14 Best Criminal Psychology Books

Hi and we welcome those who are interested in the Best Criminal Psychology Books available on the internet today. These books are written by some of the best authors of all time, bringing into light the mental state of criminals and how much of a task it is in bringing to justice those criminal minds that are of genius caliber.

So, for you to have found out this post shows you are in the hunt for the best criminal psychology books available both in hard copy and soft copy, and we have outdone ourselves in locating some of the best authors, genius authors who spend their time in writing some of the best body of workaround.

We have in our range books such as Mindhunter: Inside FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit, The Angel of Darkness, Journey into Darkness (Mindhunter 2), and much more. Our advice, sit back, relax, and let us take you through the journey into the mental state of the criminally insane which will make Batman and Joker very, very jealous.

Without any more fuss, here are the 14 Best Criminal Psychology Books around; but hold on, we haven’t introduced what criminal psychology is for the sakes of the uninitiated. So without wasting much time;

What is Criminal Psychology

The study of criminals’ ideas and activities is known as criminal psychology. It answers the question of why criminals act the way they do. Television shows like Criminal Minds and CSI have glorified criminal psychology. We are all aware that what we see on TV does not always reflect reality. Let’s take a closer look at what criminal psychology entails.

Criminal psychology, also known as criminological psychology, studies criminals and others involved in criminal behavior’s beliefs, thoughts, intentions, acts, and reactions.

Criminal psychology and criminal anthropology are related fields. The research looks into what motivates someone to commit a crime and how they react afterward. Criminal psychologists have a variety of responsibilities in the legal system, including testifying as witnesses in court proceedings to help the jury understand the criminal’s mentality.

Aspects of criminal conduct are also addressed by some types of psychotherapy. Criminal behavior is defined as “any sort of antisocial activity that is punishable by law but can also be punished by community norms.”

As a result, defining criminal activity is difficult since there is a small line between what is acceptable and what is not, as what was once considered a violation may now be accepted by the community.

The various duties of a criminal psychologist, significant elements of criminals, and major studies that contributed to criminal psychology will be discussed in this article.

Now that we have cleared the air on what criminal psychology is all about, it is pertinent to get an in-depth understanding of who needs to read the best criminal psychology books and why they need to read them.

Who needs to read criminal psychology books?

That is quite a simple question if I am being truthful, those who for one has an interest in understanding how the human mind works—especially those used by criminals. Then for those who need to have an understanding of the field as part of their academic work.

Then some fancy books in this field—as entertainment—because the suspense and thrill of the hunt between law enforcers and criminals tend to satisfy their cravings for action, adventure, and detective brilliance.

And then there are those—like me—who just want to wear off the day by picking up and reading how the world, or damsel, or lad is saved from criminality and madness by hard-working, super-intelligent, and dedicated members of the peace brigade.

That is why having searched and found these 14 Best Criminal Psychology Books, taking time to get the best which keep the reader hooked and in suspense. We know we are and have satisfied every type of reader interested in these types of knowledge.

How to find good Criminal Psychology books Online?

A quick Google search reels in some of the best resources available on the internet, but there is a snag; Google doesn’t discriminate on the content it brings to your screens, therefore there are chances that you might need to filter through the majority of the results before you find good books that match your taste and needs.

But on the flip side, some bookstores sell, rent, and/or offer for download only top-quality books written by great authors. Popular online bookstores such as Amazon, Scribd, Booksellers, and Bookshop, just to mention a few.

Clicking any of the above-mentioned sites will open you to a world of resources that will satisfy even your deepest cravings. Feel free and check out any of the books identified by us on any of the platforms mentioned and get full value for your money.

Therefore, without any more dillydallying, here are the;

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14 Best Criminal Psychology Books

Here, we are going to have an in-depth look at the 14 best criminal psychology books available online for purchase or rent, and also have a little background information on the author of the book and what the said book is all about.

