Criminal Dangerousness and the Risk of Violence

This book is a new theoretical model of criminal dangerousness with special reference to the prediction of violence. The model proposes that criminal violence evolves from the combination of deviant social values that limit the constraints upon lawful behavior (antisociality) and cognitive deficits that interfere with effective planning of crimes and with the conduct of criminal transactions with the victims (impaired cognition). A program of research is used to consider the validity of the criminal dangerousness model as well as empirical tests of the theory's assumptions and the issues raised. Extensive validity evidence is presented. Assumptions tested include further refinement of specific cognitive deficits, and issues addressed involve the relevance of race, gender, and mental disorder to the dangerousness model.