Robert A. Forde

Forde gives the impression of someone who's deeply personally offended by the practice of forensic psychology as it currently exists (primarily in the UK, but also in the US and anywhere else it's handled in roughly the same way). And while that might undercut an argument that other people are acting unscientifically, the thing is, he appears to be right: the science doesn't exist to support the treatment programs that many prisoners are forced to go through in order to obtain parole, and in some cases, the science indicates that those programs might make people worse. Whatever personal slights the author might have suffered (and there certainly seem to be more than a few), he makes an excellent (and frankly slightly terrifying) argument. I'm not sure this book will convince anyone; he's not very nice about politicians, prison officials, or most forensic psychologists. While his argument certainly seems, to this layperson, to be based solidly in scientific evidence, that usually isn't enough to change minds.… (más)