Magistrates, Probation Officers and Doctor
| DOI | 10.1177/026455053100100705 |
| Date | 01 April 1931 |
| Published date | 01 April 1931 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
I03
Magistrates, Probation Officers and Doctor.
The Medical Women’s Federation representing one
There had been much dispute about the problem of
thousand medical women, convened a meeting of
the existence of moral deficiency. Dr. Barkas thought
magistrates, probation officers and doctors in London
that there were certain types of high-grade defectives
on
23rd January, to discuss co-operation in the
with a good general intelligence whose capacity for
subject of delinquency. Dr. Isabel Wilson took the
developing wisdom and judgment did not reach beyond
Chair and introduced Dr. Mary Barkas, (Chairman of
the stage of reward and punishment. She would like
the Committee on Psychological Medicine of the Feder-
to hear the opinion of probation officers on how these
ation) who said the meeting had been called to enable
cases responded to the various methods of treatment.
medical women to learn something of the work of
They seldom benefited much from individual intensive
magistrates and proba.tion officers in the Courts.
psychotherapy. It seemed that some adjustment of
Two years ago Dr. Helen Boyle had brought to the
the reward and punishment mechanism was what
attention of the committee certain difficulties that
would lead them towards the best citizenship of which
arose in the courts from the fact that magistrates very
they were capable. A second difficult type was the
often did not consider the mental side of delinquency.
psychopathic or neurotic delinquent suffering from
At the annual meeting last year it had been decided to
obsessions, compulsions, anxiety or morbid fear. These
try and learn more about this subject ; Dr. Alice
definitely responded to treatment if it was available.
Hutchinson had spoken to them of her work with
But if they were to be treated they needed to be in some
psychopathic juveniles at the Tavistock Clinic and a
protected environment while the treatment was going
questionnaire had been sent to about 150 medical women
on.
Dr. Barkas would like to know how far probation
constituting the group of members of the Federation
officers found that there was a lack of facilities of this
interested in mental work. The questions asked had
kind. There were very few places where a child could
been : Are there juvenile courts in your district ?
be sent for this sort of treatment. In London the
Is there a psychologist attached to the court ? What
Tavistick Clinic, the Maudsley Hospital and the Child
provisions are there for after-care if the delinquent
Guidance Clinics were giving considerable help, but
is (a) normal, (b) psychopathic, (c) mentally defective ?
apart from these there was almost nothing in the way
Who are the local certifying medical officers ? What
of treatment for these juvenile psychopathic children,
local institutions are there for mental defectives ? Is
who must grow up to form a considerable proportion
there a local branch of the Central Association for
of the criminal population. She hoped that the pro-
Mental Welfare, the Mental After-care Association or
bation officers would tell their needs and what they
the National Council for Mental Hygiene ? Is there a
thought was the best way of dealing with these problems.
mental out-patient clinic in your district ? What are
Mrs. C. D. Rackham, J.P. (Cambridge), said that,
the local observation wards and Poor Law infirmaries
in looking back over ten years on the Bench, one of the
like, to what use are they being put ?
things by which she was most struck was the contrast
It had been hoped to collect some information in
between the court as a machine for finding out about the
this way, but quite vainly. It appeared that in some
offence, and for finding out anything at all about the
districts there were juvenile courts but that usually
prisoner. In the first capacity it was good-not perfect-
they had very little in the way of resources for investi-
but as a...
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