And now I present you with the 14 Best Criminal Psychology Books available online;

  • Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit
  • The Angel of Darkness
  • The Anatomy of Motive: The FBI’s Legendary Mindhunter Explores the Key to Understand and Catching Violent Criminals.
  • Criminal Psychology: A Beginner’s Guide.
  • The Case that Haunts Us
  • Journey Into Darkness
  • Inside the Mind of BTK: The True Story Behind the Thirty-Year Hunt for the Notorious Wichita Serial Killer.
  • Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide, and the Criminal Mind.
  • Criminal Behavior: A Psychological Approach.
  • Whoever Fights Monsters: My Twenty Years Tracking Serial Killers for the FBI.
  • Obsession
  • Criminal Psychology: Understanding the Criminal Mind and Its Nature Through Criminal Profiling.
  • Inside the Criminal Mind.
  • My Life Among the Serial Killers: Inside the Minds of the World’s Most Notorious Murderers.

 

1.      Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit.

He’s pursued some of the most renowned and vicious criminals of our time, including the San Francisco Trailside Killer and the Atlanta Child Murderer. He faced, interviewed, and investigated dozens of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, and James Earl Ray, for a groundbreaking investigation of their motivations.

To gain access to their thoughts, he’s Special Agent John Douglas, the guy who ushered in a new era in behavioral science and criminal profiling as the model for law enforcement legend Jack Crawford in Thomas Harris’ masterpieces Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs.

John Douglas, who recently resigned after twenty-five years of service, may now relate his unique and captivating experience.

About the Author

John Edward Douglas is a former FBI agent, one of the earliest criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology author from the United States. In the mid-1990s, he also published four horror books.

John Douglas became the foremost authority in criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis throughout his twenty-five-year tenure with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed The Investigative Science Unit (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Douglas learned how criminals think and what motivates them to do the things they do via his research with serial criminals. Douglas may learn a lot about an offender’s personality and tendencies just by looking at the crime scene; it’s all about the evidence and victimology (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Interviews Hundreds of interviews with some of the world’s most prominent serial killers have been done by John Douglas, including – Charles Manson and three members of the Manson family. – Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin. – John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer responsible for the deaths of 33 victims. The “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz – Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin, James Earl Ray – Ted Bundy – Assassins who failed to kill Gerald Ford and George Wallace (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Captured Furthermore, Douglas’ profiles contributed to the arrests of several serial killers, including Wayne Williams, the.22 caliber killer. – The stalking strangler, Carlton Gary – Robert Hanson, the baker from Anchorage, Alaska, kidnapped, hunted, and killed local prostitutes.

These are just a few of the cases that John Douglas worked on as a profiler with the Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed the Investigative Science Unit, throughout his twenty-five-year tenure (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995). Contributions to Psychology Douglas and his colleagues described the intentions of a serial offender in an article published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in September 1980.

The following are some of them: – What causes someone to become a sexual offender, and what are the early warning signs? – What is it that encourages or hinders him from doing his crime? – What forms of responses or coping techniques by an intended victim are effective in avoiding victimization with what type of sexual offender, and – What are the implications for his dangerousness, prognosis, disposition, and treatment modality (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995)?

You can purchase this book HERE 

2.      The Angel of Darkness (Dr. Laszlo Kreizler #2)

In June of 1897, a year has passed since Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, a pioneer in forensic psychiatry, used a team of trusted companions and a groundbreaking application of his discipline’s principles to track down the deadly serial killer John Beecham.

Kreizler and his friends—high-living crime reporter John Schuyler Moore; indomitable, derringer-wielding Sara Howard; brilliant (and bickering) detective brothers Marcus and Lucius Isaacson; powerful and compassionate Cyrus Montrose; and Stevie Taggert, the boy Kreizler saved from a life of street crime—have returned to their previous pursuits and tried to forget the horror of the Beecham case.

When the wife of a Spanish diplomat seeks Sara’s help, the team comes together to help her rescue her kidnapped infant daughter. Because Spain and the United States are on the point of the war, this is a risky situation.

Their investigation takes them to an unexpected suspect: a lady who appears to the rest of the world to be a brave nurse and a loving mother, but who is a cruel child murderer.

Caleb Carr once again demonstrates his incredible ability to re-create the past, both high and poor. The Angel of Darkness is a tour de force, a story about modern evil in old New York that is fast-paced and terrifying.

About the Author

Caleb Carr is a novelist and military historian from the United States. He was born in Manhattan and spent much of his life on the Lower East Side, the son of Lucien Carr, a former UPI editor, and a significant Beat movement member.

He earned a B.A. in military and diplomatic history from Kenyon College and New York University. He is a contributing editor of MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History and frequently writes about military and political issues.

