Violence & Violence Prevention

With its focus on the connection between health and mental health symptoms, this seminal, groundbreaking work continues to forge new directions in the field of domestic violence. Describing a condition that is the basis for the battered woman defense--cited in cases of physically and psychologically abused women who have killed their abusers--it continues to be used as a defense to explain premeditated assault or murder. Completely updated, the fourth edition reflects the significant changes in the field since the book was last published, incorporating Affordable Care Act (ACA) guidelines on health care and domestic violence and data from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study. It examines new research regarding battered women and cross-cultural and cross-national issues, and includes several new chapters addressing issues ranging from murder--suicide in domestic violence cases to proposed legislation and congressional resolutions.

The abuse of women and children transcends geographical boundaries as well as economic, cultural, religious, political, and social divisions. Comprised of the work of more than 20 academics and practitioners from around the world, Criminal Abuse of Women and Children documents the atrocities that have been committed against these victims from ancient to modern times. It examines the causes of such abuse and provides a global survey of what forms of abuse exist and how cases are handled in various parts of the world.

In this book, renowned profiler Dr. Richard Kocsis presents a distinct approach to profiling called Crime Action Profiling or CAP. The volume explains the scope and methodology employed in the studies that the author has undertaken over the past decade and a half. CAP adopts the view that profiling essentially represents a psychological technique that has its foundations in the disciplinary knowledge of forensic psychology.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a common and tragic event in the lives of women and children around the world. Estimates of lifetime occurrence range from 5% in Japan to 71% in Ethiopia, with at least 25% in the United States. The United Nations Secretary-General indicates that as many as 275 million children worldwide are exposed to violence in their homes every year. In addition to the financial and societal costs, women and children who experience IPV are at risk for developing physical injuries, heath problems, depression, anxiety, traumatic stress, and associated work and academic problems. Yet few countries offer services that have been proven to be effective in supporting these women and children. In this volume, two programs are described that have been found to be effective in reducing negative consequences and promoting resilience for diverse groups of women and children in North America. The subsequent chapters address what it would take to implement these or other such programs in countries around the world, including Sweden, Ukraine, Rwanda, Honduras, Peru and Pakistan. The authors are scholars in social work and psychology who work with women and children exposed to intimate partner violence and who are involved in researching issues related to the effects of IPV on women and children. Clearly, IPV is a global public health issue and this thought-provoking volume suggests ways to address it using culturally appropriate adaptations.

Background and history -- Problems, controversies, and solutions -- Worldwide perspective -- Chronology -- Biographies -- Data and documents -- Directory of organizations -- Resources

Global Gangs offers a greater understanding of gangs through essays that investigate gangs spanning across nations, from Brazil to Indonesia, China to Kenya, and from El Salvador to Russia. Volume editors Jennifer M. Hazen and Dennis Rodgers bring together contributors who examine gangs from a comparative perspective, discussing such topics as the role the apartheid regime in South Africa played in the emergence of gangs, the politics behind child vigilante squads in India, the relationship between immigration and gangs in France and the United States, and the complex stigmatization of youths in Mexico caused by the arbitrary deployment of the word “gang.”

From the recent shootings at Virginia Tech University to the tragedies at Columbine and Oklahoma City, certain common traits can be traced through all of these events. In Guys and Guns Amok, media and cultural critic Douglas Kellner provides a fascinating diagnostic reading of these acts of domestic terrorism. Skillfully connecting each case with the current environment for male socialization and the search for identity in an American culture obsessed with guns and militarism, Kellner's work is a sobering reflection on these tragedies and the pervasive power of media and popular culture as well as a wake-up call for the future.

In the Handbook of Injury and Violence Prevention, over fifty experts present the current landscape of intervention methods - from risk reduction to rethinking social norms - as they address some of the most prevalent forms of accidental and violent injury.

Forensic psychologists, mental health professionals, and legal professionals working with violent offenders turn to the Handbook of Violence Risk Assessment as the primary reference for the field. With the considerable changes in the field, the second edition will include new and revised instruments that enable forensic psychologists to identify and predict the probable behavior of sex predators and violent offenders. New chapters have been added to cover legal issues, numeric measures, brief and emerging measures along with five chapters on recently released tests.

