Violence, crime, and mentally disordered offenders - Sheilagh Hodgins

The mentally disordered criminal is a public nightmare, and the management of these offenders can be driven as much by political and economic concerns as by scientific evidence and professional judgement within the fields of mental health and correction services. This book aims to provide a critical and focused review of knowledge and best practice in this field for mental health and correction professionals and for those concerned with policy and management of services for these offenders.

Mentally disordered offenders include offenders who suffer from schizophrenia, major affective disorders, personality disorders (including psychopathy), brain damage, and mental retardation. The topic is of increasing importance because of the growth of community psychiatry, and the growing community programmes for offenders, and also because of the growing pressures on those institutions which deal with offenders and care for the mentally disordered or disabled. Professionals in these fields will welcome this book which:

• Provides a review of approaches to treatment, accessible to a wide mental health and forensic readership


• Relates treatment approaches to specific mental problems, and reviews evidence of effectiveness


• features a truly international group of authors bringing together a wide variety of approaches, scientific research, and practical experience of important programmes for treatment and prevention

"Few recent texts provide both the depth and breadth necessary to understand the vexing behaviour of mentally disordered offenders. Drs Hodgins and Müller–Isberner, a remarkable pairing of research and clinical expertise, have put together a highly readable and superb resource for anyone interested in this interface of serious mental illness and criminal behavior. The authors of the constituent chapters are leading authorities in their respective areas and have provided thoughtful commentary on the most recent international literature. This is a first–rate treatment of a rapidly growing and fascinating field." Marvin Swartz, Duke University, USA