To purchase this book, click HERE

3.      The Anatomy of Motive: The FBI’s Legendary Mindhunter Explores the Key to Understand and Catching Violent Criminals

An unparalleled, penetrating look at the foundation of all crime from veteran FBI profiler John Douglas and Mark Olshaker, authors of the nonfiction international bestsellers Mindhunter, Journey into Darkness, and Obsession.

Every crime is a mystery tale with a central motive. John Douglas knits together the motives underlying violent sociopathic conduct with the extraordinary insight he brought to his famed work inside the FBI’s top serial-crime unit.

He not only takes us inside the minds of arsonists, hijackers, bombers, poisoners, assassins, serial killers, and mass murders but also into the minds of seemingly regular people who slaughter their families or go on a rampage at work.

Douglas defines the antisocial personality, pointing out startling parallels and variances across diverse types of murderers. He also keeps track of the criminals’ sociopathic behavior as it progresses. His examinations of killers as disparate as Lee Harvey Oswald, Theodore Kaczynski, and Timothy McVeigh are engrossing, but more importantly, they teach us how to predict violent behavior before it’s too late.

About the Author

John Edward Douglas is a former FBI agent, one of the earliest criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology author from the United States. In the mid-1990s, he also published four horror books.

John Douglas became the foremost authority in criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis throughout his twenty-five-year tenure with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed The Investigative Science Unit (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Douglas learned how criminals think and what motivates them to do the things they do via his research with serial criminals. Douglas may learn a lot about an offender’s personality and tendencies just by looking at the crime scene; it’s all about the evidence and victimology (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Interviews Hundreds of interviews with some of the world’s most prominent serial killers have been done by John Douglas, including – Charles Manson and three members of the Manson family. – Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin. – John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer responsible for the deaths of 33 victims. The “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz – Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin, James Earl Ray – Ted Bundy – Assassins who failed to kill Gerald Ford and George Wallace (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Captured Furthermore, Douglas’ profiles contributed to the arrests of several serial killers, including Wayne Williams, the.22 caliber killer. – The stalking strangler, Carlton Gary – Robert Hanson, the baker from Anchorage, Alaska, kidnapped, hunted, and killed local prostitutes.

These are just a few of the cases that John Douglas worked on as a profiler with the Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed the Investigative Science Unit, throughout his twenty-five-year tenure (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995). Contributions to Psychology Douglas and his colleagues described the intentions of a serial offender in an article published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in September 1980.

The following are some of them: – What causes someone to become a sexual offender, and what are the early warning signs? – What is it that encourages or hinders him from doing his crime? – What forms of responses or coping techniques by an intended victim are effective in avoiding victimization with what type of sexual offender, and – What are the implications for his dangerousness, prognosis, disposition, and treatment modality (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995)?

To get this book click HERE 

4.      Criminal Psychology: A Beginner’s Guide

This guide provides an introduction to criminal psychology, covering everything from the signs that tell us we’re lying to the psychological profiling of violent offenders. It explains how knowing the mind allows us to have a more educated picture of modern justice.

About the Author

Ray Bull is an emeritus professor of forensic psychology at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom. He is also a part-time professor of criminal investigation at the University of Derby and a visiting lecturer at the University of Portsmouth. He has served as the president of the European Association of Psychology and Law since 2014.

Bull was named an Honorary Fellow of the British Psychological Society in 2010, a fellow of the Association of Psychological Sciences in 2009, and the recipient of the Senior Academic Award from the International Investigative Interviewing Research Group in 2009. In 2012, he was inducted into the International Investigative Interviewing Research Group as the first honorary lifetime member.

He was awarded the European Association of Psychology and Law’s Lifetime Contribution to Psychology and Law Award in 2008.

Click HERE to purchase this book.

5.      The Case that Haunts Us

Violent, Provocative, Shocking, whatever you choose to call them, do not call them open and shut. Is Lizzie Borden guilty of assassinating her father and stepmother? Is it possible that Jack the Ripper was the Duke of Clarence? JonBenet Ramsey was assassinated.

In this riveting work of detection, America’s leading expert on criminal profiling and twenty-five-year FBI veteran John Douglas, along with author and filmmaker Mark Olshaker, investigates those enticing questions and more.