This anthology series covers today's most current national and international issues and contains the most important opinions of the past and present. The purpose of the series is to introduce the reader to all sides of contemporary controversies in an objective and comprehensive way. Each anthology is composed of a wide spectrum of primary sources written by many of the foremost authorities in their respective fields; the authors represent leading conservative, liberal, and centrist views. This unique approach provides students with a concise view of divergent opinions on each topic. Extensive book and periodical bibliographies and a list of organizations to contact are also included. The Current Controversies series will prove invaluable to libraries and classrooms in need of young adult materials on today's leading issues and controversies.

Wilson and Dalton explore the extent and characteristics of concrete cases of human trafficking in Columbus and Toledo, Ohio, as well as the awareness of and response to the problem by the justice systems and social service provider communities in the two cities. The authors summarize their content analysis of newspaper accounts as well as key respondent interviews that they conducted with criminal justice officials and social service providers in each site. These identified several cases of juvenile sex trafficking and forced prostitution in Toledo, as well as a smaller trafficking market centered on the forced labor of noncitizens in Columbus. Wilson and Dalton compare the two cities' considerably different responses to human trafficking, and conclude with suggestions on how to raise awareness about human trafficking and improve the responses of the criminal justice system, the juvenile justice system, and social services to the problem.

The prevalence of violence reported for the African-American community continues to pose a significant concern to society as a whole and, in particular, to those charged with reducing it. Confronting the issue head on, Interpersonal Violence in the African-American Community: Evidence-Based Prevention and Treatment Practices both challenges existing stereotypes of African Americans and offers concrete, state-of-the-art advice on approaches that are currently – or may soon prove to be – effective with African-American populations.

Introduction to mandated reporting -- The social worker as mandated reporter -- Defining child abuse and neglect -- Risk factors : the potential for child abuse or neglect -- Signs of abuse and neglect -- When is a report required? -- How to make a report -- After the report : what happens next? -- Legal and ethical issues in mandating reporting -- Legal protections and consequences for mandated reporters -- The role of law enforcement in the protection of children

The trafficking of human beings is a major worldwide problem. This book addresses the need for a system that provides the same set of quantitative and qualitative data to help develop a comprehensive counter-strategy. It analyzes various definitions as well as the complexity of phenomena that impair the collection and comparability of data. Coverage also examines different approaches with the aim of coming to an effective monitoring system.

A project of the Campbell Collaboration Crime and Justice Group, Preventing Crime brings together the leading scientific evidence on what works best for a wide range of interventions organized around four important domains in criminology: at-risk children, offenders, victims, and places. It is the first book to assess the effectiveness of criminological interventions using the most rigorous review methodology of the systematic review. It is an indispensable guide to the leading scientific evidence on what works best to prevent crime.

"In the past 30 years, the study of intimate partner violence (IPV) has advanced considerably. Previously, IPV was conceptualized narrowly as male physical violence against women arising from a need for dominance. Now, experts assert that a variety of factors are associated with IPV and that IPV takes many forms--from verbal abuse or slapping to highly violent physical abuse or rape. In addition, research shows that women are often the perpetrators of IPV. As a result, IPV interventions have shifted over time from gender-focused interventions to gender-neutral interventions, with an emphasis on empirical evidence. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the most up-to-date research on IPV. Leading experts in the field cover a large range of topics, including theory, health effects, surveillance, prevention, and intervention."

The impact on children of domestic violence has received increasing attention, but awareness of the problem has not always translated into public action. This forward-thinking volume brings together leading mental health, legal, educational, and social services professionals from the U.S. and Canada to demonstrate how the problem of violence in the home can best be mitigated through community collaboration. The book provides an understanding of the effects of childhood exposure to domestic violence; considers the most promising assessment approaches; and examines specific interventions with victims and offenders, ranging from individual and group approaches to broader efforts involving schools, police, courts, and the media. Also addressed are the complexity of working with families from diverse cultural backgrounds and the often-ignored subject of how to enhance the roles of fathers in their children's lives.

