Book Review: Psychiatry, The Criminal Law and Corrections: An Exercise in Sciolism
| Author | Peter Shea |
| DOI | 10.1177/000486588902200415 |
| Published date | 01 December 1989 |
| Date | 01 December 1989 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
288
BOOK REVIEWS (1989)
22
ANZJ
Crim
Psychiatry, The Criminal Law and Corrections:
An
Exercise in Sciolism, Allen
Bartholomew, Wileman Publications (1986)
316
pp,
$45.
Sciolism? The exhibition
of
pretentious superficiality of knowledge. The question
is
whether or not forensic psychiatrists are guilty of it. The author, an eminent and
respected Victorian forensic psychiatrist, argues convincingly that, in many cases,
they are, although this
is
as much afault of the profession itself as it
is
of the
individuals practising it.
The author ranges over anumber of interrelated psychiatric and legal topics,
including the state of the art in psychiatry (a little shaky on the scientific side), the
shifting sands of psychiatric diagnosis, the eternally thorny problem of defining
"disease ofthe mind", and the role ofthe forensic psychiatrist in the courtroom and
the correctional system.
He
discusses the range of activities in which forensic
psychiatrists have become involved, either wittingly or unwittingly, over the years,
and whether or not these are appropriate activities in terms of apsychiatrist's
background and training.
He
comes to the conclusion that psychiatrists, like
cobblers, should stick to their lasts, that is, that they should confine themselves to
such matters
as
diagnosis, the natural history of psychiatric conditions, treatment
regimes, prognosis with treatment and, possibly, psychopathology, (provided the
interpretations are not too bizarre) and that they should not allow themselves to be
drawn into pontificating, however tempting it may be, on matters such
as
the
determination of intent, responsibility and dangerousness, whether bail should be
granted orthe
~ype
ofsentence that should be imposed. Their opinion and evidence,
confined to the categories listed earlier, may be used, along with whatever other
evidence and opinion
is
available, by the court or correctional system in their
deliberations, but psychiatrists should,
in
no way, be treated or even considered
as
the final arbiters on such matters. Their training simply does not fit them for such
arole. The author presents aconvincing argument, using alarge amount of case
material to support his point of view. Not aperson to mince words, his comments
on the so-called expert evidence of some of his colleagues could most politely be
described
as
cutting.
The thesis ofhis book-that psychiatrists should confine themselves to what they
are trained to do -is, on the face of it, areasonable proposition provided
everybody else plays the same game, including the lawyers and judges. It does not,
however, take into account the fact that sometimes, in courtroom proceedings, the
experienced forensic psychiatrist may have more expertise, even in some legal
matters, than inexperienced
counselor
even an inexperienced bench. This,
however,
is
aminor quibble. The book
in
general
is
avery erudite, entertaining and
challenging account of the place of psychiatry, and of the forensic psychiatrist, in
the courts and gaols. The author's prose
is
elegant and
his
extensive use of
quotations, with sources ranging from transcripts of actual cases to the literature of,
inter alia, Burton, Stearne and Koestler, provides the reader with awealth of
interesting and, sometimes, provocative material for dipping into at leisure. The
references alone
(27
pages at arough count) are almost worth the price ofthe book.
This book should be read
by
everybody working
in
the field: psychiatrists,
lawyers, judges and correctional services personnel alike, but especially
psychiatrists. While one may not agree with all of the author's conclusions, the
matters raised are all matters to which practitioners
in
the field should
give
thoughtful and ongoing consideration. The book
is
an excellent stimulus for such
deliberations (and alittle soul-searching
as
well).
Sydney
PETER
SHEA
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