The Dark Side of the Mind

by Kerry Daynes

  Yet where is it getting us? Our criminal justice system is not fit for purpose. The attitude towards offenders of ‘They are sick in the head; they’re not like us’ mirrors the exact sentiment that has left the criminal justice system – from police shortages, to disappearing Legal Aid, through to prisons – in its present precarious state.

  The system we use to ‘correct’ extreme behaviours too often traumatizes and/or retraumatizes, institutionalizes and marginalizes those it aims to fix. Our prisons in particular provide the perfect conditions for the flourishing of the very problems we hope to eliminate.

  Deep-rooted, far-reaching changes are needed, not political slogans and repeat prescriptions. It starts with an acknowledgement that, ultimately, we are all in this together. It is time to change the question, from ‘What is wrong with them?’ to altogether more awkward, uncomfortable questions. Let’s start with: What has happened to them? And what has happened to us as a society?

  These questions are fundamental, because while we continue to use explanations that situate the causes of extreme behaviour inside an individual – be it the perpetrator or, worse, the victim – we overlook the external forces. Factors that influence people’s behaviour: our laws, culture, the gender expectations that are heaped on us from birth, and the media influences that foster violence and abuse in our society. We need to consider extremes of behaviour in their wider context: experiences of abuse and adversity; societal issues such as racism and other forms of discrimination; political and economic factors; exclusion, disenfranchisement and disempowerment.

  One of my former clients, a Freddie Mercury lookalike, once watched an almighty argument between two of my colleagues. The pair had squared up to each other during an anger management group. One had punched the other in the face, giving him a bloody nose, much to the amusement of their patients, who clapped and cheered ringside. My client thought about this incident regularly and would tell me that it led him to the firm conclusion that ‘psychologists are human too’.

  We all share one fundamental condition – being human. And one of the things that makes us distinctly human is our capacity to choose to rise above our emotions when we need to, and in doing so, find creative solutions to our greatest challenges.

  The stories I’ve told here are just a handful of the experiences that make up who I am as a forensic psychologist and a person. Hopefully they go some way to showing how everyone impacted by crime is unique. There really is no one kind of offender or victim. Each person comes with their own important stories to tell. It is possible to change the story though. Prevention is always better than a cure. By looking deeper at the root causes of extreme behaviour, we can start to write new beginnings.

  Notes & Further Reading

  Chapter 1 Here Be Monsters

  1 Women make up 73 per cent Figures supplied by The British Psychological Society, correct at August 2018

  2 It was the start of a mushrooming in prisoner numbers Commons Library Briefing Paper CBP-04334, accessed online at https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN04334/SN04334.pdf on 23 July 2018. The Howard League provides a wealth of statistics on the prison population at https://howardleague.org

  3 70 per cent of rape victims freeze Moller, A., Sondergaard, H.P. and Helstrom, L., 2017, ‘Tonic immobility during sexual assault – a common reaction predicting post-traumatic stress disorder and severe depression’, Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologia Scandinavica, 96(8), pp932-38

  Chapter 2 Big Boys Don’t Cry

  4 one of the highest prison suicide rates in Europe Fazel, S., Ramesh, T. and Hawton, T., 2017, ‘Suicide in prisons: an international study of prevalence and contributory factors’, The Lancet Psychiatry, 4(12), pp946-52

  5 the Prison Reform Trust estimates 70 per cent Edgar, K. and Rickford, D., 2009, ‘Too Little, Too Late: An independent review of unmet mental health need in prison’, The Prison Reform Trust, accessed online at www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Too%20Little%20Too%20Late%20-%20a%20review%20of%20unmet%20mental%20health%20need%20in%20prison%20.pdf

  Chapter 3 The Blame Game

  6 95 per cent of our killers are male Gibbons, J., 2013, ‘Global Study on Homicide’, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, accessed online at www.unodc.org. See also Office for National Statistics, 2017, ‘Homicide’, accessed online at www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/compendium/focusonviolentcrimeandsexualoffences/yearendingmarch2016/homicide

  7 Paul was in the approximate 10 per cent see also Karen Ingala Smith, ‘Sex differences and Domestic Violence Murders’, accessed online at https://kareningalasmith.com/counting-dead-women/ and Long, J., Harper, K. and Harvey, H., 2017, ‘The Femicide Census: 2017 findings’, accessed online at https://www.femicidecensus.org.uk

  8 domestic abuse is a gendered crime For instance, see Walby, S. and Towers, J., 2017, ‘Measuring violence to end violence: mainstreaming gender’, Journal of Gender-Based Violence, 1(1), pp11-31 and Myhill, A., 2017, ‘Measuring domestic violence: context is everything’, Journal of Gender-Based Violence, 1(1), pp33-44. Also see Office for National Statistics, 2018, ‘Domestic abuse in England and Wales: Year ending March 2018’, accessed online at www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/domesticabuseinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2018

  Chapter 4 Faking It

  9 Amy Cuddy 2012, accessed online at www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are?language=en

  10 a classic experiment Rosenhan, D.L., ‘On being sane in insane places’, in Scheff, T.J. (ed.), Labeling Madness, Prentice-Hall (1975)