From a domestic violence victim's first call to police or visit to a women's shelter, through the offender's bail, sentencing, parole, and treatment program, criminal justice officers and clinicians must make informed decisions about which cases need the most attention as well as ensure targeted provisions are in place to prevent recurrences of violence. The authors make a powerful case for using actuarial risk assessments to predict recidivism in male domestic violence offenders. They draw on the authors' in-depth empirical studies of violent men and their extensive experience with recidivism risk assessment in policing, court cases, offender assessment, and victim services. It is also a user's manual - replete with all the scoring, reporting, and interpreting details needed to effectively use the ODARA/DVRAG system.

Restorative justice and social work share a number of principles and goals, as they both seek to stem violence and to address the pain associated with harm. Many of the processes used by restorative justice practitioners are based on indigenous practices that facilitate peacemaking, victim healing and reparation, and reengagement of offenders. As a method for transforming conflict, restorative justice can be viewed as a theory, a principle, a practice, and a skill set. Each of these components has the ability to inform and strengthen social work practice and restorative practices can be enhanced by the knowledge, practice modes, and interdisciplinary interaction pioneered by social work.

Social Work in Juvenile and Criminal Justice Systems sets the standard of care for mental health treatment and the delivery of social services to crime victims, juvenile and adult offenders, and their families. The chapters, all authored by experts in the field and all committed to the mission of social justice, are written with the clear understanding that we cannot study criminal justice in a vacuum. Therefore, a major focus of the book is on the renewed growing sense of the profession s obligation to social justice.

The new edition of this vital resource provides extensive coverage of the current state of research, theory, prevention, and intervention regarding violence against women. Each of the 18 chapters belongs to one of three parts: theoretical and methodological issues in researching violence against women, types of violence against women, or prevention and direct intervention. The editors and contributing authors have crafted their work to encourage discussion and debate and also to address issues of diversity and cultural contexts, as well as to examine inequalities of race and ethnicity, social class, physical ability, sexual orientation, and geographic location.

Brings social, economic and political elements to the policy discussion as well as strategic interventions regarding the fight against "trafficking" (the recruitment and transportation of human beings through deception and coercion for the purposes of exploitation). Trafficking, generally, occurs from poorer to more prosperous countries and regions; however, it is not necessarily the poorest regions or communities which are most vulnerable to trafficking, and so this volume seeks to identify the factors which explain where and why vulnerability increases.--Publisher's description

From mothers who kill their children in postpartum fugues, to fathers who murder their kids for revenge against an estranged wife, the stories in this book are chilling yet real, and bring home the message that children are vulnerable to violence even in the care of those who should love and protect them the most. Sadly, child murder by parents and caregivers happens more frequently than one might guess, and while each case is different, there are often warning signs that something might be amiss. Signs of physical abuse may precede the ultimate act of murder. A mother's mental state after the birth of a child may signal true distress and the potential for extreme actions. No one can predict with certainty when a parent or other caregiver may snap, but here Alt and Wells examine many cases of child murder to find out what they have in common, how we might prevent such violence, and what more we can do to protect children in potentially explosive situations.

In low-income U.S. cities, street fights between teenage girls are common. These fights take place at school, on street corners, or in parks, when one girl provokes another to the point that she must either “step up” or be labeled a “punk.” Typically, when girls engage in violence that is not strictly self-defense, they are labeled “delinquent,” their actions taken as a sign of emotional pathology. However, in Why Girls Fight, Cindy D. Ness demonstrates that in poor urban areas this kind of street fighting is seen as a normal part of girlhood and a necessary way to earn respect among peers, as well as a way for girls to attain a sense of mastery and self-esteem in a social setting where legal opportunities for achievement are not otherwise easily available.

