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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
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Understanding and Preventing Violence

Volume 4

Consequences and Control

Albert J. Reiss, Jr., and Jeffrey A. Roth, eds.

Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior

Committee on Law and Justice

Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education

National Research Council

NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 1994

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20418

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.

The panel study on understanding and preventing violence was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Institute of Justice of the U.S. Department of Justice. Additional funding to support publication of the commissioned papers was provided by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the National Institute of Mental Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Institute of Justice.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Understanding and preventing violence.

"Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior, Committee on Law and Justice, Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council."

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents: v. [1]. [without special title] — v. 4. Consequences and control.

1. Violence—United States. 2. Violence—United States—Prevention. 3. Violent crimes—United States. I. Reiss, Albert J. II. Roth, Jeffrey A., 1945- III. National Research Council (U.S.). Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior.

HN90.V5U53 1993 303.6 92-32137

ISBN 0-309-04594-0 (v. 1)

ISBN 0-309-05079-0 (v. 4)

Copyright 1994 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America.

First Printing, May 1994

Second Printing, November 1994

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

PANEL ON THE UNDERSTANDING AND CONTROL OF VIOLENT BEHAVIOR

ALBERT J. REISS, JR., Chair,

Department of Sociology, Yale University

DAVID P. FARRINGTON, Vice Chair,

Institute of Criminology, Cambridge University

ELIJAH ANDERSON,

Department of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania

GREGORY CAREY,

Institute of Behavior Genetics, University of Colorado

JACQUELINE COHEN,

School of Urban and Public Affairs, Carnegie Mellon University

PHILIP J. COOK,

Institute of Policy Sciences, Duke University

FELTON EARLS,

Department of Behavioral Sciences, Harvard University

LEONARD ERON,

Department of Psychology, University of Illinois

LUCY FRIEDMAN,

Victim Services Agency, New York

TED ROBERT GURR,

Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland

JEROME KAGAN,

Department of Psychology, Harvard University

ARTHUR KELLERMANN,

Emergency Department, Regional Medical Center, Memphis, and Department of Internal Medicine and Preventive Medicine, University of Tennessee

RON LANGEVIN,

Juniper Psychological Services, Toronto, and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto

COLIN LOFTIN,

Institute of Criminal Justice and Criminology, University of Maryland

KLAUS A. MICZEK,

Department of Psychology, Tufts University

MARK H. MOORE,

Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

JAMES F. SHORT, JR.,

Social and Economic Sciences Research Center, Washington State University

LLOYD STREET,

College of Human Ecology, Cornell University

FRANKLIN E. ZIMRING,

Law School, University of California, Berkeley

JEFFREY A. ROTH, Principal Staff Officer

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

COMMITTEE ON LAW AND JUSTICE 1990-1991

STANTON WHEELER, Chair,

School of Law, Yale University

JOAN MCCORD, Vice Chair,

Department of Criminal Justice, Temple University

ROBERT BORUCH,

Graduate School of Education, University of Pennsylvania

JOSÉ CABRANES, U.S. District Judge,

New Haven, Connecticut

JOHN COFFEE,

Columbia University School of Law

PHILIP J. COOK,

Institute of Policy Sciences, Duke University

DAVID P. FARRINGTON,

Institute of Criminology, Cambridge University

ROBERT KAGAN,

Center for Law and Society, University of California, Berkeley

MARK H. MOORE,

Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

ALBERT J. REISS, JR. (ex officio), Chair,

Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior

JOHN ROLPH,

The Rand Corporation, Santa Monica, California

ELLEN SCHALL,

National Center for Health Education, New York

JEROME SKOLNICK,

School of Law (Jurisprudence & Social Policy), University of California, Berkeley

LLOYD STREET,

College of Human Ecology, Cornell University

NEIL VIDMAR,

School of Law, Duke University

BARBARA YNGVESSON,

School of Social Science, Hampshire College

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

Contents

 

 

Foreword

 

vii

 

 

Public Perceptions and Reactions to Violent Offending and Victimization
Mark Warr