The authors evaluate and reinterpret the recognized facts, evidence, and victimology of some of the most prominent murder cases in history, including the Lindbergh infant kidnapping, the Zodiac Killer, and the Whitechapel killings, with a unique captivating perspective.

They present extensive profiles and disclose major suspects in search of what happened in each case, using tactics devised by Douglas himself.

The Cases That Haunt Us not only presents compelling and contentious findings, but also deconstructs and reconstructs the facts and generally held ideas around each case, yielding fascinating, surprising, and disturbing consequences.

About the Author

John Edward Douglas is a former FBI agent, one of the earliest criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology author from the United States. In the mid-1990s, he also published four horror books.

John Douglas became the foremost authority in criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis throughout his twenty-five-year tenure with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed The Investigative Science Unit (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Douglas learned how criminals think and what motivates them to do the things they do via his research with serial criminals. Douglas may learn a lot about an offender’s personality and tendencies just by looking at the crime scene; it’s all about the evidence and victimology (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Interviews Hundreds of interviews with some of the world’s most prominent serial killers have been done by John Douglas, including – Charles Manson and three members of the Manson family. – Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin. – John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer responsible for the deaths of 33 victims. The “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz – Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin, James Earl Ray – Ted Bundy – Assassins who failed to kill Gerald Ford and George Wallace (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Captured Furthermore, Douglas’ profiles contributed to the arrests of several serial killers, including Wayne Williams, the.22 caliber killer. – The stalking strangler, Carlton Gary – Robert Hanson, the baker from Anchorage, Alaska, kidnapped, hunted, and killed local prostitutes.

These are just a few of the cases that John Douglas worked on as a profiler with the Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed the Investigative Science Unit, throughout his twenty-five-year tenure (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Contributions to Psychology Douglas and his colleagues described the intentions of a serial offender in an article published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in September 1980.

The following are some of them: – What causes someone to become a sexual offender, and what are the early warning signs? – What is it that encourages or hinders him from doing his crime? – What forms of responses or coping techniques by an intended victim are effective in avoiding victimization with what type of sexual offender, and – What are the implications for his dangerousness, prognosis, disposition, and treatment modality (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995)?

To purchase this book click HERE

6.      Journey into Darkness (Mindhunter #2)

John Douglas, the leader of the FBI’s elite Investigative Support Unit, revealed the story of his brilliant and terrible career tracking down some of history’s most vile murderers in the #1 “New York Times” bestsellers “Mindhunter.”

Douglas helped crack many high-profile cases, including the Trailside Killer, the Atlanta child murders, and the Tylenol murders, by using behavioral profiling and criminal investigative analysis to get inside the heads and psyches of both the criminal and the victim — to feel what they felt at the critical moment.

In “Journey into Darkness,” Douglas, once again collaborating with co-author Mark Olshaker, goes further into the criminal psyche with a series of terrifying new cases: Follow the FBI’s top profiler as he delves into the thoughts and motivations of the world’s most deadly serial killers.

Douglas highlights brutal serial killers, rapists, and child molesters in “Journey into Darkness.” He’s direct, frank, often irreverent, and opinionated, but he makes a point of not glorifying any of the murders.

About the Author

John Edward Douglas is a former FBI agent, one of the earliest criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology author from the United States. In the mid-1990s, he also published four horror books.

John Douglas became the foremost authority in criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis throughout his twenty-five-year tenure with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed The Investigative Science Unit (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Douglas learned how criminals think and what motivates them to do the things they do via his research with serial criminals. Douglas may learn a lot about an offender’s personality and tendencies just by looking at the crime scene; it’s all about the evidence and victimology (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Interviews Hundreds of interviews with some of the world’s most prominent serial killers have been done by John Douglas, including – Charles Manson and three members of the Manson family. – Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin. – John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer responsible for the deaths of 33 victims.

The “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz – Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin, James Earl Ray – Ted Bundy – Assassins who failed to kill Gerald Ford and George Wallace (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Captured Furthermore, Douglas’ profiles contributed to the arrests of several serial killers, including Wayne Williams, the.22 caliber killer. – The stalking strangler, Carlton Gary – Robert Hanson, the baker from Anchorage, Alaska, kidnapped, hunted, and killed local prostitutes.