  11 normality is not ‘real’ Caplan, Paula J., They Say You’re Crazy: How the world’s most powerful psychiatrists decide who’s normal, Da Capo Press (1995)

  Chapter 5 Witchdoctors and Brainwashers

  12 A 2012 study Owen, P.R., 2012, ‘Portrayals of schizophrenia by entertainment media: a content analysis of contemporary movies’, Psychiatric Services, 63(7), pp655-9

  13 50 and 70 cases see ‘Violence and mental health: the facts’, 2019, Time To Change, accessed at www.time-to-change.org.uk/media-centre/responsible-reporting/violence-mental-health-problems

  14 Research tells us For a critical review see ‘Risk distortion and risk assessment’, in Sidley, G., Tales From The Madhouse, PCCS Books (2015)

  15 effectiveness in preventing reoffending For instance, see Falshaw, L. et al., 2003, ‘Searching for “What Works”: an evaluation of cognitive skills programmes’. Home Office Research, Findings 206. For a critique see Forde, Robert A., Bad Psychology: How forensic psychology left science behind, Jessica Kingsley Publishers (2018)

  16 Bennett Inquiry Report accessed at http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Society/documents/2004/02/12/Bennett.pdf

  17 mental health services are riddled with racial discrimination For instance, see Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), October 2018, ‘Is Britain Fairer?’, accessed online at www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/publication-download/britain-fairer-2018. See also Servicegovuk, 2019, accessed online at www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/health/access-to-treatment/detentions-under-the-mental-health-act/latest

  18 Dr Jay Watts ‘Mental health labels can save lives. But they can also destroy them’, Guardian, 24 April 2018

  19 mental distress is more likely a product of complex, overlapping personal and social factors See Kinderman, P., The New Laws of Psychology: Why nature and nurture alone can’t explain human behaviour, Constable & Robinson (2014). More information can be also be found at www.madintheuk.com and www.adisorder4everyone.com

  20 83 per cent described Millham, A. and Easton, S., 1998, ‘Prevalence of auditory hallucinations in nurses in mental health’, Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 5, pp95-9

  Chapter 6 Power Plays

  21 UK criminologists estimate Gresswell, D.M. and Hollin, C.R., 1994, ‘Multiple murder: a review’, British Journal of Criminology, 34, pp1-14

  22 it has blossomed into it
s own distinct discipline For a detailed overview, I recommend Canter, D. and Youngs, D., Investigative Psychology: Offender profiling and the analysis of criminal action, John Wiley & Sons (2009)

  23 the majority of break-ins to homes Office for National Statistics, 2017, ‘Overview of burglary and other household theft: England and Wales’, accessed online at www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/overviewofburglaryandotherhouseholdtheft/englandandwales#what-are-the-long-term-trends

  24 US lie detection expert See Ekman, P., Telling Lies, W.W. Norton & Company (2009)

  25 the 3-2-7 rule Archer, D.E. and Lansley, C.A., 2015, ‘Public appeals, news interviews and crocodile tears: an argument for multi-channel analysis’, accessed online at www.euppublishing.com

  Chapter 7 Insults and Injuries

  26 we can predict statistically Forde, Robert A., Bad Psychology: How Forensic Psychology Left Science Behind, Jessica Kingsley Publishers (2018)

  27 the latest Crime Survey for England and Wales Office for National Statistics, 2018, ‘Sexual offences in England and Wales: year ending March 2017’, accessed online at www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/sexualoffencesinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2017

  28 proportion of people with brain injuries Williams, W.H. et al., 2018, ‘Traumatic brain injury: a potential cause of violent crime’, The Lancet Psychiatry, 5(10), pp836-844

  29 around 30 per cent... People aged 60 or over Hewson, A., 2018, ‘Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile Autumn 2018’, The Prison Reform Trust, accessed online at www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/Portals/0/Documents/Bromley%20Briefings/Autumn%202018%20Factfile.pdf

  Chapter 8 A Man’s World

  30 A 2017 study Amnesty International, 2018, ‘Online abuse of women is widespread in UK’. accessed online at www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/12/crowdsourced-twitter-study-reveals-shocking-scale-of-online-abuse-against-women/

  31 one in five See Homicides, Firearm offences and intimate violence 2009/10; Supplementary Volume 2 to Crime in England and Wales 2009/10, 2nd Edition, Home Office Statistical Bulletin 01/11

  32 94 per cent Monckton-Smith, J., Szymanska, K. and Haile, S., 2017, ‘Exploring the Relationship between Stalking and Homicide’, Suzy Lamplugh Trust, accessed online at http://eprints.glos.ac.uk/4553/

  33 likely to escalate into violence Mullen, P., Pathe, M. and Purcell, R., Stalkers and Their Victims, Cambridge University Press (2009)

  34 just because you’re paranoid Heller, Joseph, Catch 22, Vintage (1955)

  35 The Stalking Risk Profile see www.stalkingriskprofile.com

  36 ‘The Psychopath Test’ Ronson, J., The Psychopath Test, Picador (2011)

