Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators

Violent predators are motivated by many fantasies and illnesses, and there are no limits to their sadistic pursuits to satisfy their evil desires. Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators is a unique and comprehensive approach to the subject of sex offenders, serial murderers, mass murderers, and spree killers. Not only are theories and causation factors explored, but also the investigative and the forensic approaches in the treatment and punishment of these predators are discussed and evaluated.In Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators, eleven chapters are devoted to the theories, motives, criminal justice responses, victim characteristics, treatment approaches, and the forensics employed in analyzing and identifying violent predators. The reader is educated on the various types of offender behavior including motives, opportunity, and methods of criminality. Rapists, pedophiles, and murderers are compared and discussed from both a psychological, social, and investigative framework. There is also attention devoted to female violent predators, comparing their violent behaviors and motives to men. The application of the justice system is examined as it pertains to processing violent predators, including the determination of insanity. Real life case studies show the psychological and social dynamics creating evil minds, as well as depicting how these predators are hunted and apprehended.The reader is further acquainted with the scientific methods used by social scientists to study crime and violence. The basic elements of research such as hypothesis, sampling, validity, and variable identification are explained. Research design methods are discussed, including the strengths and weaknesses of each.Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators is a much needed work because unlike other books on forensics, criminal psychology, or violence, it provides the reader with theoretical, legal, and applied information. Written by a psychologist and criminal justice professor who both have applied experiences, the chapters and learning exercises offer a blend of psychology, criminal justice, criminology, and practical forensics. Justice practitioners, forensic experts, and the average citizen should find this book relevant and insightful.Robert J. Meadows is the author of 'Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators', published 2004 under ISBN 9780130486134 and ISBN 0130486132.