Geographies Of Behavioural Health Crime And Disorder

This book focuses on the intersection of place and overall community health thereby focusing on some of the most critical contemporary social problems, including the opioid crisis, suicide, socioeconomic status and ethnicity, mental illness, crime, homelessness, green criminology, and social and environmental justice. Scholars from a variety of disciplines, including geography, sociology, criminology, mental health, social work, and behavioural sciences discuss the importance of geography in our quality of life. Each chapter introduces the reader to an overview of the topic, presents theoretical frameworks and the most recent empirical evidence, and discusses real world policy implications. As such this book is a key resource for researchers, policy makers, and practitioners working in the field.

This is a festschrift including nine scientific papers and six abstracts of papers written by Dr. Gerard Rushton or his former graduate students and colleagues to celebrate his retirement from teaching at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA. The festschrift begins with Rushton’s own review of his research advances in Behavioral Geography, Economic Geography and Health Geography that coincide with three recurring phases of his academic career during 45 years of teaching at the University of Iowa. Following this, each paper by a former student or colleague reviews the special personal and academic contributions of Rushton to him or her in one of those research areas. Each paper then proceeds to review the author’s (or authors’) contributions to scientific theory and empirical analysis that he or she (or they) has(ve) subsequently advanced or evolved from Rushton’s original contributions. These papers are scientific contributions of interest to an academic readership, as opposed to personal or anecdotal recollections.

Victims of crime may experience a wide variety of traumas that result in physical, sexual, financial, psychological, emotional, and/or social consequences. While the types of trauma can vary greatly and include lesser-known forms such as vicarious and secondary trauma, identifying and recognizing victims can be complicated. Throughout this book, experts and professionals from academia and the fields of criminal justice, social work, and mental health acknowledge victims historically overlooked by society, political movements, the media, and/or the criminal justice system - we acknowledge the invisible victims. Invisible Victims and the Pursuit of Justice: Analyzing Frequently Victimized Yet Rarely Discussed Populations pioneers the assertion that our view of victims needs to be more inclusive by exploring invisible victims that are rarely, if ever, a focus of discussions in traditional victimology textbooks. To educate the reader and begin working toward positive change, each chapter identifies an invisible victim and provides the background, controversies, issues, solutions, and areas of future research. It is crucial to identify these gaps in the field as some of the most victimized populations remain absent from important dialogue on crime victims. This book is appropriate for a wide range of readership including but not limited to criminologists, victim service providers, psychologists, sociologists, social workers, advocate groups, law enforcement, lawyers, defense attorneys, criminal justice practitioners, academicians, researchers, and students studying criminology, criminal justice, victimology, social work, psychology, and social justice.

This Handbook provides a state-of-the-science review of research and practice in the human dimensions of hazards field. The Routledge Handbook of Environmental Hazards and Society reviews and assesses existing knowledge and explores future research priorities in this growing field. It showcases the work of international experts, including established researchers, future stars in the field, and practitioners. Organised into four parts, all chapters have an international focus, and many include case studies from around the world. Part I explains geophysical and hydro-meteorological/climatological hazards, their impacts, and mitigation. Part II explores vulnerability, resilience, and equity. Part III explores preparedness, responses during environmental hazard events, impacts, and the recovery process. Part IV explores policy and practice, including governments, support provided during and after environmental hazard events, and provision of information. This Handbook will serve as an important resource for students, academics, practitioners, and policymakers working in the fields of environmental hazards and disaster risk reduction.

Enhancing existing green spaces, such as parks and gardens, or introducing them where they do not through conversion of lots, has taken center stage in urban communities of color as a means of addressing a range of social problems, including reducing various forms of violence. Written for urban-focused researchers, practitioners, and academics, Urban Gun Violence: Empty Lots, Green Spaces, and Other Ecologically Focused Interventions uses case studies and grounding research to inform gun violence reduction interventions.

This book is a collection of papers reflecting the latest advances in geographic research on health, disease, and well-being. It spans a wide range of topics, theoretical perspectives, and methodologies - including anti-racism, post-colonialism, spatial statistics, spatiotemporal modeling, political ecology, and social network analysis. Health issues in various regions of the world are addressed by interdisciplinary authors, who include scholars from epidemiology, medicine, public health, demography, and community studies. The book covers the major themes in this field such as health inequalities; environmental health; spatial analysis and modeling of disease; health care provision, access, and utilization; health and wellbeing; and global/transnational health and health issues in the global south. There is also a specially commissioned book review in addition to the chapters included in these six sections. Together, these chapters show cogently how geographic perspectives and methods can contribute in significant ways to advancing our understanding of the complex interactions between social and physical environments and health behaviors and outcomes. This book was published as a special issue of Annals of the Association of American Geographers.

Does mental disorder cause crime? Does crime cause mental disorder? And if either of these could be proved to be true what consequences should stem for those who find themselves deemed mentally disordered offenders? Mental Health and Crime examines the nature of the relationship between mental disorder and crime. It concludes that the broad definition of what is an all too common human condition – mental disorder – and the widespread occurrence of an equally all too common human behaviour – that of offending – would make unlikely any definitive or easy answer to such questions. For those who offend in the context of mental disorder, many aspects of the criminal justice process, and of the disposals that follow, are adapted to take account of a relationship between mental disorder and crime. But if the very relationship is questionable, is the way in which we deal with such offenders discriminatory? Or is it perhaps to their benefit to be thought of as less responsible for their offending than fully culpable offenders? The book thus explores not only the nature of the relationship, but also the human rights and legal issues arising. It also looks at some of the permutations in the therapeutic process that can ensue when those with mental health problems are treated in the context of their offending behaviour.

Toxic Interactions is a review of quantitative research revealing how urban living, trauma, ethnicity, stress and familial influence the risk of troubling psychotic experiences. Each of these is reviewed in search of their social implications, and a constructivist approach identifies their common threads. The contributions of newer psychotherapeutic approaches such as Open Dialogue and Recovery programmes are considered, and a consistent interpretation emerges; that is not the observable features of disturbed mental state that deserve key attention, but how these are generally understood by others, and in particular the 'client's' close associates. Toxic Interactions and the Social Geography of Psychosis will be welcomed by all who find conventional approaches to mental health difficulties unsatisfactory, whether that is as a practitioner frustrated by the counter-productive expectations of their institutional setting, an academic exploring different perspectives a 'service user' disappointed by not experiencing the care they feel is needed, or as third party perplexed by the contradictions of contemporary psychiatry.