About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

23 J. Res. Crime & Delinquency 3 (1986)

handle is hein.journals/jrcd23 and id is 1 raw text is: EDITOR'S COMMENTS Kurt Lewin once suggested in response to a critic of abstractions in social science that there is nothing more practical than a good theory. Indeed, the essence of good social science theory lies precisely in its capacity to explain more accurately and convincingly a greater range of human behavior than previously possible. This issue of the Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency illustrates the progression and interdependence of the concrete and the abstract in criminological research. In correctional administration, few things rank higher on an intractability scale than the problem posed by those variously called emotionally disturbed or mentally disordered offenders. Even ap- proaches regarded as the most effective in contemporary practice are, in the end, unstable compromises among a series of conflicting forces within and between prison and mental health systems. The source of those conflicts arises fundamentally from the baffling nexus between a theory of law based on a notion of self-responsibility and another that admits the possibility of a diminished, or even a nonexistent, responsi- bility. Its manifestations are varied and often intertwined with other dimensions. Thus they emerge in such forms as tensions between two bureaucracies, one charged with dealing with the insane, the other with the criminal, and neither desirous of dealing with a disruptive person who arguably can be assigned to one or the other. In another instance these conflicts are reflected by the strains arising from a theory of treatment calling for the segregation of the mentally disordered in separated units where specialized care can be given, and another calling for the maintenance of such persons as much as possible in a normal environment (in this case, ironically, the prison) and developing greater tolerance for unusual behaviors in that environment. In the lead article Toch and Adams describe a research project in which they address the issues of dealing with such offenders. They begin by studying what they identify as important relationships and discover among other things that mentally ill inmates have a higher rate of disciplinary infractions than others and that the rate of disciplinary infractions is related to the nature, severity, and chronicity of inmate mental health problems. They then explore the dilemmas posed by these findings from a practical and humane perspective and suggest a number 3 from the SAGE Social Science Collections. All Rights Reserved.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most