Inside the Criminal Mind By Stanton E. Samenow

Inside the Criminal Mind Summary and Reaction

            It’s hard for most to comprehend why a criminal does what he/she does, it’s harder to try and get them not to do what they do. For decades people have been trying to understand what convinces another person to commit a violent act; what makes them so different from everyone else. Within Samenow’s Inside the Criminal Mind, studies are documented and research is shown that discusses what exactly makes criminals, of all sorts; tick. Not only for the use of local and federal agents; this book puts everything into simple terms that practically anyone can understand.

            The original research began at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Washington D.C. in 1961 with Dr. Yochelson. It wasn’t until 1970 that Samenow joined him and in 1976 he completely took over the program due to the death of Yochelson. At the time, being a criminal was thought to mean that you had a specific personality that could easily be defined and changed. To further evaluate this, they first had to classify what a crime included.

            Samenow discussing in his first chapter, how it isn’t fair to always think of criminals as the enemy; at one point they were all a victim too. Having violent parents or growing up in harsh situations can cause a mental precinct to behave similarly. There are some beliefs such as video games and poverty, however; that don’t actually create violent intentions. Eventually in 2011, after further research; the CDC published a list of “Risk Factors for the Perpetration of Youth Violence” which Samenow discusses on page 14. Within the knowledge presented, it is pointed out that only roughly 75% of criminal cases actually pertain to a person with a form of brain disease.

            Within chapter two; Samenow discusses a continuation study of Baumrind's parenting styles. His findings consisted of the following; authoritarian parents cause children to become hostile, resentful, and aggressive while permissive parents give their children a sense of omnipotence or great power. It is also discussed how not every child turns out the same.

Much like the distribution of genetics; it was also found that even though children can grow up in the same situation they tend to take away different information and turn out completely different. One child may describe their parents as the cause of their frustration and anger while another child of the same family will say that the methods of their parents encouraged them to achieve something better.

Many people describe criminals as if they are toddlers; especially their parents. When their child begins to act up, parents begin to notice and try to help but are pushed away. Even when a child gets in big trouble and the parents seem to hate them, they try to show support and get the child treated; most times it backfires on the parents though.

Clearly stated in the title of his third chapter; Samenow also touches on the subject of peer pressure. It is mentioned how peer pressure itself is no excuse for criminal behavior; on the contrary, it is the underlying causation. This can include strict parents who insist on knowing where their child is 24/7. Due to this; children hide their friends and activities from their parents so they can continue to have a certain type of reputation. The lifestyle of a family and the wants of an individual together are what shape the actions of people in the future.

In chapter four; a connection is made between school and violent behavior. There are three types of students in particular that are studied; drop outs, drop offs, and high achievers.

Drop outs are the ones that completely quite school when they become old enough. These students often feel threatened and are avoiding certain situations. They are also the ones that sneak out of class to damage school property and break into a teacher’s car. (When questioned, nearly 94% of teachers admitted to being victims of some sort; 44% to physical, 72% to harassment, and 50% to theft.) Through these and other methods, students seek attention and take valuable learning time away from others.

Drop offs are the students that appear to be doing well in their classes but have an exterior motive. Leaving little room for others to think they would do wrong, these students believe everything they say is 100% true. Some students become misdiagnosed and use that to their advantage; they shape their teacher’s actions to accommodate their intended behavior such as turning in late assignments.

High achievers on the other hand; do very well so they may attend college and live life as they wish. However, they don’t choose a college based on courses; instead they decide based on the sports teams and if the school is well known for its parties. Because parents don’t always see college report cards, students choose not to attend class and lie about it. They are also constantly fighting with roommates, teachers, organizations, etc.

On a similar note; Samenow moves on to work or career choices in chapter five. Criminals often believe they can achieve anything they want and sometimes believe they have a better shot at a task than others. Once they have what they want, criminals often let things slip and are caught thus being fired. As will be discussed numerous times throughout the book; criminals do not believe they are doing anything wrong. They think that because they can successfully “cheat the system” they should take advantage and live large. They also believe that they should never have to start at the bottom and should immediately be given a position of great authority; if they don’t they will often harm somebody they can blame.

Based on this knowledge and the implications of the vice versa, many things can be inferred. Such as the notion that both bank robbers and corporate officials can both be deemed criminals. Both try to remain undetected and both know right from wrong but they still act a certain way. Criminals often manipulate people into doing their bidding and if they had been asked as a child what they wanted to be when they grew up, their answers would have consisted of power as compared to helping the community.

