Psychology 350
Psychopathology

Dr. Salvatore (Sam) Catanzaro
Executive Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
Professor of Psychology

Illinois State University

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The Insanity Defense

Thomas Szasz, the medical ethicist, has argued that the insanity defense should be abolished for three reasons:

• It demeans people to consider them as less than fully responsible for their actions
• It is contradictory, because it entails admitting to performing an action but absolving one of consequences for that action
• It is commonly used in politically charged cases, such as those of assassination attempts and the Unabomber. The insanity defense allows society to focus on the deviant behavior of an individual rather than the potential political problems their behavior might highlight.

Instead, Szasz proposes that people have a right to be deviant (e.g., psychotic) but they also have a responsibility to conform to the law. He believes that society is better served in the long run if mentally ill people are held to the same legal standards and punishments as everyone else. Therefore, he says, the insanity defense should be abolished.

The questions I want you to answer are: Do you think the insanity defense serves a useful purpose in a democratic society? Why or why not?

Remember, you are required to make at least three posts to the WebBoard--your own, and your comments. If you want to post more in response to your colleagues' go right ahead.

Please go to the WebBoard for this course by clicking here.

This assignment is due by 1:30 p.m. on Monday, June 19. Whether the assignment is on time or not will be determined by the electronic time stamps on your posts, with allowances made for any verifiable server problems.

Salvatore J. Catanzaro, Illinois State University, Department of Psychology