Book Review: Meadows, R. J., & Kuehnel, J. M. (2005). Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. 300 pp

• Date: 01 September 2007
• Published date: 01 September 2007
• DOI: 10.1177/0734016807304843
• Subject Matter: Articles

Meadows, R. J., & Kuehnel, J. M. (2005). Evil Minds:

Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators

Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. 300 pp.

DOI: 10.1177/0734016807304843

Evil Minds: Understanding and Responding to Violent Predators by Robert J. Meadows

and Julie Kuehnel is designed to be used as a textbook in the social sciences. Although it is

not explicitly stated, the intended audience appears to be undergraduate students. The text is

written from a multidisciplinary approach with the psychological and sociological

approaches of Drs. Kuehnel and Meadows plainly evident. This multidisciplinary approach

is a clear strength of the text and provides a multidimensional presentation of issues that is

often lacking in other texts. Other strengths include the use of teaching tools in the form of

case examples, text boxes that highlight important elements, a glossary of terms at the end

of each chapter, and a list of discussion questions and exercises to accompany each chapter.

The text is divided into three sections. The first, “Violent Predators: Types and Patterns,”

provides an introduction to victimology, sexual offenders, and individuals who murder. Part

II, “Sources of Predatory Violence: Pieces of the Puzzle,” reviews etiological theories of

violence, research methodology, environmental and biological contributions to violence,

and the relationship between mental illness and violent behavior. The final section,

“Investigating and Prosecuting Evil,” reviews forensic investigation approaches, the legal

process, and treatment considerations. The result is an approximately 300-page book that

spans 11 chapters.

“Violent Predators: Types and Patterns” (part I) consists of three chapters. These chap-

ters rely heavily on early “profiling research” to describe individuals who murder and com-

mit sex offenses. Profiling is controversial, partly because it traditionally has not relied on

empirically based, well-controlled research. Instead, conclusions are drawn from descrip-

tions of offender samples or observations and opinions that are neither empirically tested

nor supported. The former includes typically uncontrolled studies that describe samples of

dangerous offenders. In the latter cases, investigative experience has led to hypotheses

about criminal behavior that have become accepted as truth. As one example, in chapter 3,

the authors present the theory that murders are either “organized” or “disorganized,” yet

disregard research that has not confirmed this distinction. Violent offenders are quite het-

erogeneous and exhibit a wide range of behaviors. This complexity is diminished by the

certainty with which these findings are related. Readers would benefit from a more critical

analysis of the findings, including limitations of the information presented.

“Sources of Predatory Violence” (part II) provides an excellent introduction to three

psychological theories of violent behavior: psychodynamic, cognitive/learning, and the

trait/dispositional approach. The chapter provides a solid overview that can be understood

by undergraduate students and illustrates each theory by applying it to a case study. In

chapter 5, the authors present a well-written, clear synopsis of good research design in

which they warn against personal observations and anecdotes as science. They also caution

against overgeneralizing the results of any one study or uncontrolled studies. They clearly

have a keen understanding of science and their ability to relate research design in a clear

and accessible fashion speaks of their teaching skills. It is difficult, then, to reconcile the

268 Criminal Justice Review