The thought paths of a criminal are discussed in chapter six. This situation should be thought of as a chess game; the criminal is the hand manipulating the people around them and those people are the pawns. Just because somebody has only been convicted of one crime, doesn’t mean they haven’t committed others. Previous crimes are often so small that they just haven’t been detected. Some crimes are often pushed off with the excuse that the victim caused it, that it was purely the victims fault. When no motive seems present at all, it is often just to merely entertain the criminals. Criminals block out their conscience so there is nothing to stop them and worry about the justification of the action after it is already done.

Changing topics to a certain type of criminal; Samenow discusses sexual crimes in chapter seven of his book. Ironically seven different sorts are discussed; voyeurism, indecent exposure, rape, sexual exploitation, sex with minors, pedophilia, and child pornography. For those who do not know, voyeurism is the act of peeking through windows or spying. This act is often done to compensate for something in another relationship. Indecent exposure involves showing private parts in a public space. This is often done to relieve depression or anxiety and to feel better about one’s self. Both of the previous scenarios involve a feeling that the victim wants it to be done and the criminal normally fantasizes about such. Rapists due not always appear as such; they begin by having sex at a very early age and decide that it is boring so they try to liven it up by doing it with random strangers. A want or need for power also plays into this as well as sexual exploitation. Sexual Exploitation includes people of power using their position to get what they want in turn for a favor of some value; this is a popular topic among movies. Sex with minors, although hard to believe; is often initiated by parents. Children trust their parents and think that everything is fine. They bring their friends over not knowing that they are providing more victims. Pedophiles similarly believe they are acting as a teacher for the children. The children often feel there is nothing they can do to stop it because they are young and the elder has power over their lives due to some connection to the family. Child pornography, although well known is often misunderstood; it can consist of receiving, distributing and/or creating the porn. Some don’t do anything other than view the footage repeatedly but that doesn’t mean they aren’t committing a crime.

Back on the topic of criminals believing they aren’t doing anything wrong and that others should do as they say; Samenow discusses anger flaring into rage in chapter eight. People within the criminals life such as a spouse or children, walk on eggshells because they never know when something may blow up in their face. Even daily tasks such as talk of sports or recommendations can cause uproar. This easily angered trait is due to a low tolerance level. Some criminals appear bipolar and may be fine one moment and then may create havoc the next.  Trying to help these criminals through anger management just makes things worse. They must first become aware of other ways to think of situations. Then you can eliminate their thought processing.

Investigating the thought that drugs cause criminal behavior; chapter nine points out that drugs just let the unconscious have a turn to be in control. The act of using a drug is often blamed on things such as “everyone is doing it” or that “it takes away my pain”, only a very few admit they do it for the rush they feel. For each drug there is an anticipated outcome. For amphetamines it’s the infusion of energy but it causes a severe letdown. For opiates; no fear and sharper thoughts, but it creates a dependency of it to get things done. For sedative hypnotics; an “I don’t care attitude”, but it causes a physical dependence. For marijuana; it’s merely the thought that it is easy to attain. For alcohol; courage is wanted, but it interferes with coordination. Many users get an after affect that is merely their inner thoughts coming out; this is what causes a crime to occur. The doctors that prescribe unnecessary drugs to people are just as much at fault in the crime too.

In chapter ten it is discussed how crimes are a form of terrorism thus making criminals terrorists. The definition of terrorism is any act intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population. Terrorists, as we think of them; often claim they commit acts to support a religion. Although reports are often bias, they show that behavior is exhibited early on in life; such is the case with Hitler and many infamous people.

Chapter eleven tries to paint the picture criminals see themselves as. This includes being overall good, attending school, holding a job, being responsible, etc. Many if not most criminals also seem to have a natural gift for the arts whether it be musically or visually; the only problem is that they easily get tired of the same thing or become impatient. A lot of criminals have the same standards as every day people but there is a fine line that separates what they do from what others do, this is why the fights within jailhouses occur; this fine line can be called a jnd or just noticeable difference. Anyone can be a victim and anyone can be a criminal it is just the environment and how you perceive their actions that determine how you view them.

Within chapter twelve, Samenow goes into further depth with how a mental illness may create a criminal but others think it just to be a personality trait. It can sometimes be difficult to determine the root of behavior due to multiple diagnoses. Even when the diagnosis is right on point, a criminal cannot be helped by merely changing their behavior; there will always be a chance they revert back to their former actions. Furthermore, just dubbing someone as mentally insane does not mean they don’t know right from wrong. That is why the insanity plea isn’t used as often as we are led to believe; in fact it is banned in some states.

When it comes to housing criminals, Samenow dedicates an entire chapter. Because it costs as much to house an inmate as it does to attend an Ivy League college, criminals are urged to use their time in jail to their advantage. This can include bettering themselves through spirit or knowledge. Some criminals spend time in the prison library to try and find a way to help fight their case. Those who find it pointless to try and better themselves start to contemplate suicide as their only option. Other outlets include religion and while most use it as an excuse to receive special privileges, others actually sincerely want to find peace.  Although by the end of their sentence many criminals seem to have changed, they begin to miss their old ways after being released and eventually revert to their old ways.

