Disordered Personalities and Crime: An analysis of the history of moral insanity

Disordered Personalities and Crimeseeks to better understand how we respond to those individuals who have been labelled at various points in time as '¬Ümorally insane'¬", '¬Üpsychopathic'¬" or '¬Üpersonality disordered'¬". Individuals whose behaviour is consistent with these diagnoses present challenges to both the CJS and mental health systems in that the people who come to have such diagnoses seem to have a rational and realistic understanding of the world around them, but they can behave in ways that suggests that they have either little understanding of the meaning or consequences of their actions. Divided into three parts '¬ ; '¬ÜMoral Insanity'¬", '¬ÜPsychopathy'¬" and '¬ÜPersonality Disorders'¬" '¬ ; each dealing with an identifiable historical phase of thinking about the difficulties posed by individuals exhibiting these kinds of problems, this book argues that an analysis of the history of the diagnoses of personality disorder will help to provide a better understanding of these contemporary difficulties. This book will be key reading for students, researchers and academics who are on the one hand interested in serious crime in particular in its relationship to mental disorder and to those interested in psychiatry and abnormal psychology.