Why is knowledge of psychology useful when working with criminal behaviour?
A knowledge of psychology can help a lot in working with criminals who have committed ‘serious’ crimes. What do we mean by that? Well, it is basically a crime that is considered to be extreme and therefore punishable by a severe sentence, such as burglary, rape or murder. They are also crimes that are likely to have long term consequences for the victim. These tend to be sexual or violent offenses.
However, if you were to consider FBI standards, they view serious crimes to be events such as:
- Murder
- Rape
- Robbery
- Assault
- Burglary
- Larceny
- Vehicle theft
What is a personality disorder? How does it relate to criminal behaviour?
A Personality Disorder is evident when a person has:
- An enduring pattern of thinking, behaving and feeling that is significantly different from their culture and leads to negative consequences.
- The pattern is longstanding and inflexible.
So a person with a personality disorder would tend to behave in a way that is not considered socially acceptable and this is an enduring part of their personality. For example, if someone is attacked and they fight back in self-defence, whilst it is not considered socially acceptable to fight, it is usually considered socially acceptable to defend oneself. The person does not usually behave like this, so it is not considered an enduring personality trait. Therefore, the person would not be regarded to have an antisocial personality disorder. BUT, if every time someone annoyed or irritated them they became easily annoyed and hit back or attacked them, then this would be considered antisocial.
There are ten types of personality disorders, all of which can lead to negative consequences for the individual and feelings of distress. They include:
- Paranoid – feelings of distrust and suspiciousness
- Borderline – patterns of instability in personal relationships, bouts of clinginess and affection, anger and resentment. Usually veering between two extremes. Extremely impulsive
- Schizoid – detachment from social norms and restriction of emotions
- Schizotypal – discomfort in close relationships, eccentric behaviour and thoughts
- Histrionic – excessive emotional behaviour and attention seeking
- Narcissistic – exaggerated self-worth, need for admiration, grandiose
- Avoidant – feelings of social inadequacy, low self-esteem, hypersensitive to criticism
- Obsessive-compulsive – patterns of obsessive behaviours, such as cleaning, need for perfection and control
- Dependent – clinginess and submission, exaggerated need to be cared for.
- Psychopathic -long standing, enduring pattern of thinking, behaving and feeling that is significantly different to the norm and leads to negative consequences.
Who Is This Course Suitable For?
This course is suitable for -
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Law enforcement personnel
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Solicitors
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Lawyers
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Policemen/women
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Legal executives
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Legal staff
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Mental Health Professionals
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Youth workers
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Counsellors
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Care workers
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Support staff
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Probation workers
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Social Workers
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Anyone interested in learning more about criminal behaviour.
Any Questions?
Our criminal psychology tutors are happy to answer questions you may have.
Please click here to contact a tutor or Request a course handbook here.