The rehabilitation process of criminals is documented in Samenow’s fourteenth chapter. In this chapter he discusses how four tenths of released criminals are rearrested. He also discusses how statistics show that most inmates test better than the average population. This is because prisons often supply college or vocational schooling to the inmates. Inmates are also encouraged to write about their life experience in hopes that it will help them see their mistakes. The programs set forth in prisons never actually seem to help and most people find it a waste of resources, especially since four times as much money is spent on them than is spent on the education of youth.

In the second to last chapter of Samenow’s book, research done by Yochelson is presented the same way it was when the book was first presented in 1984. It discusses how he originally came to begin this project and the steps he took. Yochelson transferred to the hospital for a change in scenery and slowly discovered that it wasn’t through past events that he could change criminal behavior but by focusing on the present and future. By focusing on the current state of minds of the criminals, Yochelson had to help them create a 180 degree change in their thought process. One of Yochelson’s final “patients” was a man named Leroy and throughout the chapter you follow his story. Within his story you learn that he was placed in a group of other criminals all in different stages of change. They were all asked to write down their thoughts every day and then to share with the group so they could reflect. Hopefully this would help them to see how they could better others and themselves based on the stories others in similar situations told.

Some of the people like Leroy enjoyed trying to be better after they became familiar to the new situation. This was mainly due to the high they seemed to acquire. In Leroy’s case; when activities arose that he shouldn’t partake in he would start to do them and then tell himself “no” and walk away, he felt pride in this. To further this, Yochelson advised that Leroy try not to release any anger or frustration unto others. As well as to try and change thought paths when things such as drugs or rape entered their consciousness.

Very slowly, Leroy began to join the conversations and contribute his thoughts. Although he may not have liked it, he became a valuable member of the group instead of the leader; it can be assumed that all the members went through this same scenario.

This study continued on even after the patients were released from the hospital. They made significant process until Yochelson passed away in 1976. During the next few years there were some bumps in the road. But, progress remained and the chapter ends by following up on the progress of Leroy. He has became known as a kind and caring person throughout his community. Much like with Leroy, hope is stored within the pages of Samenow’s book. Giving modern examples in hopes to further our knowledge so we can help the ones we call criminals.

Reflection

The modern language and examples work to give Samenow’s book, Inside the Criminal Mind; a spectacular appeal to all. Even those that don’t plan on pursuing a career in a social field will find this book very informative. Thoughts that may have never occurred to some are being unraveled right before their eyes. Behind every topic is another curiosity answered.

The book begins with a question that hadn’t occurred to a few; could it be a genetic disposition? By revealing the truth behind common myths, Samenow disproves this theory and continues on to keep any hint of doubt away from this.

Although it is mentioned that some will face a case known as “medical student syndrome” you still get the urge to try and relate details from your own life to that of the examples provided. For instance the thought of peer pressure can cause you to think of recent gang movies you have seen in theaters. Or the behavior of peers around you matching those of a case a few states away.

The entire preconceived idea you have of criminals is questioned as you read on about the different types there are. How adults who commit crimes often have a maturity and plan similar to that of a teenage criminal. Or how they may seem inhumane but are really just acting upon a hidden notion that has been repressed for years and finally had to burst out. Other ideas are proven correct. Such as criminals thinking they are better than everyone else.

Many ideas already ingrained in our minds are expanded and become better informed. Such as the different titles for crimes of similar nature. Not everything can be described as well as some may think however. A lot of information is provided in a more comprehensible manner somewhere else.

Some information provided even causes for the creation of new questions. For example; let’s say someone is having anger management issues but cannot be helped, that same person however has not been acquitted of any crimes; what is that person considered to be? He isn’t a criminal but he isn’t a free spirited person either. Or on the topic of drugs; even if use of them were to come to a complete halt, would crime really cease to exist? Couldn’t those same people just find a way to encourage themselves and continue to commit crimes if they really wished to?

Later on; Samenow tries to answer as many questions as he can, such as the proposed question of why nobody tries to stop these people from becoming criminals early on in their lives. The answer provided is that they can be deceiving.

The information provided in this book is astonishing and the way that it ties in to basic psychological principles is great. Bipolarism for instance is discussed in length and while providing evidence leading to the former it is also shown that the latter is true too.

While it’s sad to think that a lot of the events provided really occurred it is helpful to be able to apply the information to real life situations. Perhaps insight will provide people with the push they need to make a difference.

Samenow’s book has its flaws but it also has its perks. Easy to understand language and scenarios create a helpful aspect while the in depth reasoning and small contradictions cause for a dreary drag on tale.