These are just a few of the cases that John Douglas worked on as a profiler with the Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed the Investigative Science Unit, throughout his twenty-five-year tenure (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Contributions to Psychology Douglas and his colleagues described the intentions of a serial offender in an article published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in September 1980.

The following are some of them: – What causes someone to become a sexual offender, and what are the early warning signs? – What is it that encourages or hinders him from doing his crime? – What forms of responses or coping techniques by an intended victim are effective in avoiding victimization with what type of sexual offender, and – What are the implications for his dangerousness, prognosis, disposition, and treatment modality (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995)?

HERE to get this book

7.      Inside the Mind of BTK: The True Story Behind the Thirty-Year Hunt for the Notorious Wichita Serial Killer

This remarkable account reveals how John Douglas tracked down and assisted in the hunt for one of America’s most known serial killers.

For 31 years, a man known as BTK (Bind, Torture, and Kill) terrorized Wichita, Kansas, sexually abusing and strangling several women, taunting authorities with frequent communications, and bragging about his crimes to local newspapers and television stations.

He emerged after a nine-year absence, alleging that no one was paying attention to him and claimed to have done other atrocities for which he had not been given credit. When BTK was finally apprehended, it was found that he was Dennis Rader, a 61-year-old married father of two children.

About the Authors

Johnny Dodd has been a writer for People Magazine for a decade and has covered some of the biggest stories in pop culture. His writing has appeared in dozens of publications, but he prefers to write about personal triumphs, both others’ and his own. He resides in the city of Santa Monica, California.

John Edward Douglas is a former FBI agent, one of the earliest criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology author from the United States. In the mid-1990s, he also published four horror books.

John Douglas became the foremost authority in criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis throughout his twenty-five-year tenure with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed The Investigative Science Unit (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Douglas learned how criminals think and what motivates them to do the things they do via his research with serial criminals. Douglas may learn a lot about an offender’s personality and tendencies just by looking at the crime scene; it’s all about the evidence and victimology (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Interviews Hundreds of interviews with some of the world’s most prominent serial killers have been done by John Douglas, including – Charles Manson and three members of the Manson family. – Sirhan Sirhan, Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin. – John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer responsible for the deaths of 33 victims. The “Son of Sam,” David Berkowitz – Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin, James Earl Ray – Ted Bundy – Assassins who failed to kill Gerald Ford and George Wallace (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Captured Furthermore, Douglas’ profiles contributed to the arrests of several serial killers, including Wayne Williams, the.22 caliber killer. – The stalking strangler, Carlton Gary – Robert Hanson, the baker from Anchorage, Alaska, kidnapped, hunted, and killed local prostitutes.

These are just a few of the cases that John Douglas worked on as a profiler with the Behavioral Science Unit, which he eventually renamed the Investigative Science Unit, throughout his twenty-five-year tenure (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995).

Contributions to Psychology Douglas and his colleagues described the intentions of a serial offender in an article published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in September 1980.

The following are some of them: – What causes someone to become a sexual offender, and what are the early warning signs? – What is it that encourages or hinders him from doing his crime? – What forms of responses or coping techniques by an intended victim are effective in avoiding victimization with what type of sexual offender, and – What are the implications for his dangerousness, prognosis, disposition, and treatment modality (Douglas & Olshaker, 1995)?

Click HERE to get this book

8.      Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide, and the Criminal Mind

The world’s leading specialist on the oddest and most dangerous of all aberrant offenders—the sexual criminal—is profiler Roy Hazelwood. He explains the complex reasoning and deviant thinking that go into the most heinous atrocities in Dark Dreams.

He also details the cutting-edge and amazingly effective techniques that allow law enforcement officials to create psychological profiles of criminals who commit crimes—techniques that he helped pioneer at the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit.

Hazelwood has assisted in the capture of some of the most notorious and vicious criminals in recent history; in Dark Dreams, he invites readers into his world—a dark world populated by a horde of dangerous criminals for every Roy Hazelwood who would put them behind bars.

Sexual sadists, serial rapists, child molesters, and serial murders are among them. The cases he discusses are both frightening and baffling, and their conclusions are both fascinating and novel:

A young woman vanishes from her job at a convenience shop. Her body is later discovered in a field, mangled beyond recognition and fastened to a homemade St. Andrew’s cross. Who was the perpetrator of this horrific crime? And why is that?

