Introduction to the special issue: Psychology of crime

This paper introduces the reader to a special issue of the Journal of Criminal Justice on the “Psychology of Crime.” It is argued that psychology has been misrepresented in some criminology and criminal justice texts by archaic ideas and theories and that this has created an inaccurate picture of what psychology can offer the study of crime and offender behavior. To rectify this situation this special issue introduces readers to contemporary models of clinical psychological thought as it applies to crime, criminology, and criminal justice.