This book explores the relationship between policing and mental health. Police services around the world are innovating at pace in order to develop solutions to the problems presented, and popular models are being shared internationally. Nevertheless, disparities and perceptions of unfairness remain commonplace. Innovations remain poorly funded and largely unproven. Drawing together the insights of eminent academics in the UK, the US, Australia and South Africa, the edited collection evaluates the condition of mental health and policing as an interlocked policy area, uncovering and addressing a number of key issues which are shaping police responses to mental health. Due to a relative lack of academic texts pertaining to developments in England and Wales, the volume contains a distinct section on relevant policies and practices. It also includes sections on US and Australian approaches, focusing on Crisis Intervention Teams (CITs), Mental Health Intervention Teams (MHITs), stressors and innovations from Boston in the US to Queensland in Australia. Written in a clear and direct style, this book will appeal to students and scholars in policing, criminology, sociology, mental health, cultural studies, social theory and those interested in learning about the condition and trajectory of police responses to mental health.

This Brief focuses on children with incarcerated mothers, a growing and vulnerable population. It presents five empirical studies, along with an introduction and summary chapter. The five empirical chapters examine new qualitative and quantitative data on: Typical occurrences when pregnant women give birth during incarceration in contrast with the benefits of a prison doula program for mothers and newborns. A mother's criminal justice involvement for substance abuse crimes and its effects on children's protective services involvement and foster care placement. How children cope with separation from their mothers because of their incarceration and how that separation continues to affect children's lives following family reunification. Differences in recidivism trajectories between mothers and nonmothers during the 10 years following release from incarceration. Alternatives to incarceration for women in residential drug treatment and how community supervision mandates can affect, contribute to, or extend mother-child separation. The final chapter integrates the information from the empirical studies and summarizes implications for policy and practice. Children with Incarcerated Mothers is an essential resource for policy makers and related professionals, graduate students, and researchers in child and school psychology, family studies, public health, social work, law/criminal justice, and sociology.

This book combines the latest in sociology, psychology, and biology to present evidence-based research on what works in community and institutional corrections. It spans from the theoretical underpinning of correctional counseling to concrete examples and tools necessary for professionals in the field.  This book equips readers with the ability to understand what we should do, why we should do it, and tools for how to do it in the field. It discusses interviewing, interrogating, and theories of directive and nondirective counseling, including group counseling. It discusses the  strengths and weaknesses of various correctional approaches such as cognitive-behavioral therapies, group counseling, and therapeutic communities. It introduces ethical and legal considerations for correctional professionals.  With an explanation of the presentence investigation report, case management, and appendices containing a variety of classification and assessment instruments, this volume provides practical, hands-on experience. Students of criminal justice, psychology and social work will gain an understanding of the unique challenges to correctional success and practical applications of their studies.  "This book is a teacher/student/practitioner's dream. Grounded in theory and evidence-based research on best practices, it is accessible, well-written, filled with sound insights and tools for working with criminal justice clients. I have used and loved each new edition of this fine text." -- Dorothy S. McClellan, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

Social Work in Juvenile and Criminal Justice Systems sets the standard of care for mental health treatment and the delivery of social services to crime victims, juvenile and adult offenders, and their families. The chapters, all authored by experts in the field and all committed to the mission of social justice, are written with the clear understanding that we cannot study criminal justice in a vacuum. Therefore, a major focus of the book is on the renewed growing sense of the profession's obligation to social justice. Each chapter interconnects with the various components of juvenile and criminal justice. Another prominent aspect of the book is that it is strength-based. It views those involved in the criminal and juvenile justice systems as individuals rather than inmates or criminals, each with unique positive talents and abilities. The book is divided into four sections. The first section discusses forensic social work, including crime and delinquency theories, trends, and ethical issues. The second section prepares social workers for practice in correctional institutions and explores crisis intervention with victims of violence, reentry of adult offenders in society, and aging in prison. The third section covers assessment and intervention in child sexual abuse, mental health and substance abuse, interpersonal violence and prevention, child welfare and juvenile justice. The final section presents an overview on social work in the twenty-first century, which includes restorative justice and the justice system, new ways of delivering justice, domestic violence, neighborhood revitalization, race and ethnicity, and social work practice with LGBTQ offenders. This book will be the best single source on social work in criminal justice settings and will prove to be an invaluable resource for the many professionals who have responsibility for formulating and carrying out the mandates of the criminal justice system.