A teen’s body was discovered hanging in a storm drain. His clothing is neatly folded beside the door, and a stopwatch is buried beneath him in the grime. Is he the victim of a strange, ritualistic assassination… or does an elaborate masturbatory fantasy go wrong?

A married couple picks up a female hitchhiker while driving with their toddler in the back seat. They kidnap her and keep her as a sex slave in a box under their bed for seven years. In exchange for a second child, the wife had agreed to this inhumane arrangement. Who was to blame for this?

But, as heinous as the crimes are and as bleak as the odds appear, Hazelwood, writing with veteran journalist Stephen Michaud, demonstrates that with the correct amount of determination and logic, even the most crafty and devious criminals can be brought to justice.

Dark Dreams was nominated for an Edgar Award for Best Fact Crime in 2002.

About Author

Robert Roy Hazelwood (March 4, 1938 – April 18, 2016) was a former FBI sex crime profiler who is widely considered the father of sexual predator profiling. He spent much of his career with the FBI before resigning in the mid-1990s.

Roy Hazelwood was born in the Idaho town of Pocatello. Elmo Earl (stepfather) and Louella Matilda (Schaible) Hazelwood were his parents. Half-brothers James Martin (Jim) and Gene Hazelwood, as well as half-sister Earlene Daniels, were his siblings.

His biological father, Myrle Reddick, abducted him when he was a baby and traveled with him for six months before releasing him to his paternal grandparents; father and son never saw each other again. He was raised in Spring Branch, Texas, by his mother and stepfather and went to Sam Houston State University.

He enlisted in the United States Army and served in the military police during the Vietnam War, which he completed in 1968. After 11 years in the military, he retired with the rank of Major.

He enlisted in the United States Army and served in the military police during the Vietnam War, which he completed in 1968. After 11 years in the military, he retired with the rank of Major. Following his service, he completed a forensic medicine fellowship at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) and worked as an instructor at the CID.

In 1971, he joined the FBI.

To get this book, click HERE 

9.      Criminal Behavior: A Psychology Approach

“CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR: A PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH, 9/e” takes a psychological approach to understand delinquent and criminal behavior, with a focus on the developmental, cognitive-behavioral components of offending.

It emphasizes how psychological, social, economic, political, and ecological elements all play a part in determining human behavior by viewing the juvenile and adult offender as being embedded and constantly influenced by various systems.

This edition has been streamlined to include a distinct chapter on delinquency, updated examples, and more information on the relationship between psychology and specific crimes.

About the Author

Curt R. Bartol taught a range of undergraduate and graduate courses, including Biopsychology, Criminal Behavior, Juvenile Delinquency, and Introduction to Forensic Psychology, Social Psychology, Profiling, and Psychology and Law, for more than 30 years. In 1972, he received his doctorate in personality/social psychology from Northern Illinois University.

He received a National Institute for the Humanities scholarship to study political science and law at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (NIH).

He was a key figure in developing and launching Castleton State College’s graduate program in forensic psychology, which he directed for six years. He has been a consulting police psychologist to local, municipal, state, and federal law enforcement agencies for over 30 years as a certified clinical psychologist.

To purchase this book click HERE

10. Whoever Fights Monsters: My Twenty Years Tracking Serial Killers for the FBI

When FBI veteran and ex-Army CID colonel Robert Ressler came face to face with some of America’s most terrible killers, he learned how to identify the unknown monsters that walk among us—and put them behind bars.

Now, the guy who created the term “serial killer” and advised Thomas Harris on The Silence of the Lambs demonstrates how he can track down today’s most savage killers.

Ressler used information from a crime scene to piece together a psychological profile of the killers, much like in The Silence of the Lambs. From the victims they chose to how they kill to the frequently gruesome souvenirs they bring with them, Ressler decodes the identity of these police-targeted killers.

Ressler has gone behind prison walls to hear the unusual first-hand accounts of innumerable convicted murderers since his discovery that serial criminals share similar violent characteristics. One of the FBI’s most effective ways of assisting police in bringing in killers who are still at large is to get inside a killer’s mind to understand how and why he kills.

Join Ressler on his search for the world’s most dangerous psychopaths. It’ll be a harrowing journey that you’ll never forget.

