Personality-disordered people are not uncommon in our neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, or even our homes. They include people who are persistently paranoid, obsessive-compulsive, antisocial, or overly dependent. Most of them do not realize the hardships they create for themselves and their families. This book is an introductory guide for those who live and work around personality- disordered people, and for general readers seeking illustrations of the disorders. Dobbert illustrates warning signs that can be missed and walks readers through scenarios that are common with personality-disordered people. He explains how such maladies might develop, and most important, how they can be successfully addressed.

Recently, the National Center for Victims of Crime reported annual figures showing 103,845 children were sexually abused, while in that same year there was a 20% increase in all rape incidents and a 33% increase in sexual assaults. Incarceration and therapy have not reduced the rates, points out this author. The rate of incarceration has increased, but incidence of sex crimes is not waning. Dobbert warns we must all play a vital role to reduce such crimes, by prevention. The seasoned forensic examiner enables us to see life through the sexual predator's eyes, to understand the motives and intentions of people with abnormal and uncontrollable desires. He argues we can create a safer world by removing the opportunity for such people to act on their ideas. The author clearly explains disorders from exhibitionism to pedophilia, and presents scenes that illustrate precursor behaviors shown by people preparing to act on such disordered thinking. Also illustrated are stalking patterns common to mentally ill people who commit sexual assaults or lust murders, including the activities of Kenneth Bianci, the Hillside Strangler, and Jeffrey Dahmer, whose serial lust homicides horrified the world. Community activists, teachers, principals, police officers, prosecutors, social workers, and students of criminal justice, forensic psychology, and psychopathology will find this volume of interest.

Contributors to this unique book explain and compare major theories drawn from several academic fields to uncover the root causes of deviance. In this unparalleled exploration of antisocial and aberrant behavior, criminologists and other experts examine the theoretical perspectives of 15 classical psychological, political science, and economics scholars to shed light on the impetus for deviant behaviors. Murder, mayhem, robbery, sexual assault, and sexual activity with minor children are among the degenerate behaviors cited. Each chapter focuses on the effectiveness of a specific theory, and considers conundrums such as "Does the Darwinian approach explain sexual assault as a drive to procreate?" "Can B.F. Skinner's theoretical perspective explain pedophilia?" and "Can an individual be incompetent at the time of an offense and competent at the time of the trial?" The book reveals how the major psychological, social, and environmental doctrines can explain the behaviors and patterns of a nonconforming mindset. The work addresses the theories of well-known thinkers like Karl Marx, Charles Darwin, Travis Hirschi, and Sigmund Freud, among others. Addresses classical theory in relationship to deviance Interprets, integrates, and synthesizes classical theory regarding deviance from different disciplines Examines the etiology of pedophilia Discusses competency and culpability

In this pointed study of serial killers, internationally known Forensic Psychologist Duane Dobbert shows us how - even years before the crimes were commmitted- the perpetrators of lust homicides exhibited behaviors showing certain mental and sexual disorders which grew to fuel the horiffic murders. Dobbert's analysis, covering 13 killers from Herman Mudgett, who confessed to 27 murders in the late 1800s, to Jeffrey Dahmer, who killed 17 young men and boys between 1978 and 1991 - looks at their early lives and development of Antisocial Personality Disorder, as well as sexual disorders including sexual sadism and necrophilia. Special attention is paid to early signs of these disorders that were missed, mishandled, minimized or ignored by professionals in law enforcement, education, health care and criminal justice. The author demonstrates how and why most serial murders are sexually motivated, and fueled by this combination of psychopathy and sexual disorder. Having a clear understanding of the precursor behaviors could benefit us by enabling prediction and prevention of such crimes, says Dobbert. He also addresses signs of psychopathy and sexual disorders that should send red flags up to any adult or parent looking to protect their loved ones from harm.

Dobbert offers psychological and social history of each killer, from early life on, which molded each into an ultimate monster. Lucas, for example, was born to a prostitute and an alcoholic father who lost his legs in a train accident. He was forced to watch his mother perform sexual acts with clients, regularly beaten and one head injury from a beating put him into a coma. His mother curled his hair into ringlets and dressed him as a girl, sending him to school like that. Lucas showed all the signs of Conduct Disorder by the time he was 10 and already an alcoholic. He was obsessed with sex by the time he was 13, and had sex with his half-brother, as well as animals he would trap, torture and kill in sexual rituals. Lucas was convicted as a teenager of a burglary, and sent to a training school, where he was disruptive and attempted several escapes, but released a year later. He confessed later to raping his 12-year-old niece the next day. Each of these killers have a unique psychological development, but all demonstrated early the patterned behavior of psychopathy and sexual disorder, explains Dobbert.

Misdiagnosed, misunderstood and oftentimes entirely overlooked, the obscurity surrounding personality disorders can debilitate as much as the disorders themselves. Using case study examples throughout, this book illustrates the nature and reality of personality disorders and how they play out in the daily lives of those living with them as well as their family members, coworkers, and friends. By explaining the warning signs along with how such disorders might develop, Dobbert demonstrates how personality disorders can be effectively addressed and treated. Distinguishing between the accepted psychological criteria for disorders and the everyday upsets that some might wrongfully determine to be personality disorders, he carefully outlines the contours of such disorders and how to recognize and address them when they arise. In accessible style, Dobbert offers the reader a clear, succinct, and careful overview of the various disorders and what they mean for all those affected by them.