Monstrous Crimes and the Failure of Forensic Psychiatry [electronic resource] /
Douard, John.author.
Schultz, Pamela D.author.
The metaphor of the monster or predator—usually a sexual predator, drug dealer in areas frequented by children, or psychopathic murderer—is a powerful framing device in public discourse about how the criminal justice system should respond to serious violent crimes. The cultural history of the monster reveals significant features of the metaphor that raise questions about the extent to which justice can be achieved in both the punishment of what are regarded as "monstrous crimes" and the treatment of those who commit such crimes. This volume is the first to address the connections between the history of the monster metaphor, the 19th century idea of the criminal as monster, and the 20th century conception of the psychopath: the new monster. The book addresses, in particular, the ways in which the metaphor is used to scapegoat certain categories of crimes and criminals for anxieties about our own potential for deviant, and, indeed, dangerous interests. These interests have long been found to be associated with the fascination people have for monsters in most cultures, including the West. The book concludes with an analysis of the role of forensic psychiatrists and psychologists in representing criminal defendants as psychopaths, or persons with certain personality disorders. As psychiatry and psychology have transformed bad behavior into mad behavior, these institutions have taken on the legal role of helping to sort out the most dangerous among us for preventive "treatment" rather than carceral "punishment.".
Description based upon print version of record.
Monstrous Crimes and the Failure of Forensic Psychiatry; Acknowledgments; John Douard; Pamela D. Schultz; Contents; Chapter 1: Monstrous Crimes, Framing, and the Preventive State: The Moral Failure of Forensic Psychiatry; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Frames, Metaphor, and Cognition; 1.3 Monsters and Monstrous Crimes; 1.4 Psychopathy: The Monstrous Brain; References; Chapter 2: Sexual Predator Laws: A Gothic Narrative; 2.1 Law, Morality, and Emotion in American Law; 2.2 The Monster Among Us: The Social Context of Revulsion; 2.3 Sexually Violent Predator Acts; 2.4 Megan's Law
2.4.1 Stories of Abjection: The "yuck" Factor2.5 Becoming a Public Problem; References; Chapter 3: Metaphor, Framing, and Reasoning; 3.1 Metaphor as Productive Cognitive Tool; 3.2 Metaphorical Images: Emblematic Compression; 3.3 Framing and Meaning; 3.4 Thinking with Metaphors: Pretend Play and the False Belief Task; 3.5 Dead Metaphors are Powerful Metaphors; References; Chapter 4: Monsters, Norms and Making Up People; 4.1 Monster as Physical Abnormality; 4.2 Monster as Social Symbol; 4.3 "Making Up People" - The Monster Within; 4.4 Scapegoats and the Social Utility of Outsiders
4.5 The Monster as Sexual DeviantReferences; Chapter 5: The Sex Offender: A New Folk Devil; 5.1 Moral Panic; 5.2 Witchcraft and "Satanic Panic"; 5.3 The Child Sexual Murderer; References; Chapter 6: The Child Sex Abuser; 6.1 Child Abuse as a Public Problem; 6.2 The Sex Offender Kind; 6.3 The Ambiguity of "Normal"; References; Chapter 7: The Mask of Objectivity: Digital Imaging and Psychopathy; 7.1 The Moral Monster Within; 7.2 DSM-IV-TR: A Floating Taxonomy; 7.2.1 SVPA Psychiatric Reports: The Forensic Context of the DSM-IV-TR; 7.3 Psychopathy: The Mask of Sanity
7.4 fMRI: Localizing the Monster7.5 The Monstrous Crime and the Monstrous Brain; 7.5.1 Maps, Atlases, and Distinguishing the Normal from the Abnormal; 7.6 Abnormal Brains; 7.6.1 Expert Testimony: The Mask of Objectivity; 7.6.2 Sex Offenders as Psychopaths; References; Chapter 8: Forensic Psychiatric Testimony: Ethical Issues; 8.1 A Prima Facie Moral Dilemma; 8.2 Ethics Subverted: The Shifting Terrain of Forensic Psychiatry; 8.3 Do Forensic Psychiatrists Possess a Body of Well-Grounded Knowledge?; 8.4 Are Forensic Psychiatrists Biased?
8.5 Why Even the Best Forensic Psychiatrists Are at Moral Risk8.6 The Basis for Moral Evaluation: Principles, Narratives, Social Context; 8.7 Stories and Narratives; 8.8 Monsters, Strangers, and Social Order: Forensic Psychiatrists as Moral Police; 8.9 The Monstrous Brain: Science or Science Fiction?; 8.10 What Is to Be Done?; 8.11 Moral Conversation: An Exercise in "Hot-Tubbing"; References; Chapter 9: Public Health Approach to Sexual Abuse; 9.1 Public Health and Sexual Violence Prevention; 9.2 Public Health Law: Brief Introduction
9.3 Biological and Personal Narratives: The Individual Level
Includes bibliographical references and index.
The metaphor of the monster or predator—usually a sexual predator, drug dealer in areas frequented by children, or psychopathic murderer—is a powerful framing device in public discourse about how the criminal justice system should respond to serious violent crimes. The cultural history of the monster reveals significant features of the metaphor that raise questions about the extent to which justice can be achieved in both the punishment of what are regarded as "monstrous crimes" and the treatment of those who commit such crimes. This volume is the first to address the connections between the history of the monster metaphor, the 19th century idea of the criminal as monster, and the 20th century conception of the psychopath: the new monster. The book addresses, in particular, the ways in which the metaphor is used to scapegoat certain categories of crimes and criminals for anxieties about our own potential for deviant, and, indeed, dangerous interests. These interests have long been found to be associated with the fascination people have for monsters in most cultures, including the West. The book concludes with an analysis of the role of forensic psychiatrists and psychologists in representing criminal defendants as psychopaths, or persons with certain personality disorders. As psychiatry and psychology have transformed bad behavior into mad behavior, these institutions have taken on the legal role of helping to sort out the most dangerous among us for preventive "treatment" rather than carceral "punishment.".
Law—Philosophy.
Law.
Psychiatry.
Psychology.
Personality.
Social psychology.
Ethics.
Theories of Law, Philosophy of Law, Legal History.
Psychiatry.
Law and Psychology.
Personality and Social Psychology.
Ethics.
International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine