Psychology

Unfortunately, criminal behavior surrounds us in our society from petty theft and vandalism to multimillion-dollar white-collar crime to shocking terrorism attempts and school killings. Invariably, one of the first questions is, "Why did they do it?" Criminal psychology seeks to solve this complex puzzle.

Juvenile justice centers have a long tradition as an unfortunate stop for young offenders who need mental health care. Reports estimate that as many as 70% of the youth in detention centers meet criteria for mental health disorders. As juvenile justice systems once again turn their focus from confinement to rehabilitation, mental health providers have major opportunities to inform and improve both practice and policy. The Handbook of Juvenile Forensic Psychology and Psychiatry explores these opportunities by emphasizing a developmental perspective, multifaceted assessment, and evidence-based practice in working with juvenile offenders.

Experimental psychology approaches psychology as one of the natural sciences, and therefore assumes that it is susceptible to the experimental method. Many experimental psychologists have gone further, and have assumed that all methods of investigation other than experimentation are suspect. In particular, experimental psychologists have been inclined to discount the case study and interview methods as they have been used in clinical and developmental psychology. This book brings together leading research from around the world in this field.