Abstract
“STUDIES IN THE PSYCHOLOGY OF DELINQUENCY”, by Grace W. Pailthorpe (Medical Research Council, Special Report Series. No. 170), represents the result of five years work on the psychology of inmates of prisons and of preventive and rescue homes. The investigation aims at finding out what treatment would lead to a restoration of these people to the ranks of tho normal. It is necessary to note that a criminal is not necessarily quite different from other people; he has been found out. Dr. Pailthorpo gives details of an investigation of 200 subjects, 100 in prisons and 100 in homes. The subjects were tested for intelligence, and classified accordingly, as normal, sub-normal, and defective. The prison group proved to have a higher proportion of normals. It is not infrequently asserted that prison people are defective in intelligence: some certainly are, but some arc not. They were also interviewed, and classified according to their emotional attitudes. This part of the report is excellent and the detailed case histories are very valuable. It seems obvious on reading them that our present alternatives in dealing with criminals are hopelessly inadequate and wasteful of money as well as of tho human material. A large number show clear signs of mental lack of balance, and it should be part of an enlightened society's work to try to find out the cause. Hence the writer makes a plea for a study of the mentality of the criminal as well as of tho crime, and discusses various alternative methods of treatment, including segregation, permanent supervision, education and psychotherapy. Many of tho prisoners are really mentally sick, and if there were legal recognition of these conditions some murders might be prevented. In an appendix there is an account of some prison systems abroad.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Psychology of Delinquency. Nature 130, 608 (1932). https://doi.org/10.1038/130608a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/130608a0