One of the books that I received for reviewing purposes a while ago is called, Inside The Criminal Mind, by Stanton Samenow. Here's my full review.
Synopsis
Long-held myths defining the sources of and cures for crime are shattered in this ground-breaking book--and a chilling profile of today's criminal emerges.
My Thoughts
I wanted to read this book when I first saw it. The title made it sound very appealing. I just so happen to be a Psych major and I've actually always found anything dealing with the human mind to be interesting. The fact that this book is about the "Criminal" mind in particular made me want to read it even more.
There are a lot of things in the book that made sense to me but even though this is an updated version of the book, I felt like there were quite a few outdated theories. I don't entirely agree with the way that he tries to simplify the way criminal minds work or how they are "created". I think that it's impossible to categorize all criminals together. Sure, not ALL criminals do what they do because of the way they are raised, but some do. Not ALL criminals have the same mental issues. Not ALL criminals are born the same. Everyone is different, everyone reacts to society in their own way, everyone makes their own decisions. Similarities between one criminal and another can be found, I'm sure, but no one mind is exactly like another.
As far as treatment, though, I agree that a criminal cannot be "saved" or "changed" unless he/she truly wants to be.
This book was an okay read in my opinion, but I don't think that anyone seriously interested in the field should accept this book as 100% accurate. There has been a lot more research done since this book was written, so I think it is important to study more modern day research as well, before coming to any definite conclusions about why criminal minds work the way that they do.
You can find this book here.
**Disclaimer: I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review.**
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