The psychology of the criminal / by M. Hamblin Smith.

  • Maurice Hamblin Smith
Date:
[1922]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The psychology of the criminal / by M. Hamblin Smith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    155/208 (page 143)
    the term seems as free from objection as any other. (Some writers have used the term “ weak-minded ” for all cases which show mental abnormality, whether certifiable under the Act or not.) There is sometimes a doubt in the examiner’s mind as to whether any par¬ ticular case should be regarded as a mental defective. When this doubt exists, it is the author’s invariable custom to place the case in this subnormal class ; the result of certification as a mental defective being far- reaching and serious. Of course, a report can be made to the Court, pointing out the subject’s mental con¬ dition, and suggesting appropriate disposal In some cases we may say that a man is so defective that he is certain to be constantly getting into trouble, if allowed to be at large. But in every doubtful case we have to weigh all the factors, and not that of intelligence alone. Again, in other cases there may be apparent mental defect, and yet we may not feel certain whether this defect is not a temporary condition, perhaps due to some physical cause. On a few occasions the author has had an opportunity of re-examining cases of this kind, and has found that the apparent mental defect has disappeared. In all these cases the standard with which the indivi¬ dual is compared has to be considered. Take the case of a boy who is born and brought up among people of considerable intellectual capacity. Such a boy may be regarded as subnormal by his family. And, compared with their standard, he is so. Whereas, judged by some lower standard, he might be considered normal. In such a case as that just instanced the feeling of inferi¬ ority may produce a mental conflict, and delinquency may result from this cause. 4. Epileptics. The connexion between epilepsy and delinquency has long been noted. Lombroso's view was that the criminal is, essentially, an epileptic. This view is no longer maintained. But, although it