About the Author

Robert Kenneth Ressler was a writer and FBI agent. In the 1970s, he was a key figure in the psychological profiling of violent offenders, and he is credited with coining the phrase “serial killer.”

By clicking HERE you are granted access to get this book… at a price.

11. Obsession

In this compelling investigation of human behavior, the writers of Journey into Darkness investigate the minds of both the hunter and the hunted. Douglas exposes the terrible obsessions that drive murderers, rapists, and stalkers with a strong feeling of compassion for the victims and an uncanny grasp of the offenders.

About the Author

John Edward Douglas (born June 18, 1945) is a former Federal Bureau of Investigation special agent and unit chief (FBI). He was one of the earliest criminal profilers and has written several books on the subject.

Douglas, John Edward, was born in Brooklyn, New York. He has a B.S. in sociology/physical education/recreation from Eastern New Mexico University, an M.S. in educational psychology/guidance and counseling from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, an Ed.Ms. in Administration and Supervision/Adult Education from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and a Ph.D. in comparing techniques for teaching police officers how to classify homicides from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.

Douglas joined the FBI in 1970 and was assigned to Detroit, Michigan as his first assignment. He worked as a sniper for the local FBI SWAT team and later as a hostage negotiator in the field.

In 1977, he joined the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit (BSU), where he taught hostage negotiation and applied criminal psychology to new FBI special agents, field agents, and police officers from across the country at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.

He was elevated to unit chief of the Investigative Support Unit, a branch of the FBI’s National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime, after creating and managing the FBI’s Criminal Profiling Program (NCAVC).

Douglas began interviewing serial killers and other violent sex offenders at various jails while offering training to cops across the country. In the course of the investigation, he spoke with David Berkowitz, Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Charles Manson, Lynette Fromme, Sara Jane Moore, Edmund Kemper, James Earl Ray, Sirhan Sirhan, Richard Speck, Donald Harvey, and Joseph Paul Franklin, among others.

He published Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives, which was followed by the Crime Classification Manual, based on the information collected from these interviews (CCM). For his work on the study, Douglas received two Thomas Jefferson Awards for academic distinction from the University of Virginia.

To grab this book, click HERE

12. Criminal Psychology: Understanding the Criminal Mind and its Nature through Criminal Profiling

Serial killers and violent criminals have always existed in society. There are old records of these types of people, and we all know they are still alive and well now.

But we have no idea what’s going on inside their thoughts.

Why would somebody murder just kill?

Why would someone who appeared to be so kind and regular commit something so heinous?

What is the source of this type of behavior?

For decades, these and other questions have saturated the thoughts of people who research criminal psychology. It would be a lot easier to stop them if we could figure out why they do what they do.

We’d all be a lot better off than we are now; trying to figure out what’s driving this behavior if there was a way to avoid it from happening in the first place. But now, because of this book, you may peer inside the mind of a serial killer and understand why they act the way they do.

There’s a lot more to it than meets the eye, and these details could forever alter how we deal with violent criminals. We might be able to treat the signs right away, preventing another serial killer from ever entering the world.

This book covers everything, from what’s going on and what created it to how we might avoid it in the future. This book will shift the way you think about violent criminals and demonstrate that we can make a difference. Continue reading to see how you can contribute to the solution to this problem and how we can put a stop to this type of conduct for good.

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13. Inside the Criminal Mind

This ground-breaking book, published in 1984, gave a terrifying portrait of the criminal mind, shattering long-held misconceptions about the causes and treatments for the crime.

Stanton Samenow delivers a revised edition of his famous work, providing fresh views into crimes in the spotlight today, from stalking and domestic violence to white-collar crime and political terrorism, with the benefit of twenty years’ worth of added knowledge and insight.

Dr. Samenow’s three decades of dealing with criminals have validated his claim that poverty, divorce, and media violence do not produce criminality. Rather, as Samenow shows, all criminals share a mindset that is alarmingly different from that of a responsible citizen, which may be seen as early as childhood.

While new sorts of crime have become more common, or at least more prominent to the public eye—from spousal abuse to school shootings—our strategy to dealing with crime has remained mostly unchanged.

Rehabilitation programs predicated on the notion that society is more to blame for crime than the criminal, an assumption without a causal link, have proven to be woefully unsuccessful. Criminal court dockets and prisons continue to be oppressively congested and expensive, while recidivism rates continue to rise.

