tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post3812355052418951335..comments2024-03-28T09:59:51.779-05:00Comments on Family Dysfunction and Mental Health Blog: Nothing Other than Stupid (NOS): Is Being a Rapist a Mental Disorder?David M. Allen M.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/06280912088483192599noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-81578734488907645752010-11-12T08:49:06.338-06:002010-11-12T08:49:06.338-06:00To answer your question: psychiatry should never b...To answer your question: psychiatry should never be used to solve a social or political problem as in China: http://ht.ly/38MIsmoviedochttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03617061594621924756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-47925385242843346282010-11-11T21:37:19.907-06:002010-11-11T21:37:19.907-06:00Moviedoc,
I was using information in this post th...Moviedoc,<br /><br />I was using information in this post that Allen Frances wrote about in the Psychiatric Times, so I can't absolutely vouch for its total accuracy. <br /><br />I'm sure there are many forensic psychiatrists who would not participate in this sort of charade, but I fear many of those risk becoming unemployed.<br /><br />It is true that the psychiatrists do not have the last word on sentencing, but the courts will often rely on their expert opinion in making decisions. Of course, sometimes the psychiatrist is completely ignored.<br /><br />My definition of a forensic psychiatrist is any psychiatrist who is used by the legal system for any purpose, by plaintiff's attorneys, defendents' attorneys, judges, etc. Some states like California have panels and require Board Certifcation in Forensic Psychiatry, but in other states any psychiatrist can do forensic work. There are fellowship training programs for Board Certification.David M. Allen M.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06280912088483192599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-9821654290951817022010-11-11T21:26:12.943-06:002010-11-11T21:26:12.943-06:00Anna, you bring up an interesting question about t...Anna, you bring up an interesting question about the vagaries of psychiatric diagnosis. The concept of anti-social personality disorder used to mean that the person had to have no loyalty to anyone and no remorse or guilt. That has no longer been the case since the DSM-IV. <br /><br />Now, any habitual criminal has an antisocial personality disorder. <br /><br />Personality disorders generally fall outside of the concept of "danger to self or others on the basis of a mental illness," which is the legal grounds for involuntary commitment in most states. Personality disorders are not considered mental illnesses for this purpose, though this idea may be up for grabs in the DSM-V.<br /><br />On the other hand, anyone who is suicidal can be committed regardless of whether they really have a mental illness - except for adult Jehovah's Witnesses who refuse a life-saving blood transfusion or any adult who refuses life saving medical treatment.David M. Allen M.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06280912088483192599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-49728777569722847562010-11-11T17:54:47.480-06:002010-11-11T17:54:47.480-06:00Your stereotyping of forensic psychiatrists probab...Your stereotyping of forensic psychiatrists probably has little validity. The more clinical work a psychiatrist does, the more credibility they will have as expert witnesses. What is your definition of a forensic psychiatrist anyway? Regardless of how you define them (us?) you would be hard pressed to find any two who would agree on almost any case. Besides, experts only proffer opinions. Judges and laws determine the length of a sentence, and parole boards (I think) decide when to release convicts.<br /><br />I believe you overemphasize diagnosis in this rapist debacle. My understanding is that decisions to delay release are based more on whether treatment can render them less likely to re-offend, and the extent to which anyone can predict re-offense. <br /><br />Anna may be right about the prevalence of <a href="http://behavenet.com/capsules/disorders/antisocialpd.htm" rel="nofollow">Antisocial Personality Disorder</a> among serial rapists, but hostility and violence rarely relate to most axis I disorders, and most agree that you cannot treat ASPD. Last I heard rape was supposed to be more about power than hostility, and neither word appears in the diagnostic criteria. Few mentally ill people are serial rapists, and most violence has little to do with mental illness. Even if the rapist has a mental illness, successful treatment may not reduce the likelihood of re-offense.moviedochttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03617061594621924756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-61905731675213002212010-11-10T23:14:44.025-06:002010-11-10T23:14:44.025-06:00I find it hard to believe that a serial rapist can...I find it hard to believe that a serial rapist can't be pinned down as having at least one diagnosable condition. Wouldn't the hostility and/or violence factor exhibited by the very commission of rape qualify as a symptom of sociopathy/psychopathy?Annahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10445351015081407295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-89888568568303443752010-11-10T11:13:58.635-06:002010-11-10T11:13:58.635-06:00Anonymous,
Of course women can be predators, and ...Anonymous,<br /><br />Of course women can be predators, and men can prey on men & boys and women on women & girls, but the SVP's are serial rapists, which are mostly male with female victims by far.<br /><br />What's the old joke? All generalizations are false, including the one I just made.David M. Allen M.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06280912088483192599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3125132926699584358.post-56998891631107078492010-11-10T09:48:19.036-06:002010-11-10T09:48:19.036-06:00Before even getting into anything else: gender ass...Before even getting into anything else: gender assumptions in last paragraph...?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com