 

1

 

 

The Costs and Consequences of Violent Behavior in the United States
Mark A. Cohen, Ted R. Miller, and Shelli B. Rossman

 

67

 

 

Violence and Intentional Injuries: Criminal Justice and Public Health Perspectives on an Urgent National Problem
Mark H. Moore, Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Bernard Guyer, and Howard Spivak

 

167

 

 

Predicting Violent Behavior and Classifying Violent Offenders
Jan Chaiken, Marcia Chaiken, and William Rhodes

 

217

 

 

Incarceration and Violent Crime: 1965-1988
Jacqueline Cohen and José A. Canela-Cacho

 

296

 

 

Index

 

389

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was establishedin 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Robert M. White are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

Foreword

In cities, suburban areas, and even small towns, Americans are fearful and concerned that violence has permeated the fabric of their communities and degraded the quality of their lives. This anxiety is not unfounded. In recent years, murders have killed about 23,000 people annually, while upward of 3,000,000 nonfatal but serious violent victimizations have occurred each year. These incidents are sources of chronic fear and public concern over the seeming inability of public authorities to prevent them.

Because of this concern, three federal agencies requested the National Research Council to carry out a comprehensive review of research applicable to the understanding and control of violence. Within the general topic of violence, the three sponsors expressed somewhat different sets of priorities. The National Science Foundation's Law and Social Science Program sought a review of current knowledge of the causes of violent behavior and recommendations about priorities in funding future basic research. The other two sponsors were more concerned with the application of that knowledge to the prevention and control of violence. The National Institute of Justice sought advice on how to prevent and control violent crimes, using the combined resources of criminal justice and other agencies. The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sought assistance in setting priorities in efforts to prevent injuries and deaths from violent events.

In response, the Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
×

and Education, through its Committee on Law and Justice, established the Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior and took primary responsibility for shaping the specific mandate and composition of the panel. Two features of its mandate carried particular weight. First, to draw implications from past research and to chart its future course, the perspectives and models of biological, psychological, and social science research on violence should be integrated. Second, as a matter of science policy, the panel's work should orient the future allocation of research and evaluation resources toward the development and refinement of promising strategies for reducing violence and its consequences.

Early on, the panel recognized that the extraordinary breadth of its mandate demanded the mobilization of expertise beyond that of its own members and staff. Therefore, in addition to preparing a number of internal review memoranda, it commissioned a number of reviews and analyses by experts in certain specialized topics. Although the commissioned papers reflect the views of their authors and not necessarily those of the panel, all were valuable resources for the panel. From the entire set, the panel selected 15 for publication in supplementary volumes because it found them particularly useful. The panel is grateful to all the authors and to the discussants who prepared comments for the panel's Symposium on Understanding and Preventing Violence.

This volume contains five of the panel's commissioned reviews and analyses concerning the consequences of violence and strategies for controlling them. Mark Warr reviewed the research literature on public perceptions and reactions to violence. Mark Cohen, Ted Miller, and Shelli Rossman developed estimates of the costs of violence. Panel member Mark Moore, collaborating with Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Bernard Guyer, and Howard Spivak, explored the commonalities and complementarities of criminal justice and public health responses to violence. Jan Chaiken, Marcia Chaiken, and William Rhodes reviewed the results of efforts to reduce violence through the prediction and classification of violent offenders. Panel member Jacqueline Cohen and José Canela-Cacho analyzed the relationships between trends in violence and in prison populations during a period of extraordinary increase in the use of incarceration. The panel members believe that, like themselves, others will find these papers to be valuable sources of knowledge and insights.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 1994. Understanding and Preventing Violence, Volume 4: Consequences and Control. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/4422.
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This book analyzes the consequences of violence and strategies for controlling them. Included are reviews of public perceptions and reactions to violence; estimates of the costs; the commonalities and complementarities of criminal justice and public health responses; efforts to reduce violence through the prediction and classification of violent offenders; and the relationships between trends in violence and prison population during a period of greatly increased use of incarceration.

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