Book Review: Mafia organizations: The visible hand of criminal enterprise

• Date: 01 September 2020
• DOI: 10.1177/1057567719878768
• Published date: 01 September 2020
• Subject Matter: Book Reviews

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International Criminal Justice Review 30(3)
The book is written for all audience levels, as O’Mara presents a substantial portion of elemental
information woven into his argument. He provides a lesson in research methods and the levels of
inference that can be drawn from various research designs. He explains the cognitive systems of
memory storage and retrieval. He discusses the famous case studies of Phineas Gage and H.M. and
the infamous research studies of Milgram and Zimbardo. He refers to research on the possibility of
false confessions. Much of this information will likely be known already to the reader with a
background in psychology or any related social science and may seem unnecessary to include.
Nonetheless, these points ensure a common understanding for readers with various levels of knowl-
edge. Thus, this book would be most appropriate for an undergraduate-level reader or anyone with a
curiosity for the topic; extensive background knowledge is not required.
The closing chapter briefly mentions the FBI’s High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group (HIG)
project examining the interrogation techniques listed in the Army Field Manual, recently announced
at the time this book was being written. The HIG has since released a report of its findings and
encourages rapport-based methods of interrogation over coercion, largely aligning with his central
claims. The HIG report advocates use of cognitive interview techniques, and the author advocates
similar techniques in different terms. Similarly, he also suggests use of a technique he calls “boxing-
in,” which sounds quite similar to the Scharff technique referenced in the HIG report, although
O’Mara does not mention this method by name.
That the U.S. Federal government is now paying attention to the topic explicitly demonstrates its
relevance to national and international criminal justice policy and practice. As criminal justice
moves more strongly toward a philosophy of evidence-based policy, the arguments and evidence
presented in this book will be useful to guiding interrogations at every level from local police
departments to international prisoners of war....