary.html

Sources used in this document:
References

Bartol, C.R. & Bartol, a.M. (2008). Crime and mental disorders. In Criminal Behavior: A Psychosocial Approach. Prentice Hall.

Cauffman, E. (2008). Understanding the female offender. The Future of Children, 18(2), 119 -- 142. Retrieved from http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/EJ815076.pdf

National Criminal Justice System Reference Service (n.d.). Women & Girls in the Criminal Justice System http://www.ncjrs.gov/spotlight/wgcjs/Summary.html
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Forensic Psychology Fulero, S. And
Words: 1273 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Profiling or Guessing- the role of criminal profiling is certainly one in the popular press and media. Television shows such as CSI or Bones bring the task of forensics into the mainstream living room, but these shows tend to focus more on the sexier forms of criminology as opposed to the gray area of forensic psychology. A professional forensic psychologist, though, understands that a typical profile is not meant to

Forensic Psychology Review, V Fulero,
Words: 1034 Length: 3 Document Type: Term Paper

Chapter 12 -- Trial Consultation - The Forensic Psychologist is often called to aid in jury selection. One role, depending on stakeholder, is to assess potential jurors for the potential to be unbiased against the accused. Often the consulting Forensic Psychologist will recommend to the Court that a fair trial cannot take place in a given location based on community bias or other factors. The psychological aspects of such a recommendation

Forensic Psychology - Intro to
Words: 587 Length: 2 Document Type: Term Paper

While "immediately following a crime a forensic psychologist may be asked to act as a criminal profiler" in the court system, the psychologist may be asked to evaluate the competency of a specific defendant in a criminal trial or to assess the level of mental harm done to the plaintiff in a civil trial (Decaire n.d). "Often a forensic psychologist is asked to make evaluations of defendants or plaintiffs'

Forensic Psychology Is a Relatively
Words: 414 Length: 2 Document Type: Term Paper

This contribution towards the evolution of this field gives more credence and attention to these practices, making this award important for everyone involved. The education system is the starting point for many important subjects such as forensic psychology. The importance of making this particular discipline accepted and official allows the followers and subsidiaries of these streams of information a guide path to elaborate on their own studies on the matter.

Forensic Psychology From the Perspective of the
Words: 669 Length: 2 Document Type: Discussion Chapter

Forensic Psychology From the perspective of the forensic psychiatrist, suicide as a cause of death is particularly important in terms of its preventability. In many forensic settings, prior risk assessment for potential suicide victims can assist the psychiatrist in not only saving the lives of potential victims, but also in resolving crimes, preventing future crimes, or at the very least save uncountable grief and heartache to the families involved. The article

Forensic Psychology & Child Custody
Words: 584 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

" (Franklin, 2006, p.1) Assessed are personality factors and an attempt is made to determine which parents is closer to the children on a psychological level. The children are evaluated as well in an examination that involves the psychological assessing he emotional connection of the child to each of the child's parents. As well the psychologist examines whether the children appear to have any psychological problems of a significant nature. School

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now