  37 The Psychopathy Checklist See Hart, S.D., Hare, R.D., and Harpur, T.J., ‘The Psychopathy Checklist – Revised (PCL – R): An overview for researchers and clinicians’, in J.C. Rosen and P. McReynolds (eds), Advances in Psychological Assessment, Vol. 8, pp103-30, Plenum Press (1992). As an overview for the general reader, see Hare, R., Without Conscience, Guilford Press (1999)

  38 the PCL-R is also the subject of much debate For instance, see Skeem et al., 2011, ‘Psychopathic personality: bridging the gap between scientific evidence and public policy’, Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 12(3), pp95-162. For an accessible discussion of the issues for the general reader, see Forde, R.A., Bad Psychology: how forensic psychology left science behind, Jessica Kingsley Publishers (2018)

  39 one 2016 study Brooks, N. and Frizon, K., 2016, ‘Psychopathic personality characteristics among high functioning populations’, Crime Psychology Review, 2(1), pp22-44

  40 my favourite research study Cooke et al., 2005, ‘Assessing psychopathy in the UK: concerns about cross-cultural generalisability’, British Journal of Psychiatry, 186, pp339-45

  Chapter 9 The Case of the Missing Finger

  41 The National Crime Agency estimates Independent, 3 September 2018, accessed online at www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uk-online-sex-threat-80000-people-children-national-crime-agency-a8519606.html

  42 42 per cent according to a report Newiss, G., 2013, ‘Taken: A study of child abduction in the UK. Parents and Abducted Children Together (PACT) and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)’, accessed online at www.actionagainstabduction.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Taken.pdf

  Chapter 10 Safe and Sound

  43 there is a certain unsavoury pleasure Tallis, Frank, The Incurable Romantic: and other unsettling revelations, Little, Brown (2018)

  Chapter 11 The Sum of Our Parts

  44 dissociative identity disorder For information and support with dissociative experiences and information for professionals, see PODS (Positive Outcomes for Dissociative Survivors), www.pods-online.org.uk

  Epilogue

  45 National Centre for Domestic Violence www.ncdv.org.uk. Referrals can be made online or by telephone: 0207 186 8270

  46 Suzy Lamplugh Trust www.suzylamplugh.org, National Stalking Helpline: 0808 802 0300

  47 Bloom, P., Against Empathy: The case for rational compassion, Vintage (2016)

  Acknowledgements

  First and foremost, I must thank Sarah Thompson for walking with me throughout the writing of this memoir. I hope that, in time, you will be welcome again in the numerous coffee shops I embarrassed you in. In addition, I couldn’t have got to the finishing line without the advice, input and general cheerleading of Daniel Coleman-Cooke.

  The Dark Side of the Mind would not have been written if it were not for Sylvia Tidy-Harris (and Fredders) at Tidy Management. You are more than just a great agent, you are also the best of people and I’m so pleased to have found you. My appreciation also goes to Jonathan Conway at the Jonathan Conway Literary Agency and to Claudia Connal and the entire, excellent team at Octopus. Thank you for seeing the potential in my stories, I am truly honoured to carry the Endeavour logo on this book.

  Special thanks to Susan Bradley for your above-and-beyond ‘general reader’ feedback on early drafts of the book. At times it was hard to take and fear I may see shocked Beaker memes in my nightmares for years to come, but your tough love, counsel and encouragement spurred me on.

  To Gary Sidley, many thanks for your supervision of the language used in this book and supportive prods to keep writing throughout the process. Also to Jo Watson at Drop The Disorder for the introduction. Your thought-provoking questioning of the culture of psychiatry resonates deeply with me, I will gladly join your revolution.

  To Kate in the little cafe in the park where I walk my dogs, this book has been fuelled by your tea, cheese and onion toasties and Ugg therapy. A friendly, safe space with a huge amount of community spirit makes more of a difference to people than you know. As I am a vegetarian, the bacon scraps make more of a difference to Fozzchops and Humphrey than you might imagine too.

  My thanks and respect to the various colleagues I have worked alongside over the years who, despite facing daily challenges, limited resources and a lack of acknowledgement of their worth, have maintained their humour, compassion and enthusiasm to make a positive impact - you know who you are.

  And finally, to my family, who I worry half to death. Annoying as it is to admit it, the three of you are written into every page of this book, because you are written into me, and I couldn’t feel more grateful for you.

  About the Author

  Kerry Daynes is a consultant forensic psychologist. She is often invited to act as psychological specialist in major police investigations and is a trusted advisor to the British government regarding the safe management of high-risk individuals. Kerry is a sought-after speaker and provides regular commentary for international television networks. She is an advocate for better conversations on mental health and is a patron of the National Centre for Domestic Violence and Talking2Minds.

  www.kerrydaynes.online

  An Hachette UK Company www.hachette.co.uk

  First published in Great Britain in 2019 by Endeavour, an imprint of Octopus Publishing Group
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  Text copyright © Kerry Daynes 2019

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  All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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  eISBN 9781788401739