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Psychology of juvenile crime
306
Journal
of School Psychology
Lamson, A. Psychology of Juvenile Crime. New York: Human Sciences Press, 1983. Pp. 123. $16.95,
hard cover.
This book examines the causes, characteristics, and treatment of juvenile delinquency. The material in the book is largely based on clinical observation, insight, and professional opinion, with little empirical or statistical data to support the contentions offered. The chapter on the causes of juvenile delinquency, based on research theories, is excellent and reflects on models of criminology and methods of treatment. Other chapters discuss the different types of psychological (mainly personality) problems adolescents exhibit and the types of crimes they commit. Numerous case examples are presented, with assessment and treatment options suggested for each category of criminality. The delinquent categories discussed in chapter format are: identity problems, sudden breakdown of rigid controls, impulse-ridden pleasure seekers, low frustration tolerance, immature personality (includes brief and scanty coverage of the mentally retarded), schizoid personality, psychotic, and antisocial personality. The last chapter discusses family dynamics and their influence on juvenile behavior. Lamson recommends individualizing treatment depending on the crime, personality type, and family situation. Weaknesses of the text include the brief coverage of the significant influences of child abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, and mental retardation in criminal behavior. Also, although Lamson recommends residential treatment in many cases, it appears that institutional treatment sometimes does not help deter future criminal behavior. Lamson wisely notes that succeeding and participating in a school program is significant to adjustment and to noncriminal behavior. This book, because of its brief length and broad coverage, would be an excellent supplementary text for a graduate-level class on the psychology of criminals. Professionals involved with assessment or treatment of juvenile or adult offenders likewise would find the book informative. Jody Gilberg-Porter Windham School System Texas Department of Corrections
Exner, J. E., Jr., & Weiner, I. B. The Rorschach: A Comprehensive System. Volume 3: Assessment of Children andAdolescents. New York: Wiley, 1982. Pp. xvi+449. $49.95, hard cover. This is Exner’s third volume on his comprehensive system for scoring and interpreting the Rorschach. Based on Exner’s earlier review of the Rorschach systems, his “comprehensive system” includes the structural and content interpretations from the earlier systems in a form that encourages and has produced some supportive research, especially normative and reliability research. The current volume extends the use of the comprehensive system to children and adolescents based on data from 1,870 records of children from ages 5 to 16, stratified by age, sex, ethnicity, SES level, and geographic area. Exner and Weiner present their philosophy of Rorschach interpretation, and make a distinction between the Rorschach as a perceptual-cognitive task based on relatively reliable structural variables and the Rorschach as a stimulus to fantasy based on the much more speculative interpretations of content. The discussion of structure has the same emphases as do typical discussions of behavioral assessments-reliability of observation, responses as a representative sample of behavior, and the assumption of similar behavior in other settings (without dealing directly with the empirical validity of this assumption). Content interpretations are presented as admittedly less well-supported by research, and users are advised to make certain that their content interpretations are both logical and cautious. In fact, the logical or conceptual approach to interpretation is given more importance than the empirical approach, both of which are considered superior to appeals to authority and certainly to what is termed the “Ouija-board” approach to interpretation. Test-retest reliability is addressed through several small-sample studies of children at different ages after periods ranging from 4 days to 30 months. These reliability figures are compared to figures from adult samples tested and retested over similar periods. Over short periods (e.g., 7 days) the reported reliabilities of Rorschach variables for children and adults are similarly high, but over longer periods, the reported reliabilities for children were lower than those for adults.
Journal
of School Psychology
Lamson, A. Psychology of Juvenile Crime. New York: Human Sciences Press, 1983. Pp. 123. $16.95,
hard cover.
This book examines the causes, characteristics, and treatment of juvenile delinquency. The material in the book is largely based on clinical observation, insight, and professional opinion, with little empirical or statistical data to support the contentions offered. The chapter on the causes of juvenile delinquency, based on research theories, is excellent and reflects on models of criminology and methods of treatment. Other chapters discuss the different types of psychological (mainly personality) problems adolescents exhibit and the types of crimes they commit. Numerous case examples are presented, with assessment and treatment options suggested for each category of criminality. The delinquent categories discussed in chapter format are: identity problems, sudden breakdown of rigid controls, impulse-ridden pleasure seekers, low frustration tolerance, immature personality (includes brief and scanty coverage of the mentally retarded), schizoid personality, psychotic, and antisocial personality. The last chapter discusses family dynamics and their influence on juvenile behavior. Lamson recommends individualizing treatment depending on the crime, personality type, and family situation. Weaknesses of the text include the brief coverage of the significant influences of child abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, and mental retardation in criminal behavior. Also, although Lamson recommends residential treatment in many cases, it appears that institutional treatment sometimes does not help deter future criminal behavior. Lamson wisely notes that succeeding and participating in a school program is significant to adjustment and to noncriminal behavior. This book, because of its brief length and broad coverage, would be an excellent supplementary text for a graduate-level class on the psychology of criminals. Professionals involved with assessment or treatment of juvenile or adult offenders likewise would find the book informative. Jody Gilberg-Porter Windham School System Texas Department of Corrections
Exner, J. E., Jr., & Weiner, I. B. The Rorschach: A Comprehensive System. Volume 3: Assessment of Children andAdolescents. New York: Wiley, 1982. Pp. xvi+449. $49.95, hard cover. This is Exner’s third volume on his comprehensive system for scoring and interpreting the Rorschach. Based on Exner’s earlier review of the Rorschach systems, his “comprehensive system” includes the structural and content interpretations from the earlier systems in a form that encourages and has produced some supportive research, especially normative and reliability research. The current volume extends the use of the comprehensive system to children and adolescents based on data from 1,870 records of children from ages 5 to 16, stratified by age, sex, ethnicity, SES level, and geographic area. Exner and Weiner present their philosophy of Rorschach interpretation, and make a distinction between the Rorschach as a perceptual-cognitive task based on relatively reliable structural variables and the Rorschach as a stimulus to fantasy based on the much more speculative interpretations of content. The discussion of structure has the same emphases as do typical discussions of behavioral assessments-reliability of observation, responses as a representative sample of behavior, and the assumption of similar behavior in other settings (without dealing directly with the empirical validity of this assumption). Content interpretations are presented as admittedly less well-supported by research, and users are advised to make certain that their content interpretations are both logical and cautious. In fact, the logical or conceptual approach to interpretation is given more importance than the empirical approach, both of which are considered superior to appeals to authority and certainly to what is termed the “Ouija-board” approach to interpretation. Test-retest reliability is addressed through several small-sample studies of children at different ages after periods ranging from 4 days to 30 months. These reliability figures are compared to figures from adult samples tested and retested over similar periods. Over short periods (e.g., 7 days) the reported reliabilities of Rorschach variables for children and adults are similarly high, but over longer periods, the reported reliabilities for children were lower than those for adults.