To launch a remedial program, we must first acknowledge that the criminal chooses to commit a crime; he chooses to reject society long before society rejects him. The criminal merely values others to the extent that he can exploit them for his gain; he does not justify his conduct to himself.

We can only change the criminal’s behavior by “habilitating” him so that he sees himself realistically and develops appropriate mental habits.

We must understand who the criminal is and how and why he differs from law-abiding citizens. Reasonable, compassionate, and successful solutions can emerge from this knowledge.

Dr. Samenow graduated from Yale University with a B.A. (cum laude) in 1963 and a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Michigan in 1968.

He joined the Program for the Investigation of Criminal Behavior at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C., after working as a clinical psychologist on adolescent inpatient psychiatric services in the Ann Arbor (Michigan) region.

He worked as a clinical research psychologist for the program from 1970 until June 1978. He was a part of the longest in-depth clinical research-treatment study of offenders in North America, which was done with the late Dr. Samuel Yochelson

Dr. Samenow began his clinical psychology practice in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1978. His area of expertise has been the assessment and treatment of juvenile and adult offenders. In 48 states, Canada, and England, Dr. Samenow has given lectures, training seminars, and workshops.

These talks have been given to a variety of audiences, including mental health professionals, law enforcement, corrections, education, social services, and the judiciary.

He has worked as a consultant and expert witness for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Dade County (Florida) Public Schools, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the United States Office of Probation.

President Ronald Reagan appointed him to the Law Enforcement Task Force in 1980 and the President’s Task Force on Crime Victims in 1982. He was appointed as a Conferee to the White House Conference on a Drug-Free America by President Ronald Reagan in 1987.

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14. My Life Among the Serial Killers: Inside the Minds of the World’s Most Notorious Murderers

Dr. Helen Morrison has profiled more than eighty serial killers around the world over twenty-five years. What she discovers about them will shatter every preconception you’ve ever had about the world’s most notorious criminals. Dr. Helen Morrison appears to live an ordinary life in the suburbs of a major metropolis.

She has a successful mental clinic, a physician husband, and two children. But there’s a lot more to her life than that. She is one of the country’s foremost specialists on serial killers, having spent up to 400 hours alone in a room with terrible killers, probing their psyches in ways no other profiler has ever done.

Dr. Morrison describes how she profiled the Mad Biter, Richard Otto Macek, who chewed on his victims’ body parts, pursued Dr. Morrison, and mistook her for his wife in her book My Life Among the Serial Killers. Ed Gein, the inspiration for Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, was the subject of her final interview.

John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer who was infatuated with clowns, sent her insane Christmas greetings and offered her his paintings as gifts.

There was also Atlanta child killer Wayne Williams, rapist turned murderer Bobby Joe Long, England’s Fred and Rosemary West, who murdered girls and women in their “House of Horrors,” and Marcelo Costa de Andrade, Brazil’s deadliest child killer.

Dr. Morrison has read hundreds of killers’ letters, examined crime sites, testified at their trials, and studied images of the horrible carnage.

She spoke with the victims’ relatives, as well as the perpetrators’ spouses and parents, to acquire a better knowledge of the killer’s environment and public character.

With psychological autopsies of the fifteenth-century French army hero Gilles de Rais, the sixteenth-century Hungarian Countess Bathory, H. H. Holmes of the late seventeenth century, and Albert Fish of the Roaring Twenties, she reveals how serial killers are not a new problem.

Throughout it all, Dr. Morrison has been on a quest to learn why serial killers are driven to murder, how they select their victims, and what we can do to avoid future killings. Her startling conclusions will astound you.

About the Author

Helen Louise Morrison (born July 9, 1942) is a forensic psychiatrist, author, and profiler in the United States. She attended Temple University, the Medical College of Pennsylvania, and the Chicago Psychoanalytic Institute after being born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Her research focuses on serial killer psychology.

Her study has been focused on identifying common personality traits among serial killers. My Life Among the Serial Killers is her first book.

Morrison testified for the defense at John Wayne Gacy’s trial, claiming that he was legally insane because he was “unable to psychologically separate from his mother” and never acquired a separate identity.

Gacy’s insanity defense was rejected by the jury, and he was found guilty. Gacy’s brain was extracted after his execution and handed over to Morrison.

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