This book conveys the findings of a study carried out in three rural districts of Malawi. It aims to explore the issue of gender-based violence, known locally as nkhanza, and its impact on women with regard to their social and legal status. The study covers: the implications of the marriage system for gender-based violence; men, women and children's perceptions of violence; structural issues and systems of justice; the role of economic factors; nkhanza as an accepted form of conflict resolution; and the psychological impacts.

The gap between what the law and legal processes deliver for victims of domestic abuse and what they actually need has, in some instances, arguably widened. This book provides the reader with a thorough understanding of the remedies available to victims in the civil, family and criminal law. It contends that expectations of the legal remedies have increased as the number and scope of remedies has proliferated. It further examines how legal responses to domestic abuse have evolved over the past decade and explores how the victim’s rights narrative and associated litigation, which has become prevalent in legal discourse and criminal justice reforms, has shifted expectations and impacted domestic abuse policy and law. The book presents a valuable addition to the literature in drawing on a discourse familiar to those with an interest in human rights, demonstrating its impact on a substantive area of law of great significance to both family and criminal lawyers and anyone with an interest in domestic abuse and legal responses.

New Directions in Criminological Theory focuses on new approaches to theory construction, with particular emphasis on reformulations and new applications of existing paradigms. It includes an assessment of labeling theory, demonstrating how the approach could become part of a more comprehensive explanation of crime. A case is made for studying crime in terms of the social context in which crimes are conceived, interpreted, and negotiated. The debate between crime-general and crime-specific approaches is further amplified. A rethinking of Hirschi's control theory is presented. The volume includes theoretical discussions of spouse abuse, of punishment, and of power-control models. Additional chapters examine theoretical advances in corporate illegality, employee theft, and the alcohol/crime syndrome.These original contributions include: Charles F. Wellford and Ruth A. Triplett, 'The Future of Labeling Theory'; Austin T. Turk, 'A Proposed Resolution of Key Issues in the Political Sociology of Law'; David Weisburd and Lisa Maher, 'Contrasting Crime-General and Crime-Specific Theory'; Sally Simpson, 'Strategy, Structure, and Corporate Crime'; Edward W. Sieh, 'Employee theft'; Robert Nash Parker, 'Alcohol and Theories of Homicide'; Kimberly L. Kemph, 'The Empirical Status of Hirschi's Control Theory'; Jeffrey Fagan, 'The Social Control of Spouse Assualt'; Marc Le Blanc and Aaron Caplan, 'Theoretical Formalization, A Necessity'; Michael J. Lynch, 'Control Theory and Punishment'; Gary F. Jensen, 'Power-Control vs. Social-Control Theories of Common Delinquency'; John Hagan, A.R. Gillis, and John Simpson, 'The Power of Control in Sociological Theories of Delinquency.'

This book provides an insight into advances in elder abuse in the areas of research, policy, practice and legislation. It provides readers with a broad understanding of the topic and considers the progress in elder abuse knowledge. The book explores the nexus of ageism and elder abuse, describes key social policies and their legislative manifestation, covers major policies and programs related to elder abuse, defines elder sexual abuse and much more. It offers the reader a comprehensive insight into new perspectives and approaches to both understanding and responding to elder abuse. As such it will be an asset to academics, students, healthcare practitioners, policy makers and the general public.

Problem-solving courts provide judicially supervised treatment for behavioral health needs commonly found among criminal offenders, including substance abuse and mental health disorders, and they treat a variety of offender populations. These courts employ a team-based approach consisting of a judge, defense attorney, prosecutor, and treatment providers, representing a significant paradigm shift in how the justice system treats offenders with special needs. Despite the proliferation of problem-solving courts, there remains some uncertainty about how they function, how effective they are, and the most promising ways to implement problem-solving justice. Problem-Solving Courts and the Criminal Justice System provides a comprehensive foundation of knowledge related to problem-solving courts and the role they play in the United States criminal justice system. The book begins with an overview that explores precipitating factors in these courts' development, relevant political influence, and their history, purposes, benefits, and drawbacks, followed by a detailed discussion of specific types of problem solving courts, including drug courts, mental health courts, and veterans courts, among many others. Next a review of the legal and ethical considerations of alternative methods to standard prosecution is complemented by an examination of the methodological challenges faced by researchers when attempting to study the effectiveness of problem-solving courts. The book concludes with a discussion of future directions in terms of research, practice, and policy relating to these courts in the United States. Problem-Solving Courts and the Criminal Justice System is appropriate for professionals, researchers, and students in the fields of mental health, criminal justice, and law.

Providing detailed and comprehensive coverage of the transitional justice field, this Research Handbook brings together leading scholars and practitioners to explore how societies deal with mass atrocities after periods of dictatorship or conflict. Situating the development of transitional justice in its historical context, social and political context, it analyses the legal instruments that have emerged.