Saleem Alam Shah (December 2, 1931, in

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

– November 25, 1992, in

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) was an Indian-American psychologist known for his work regarding

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

and the law. He has been credited with helping to establish

forensic psychiatry Forensic psychiatry is a subspecialty of psychiatry and is related to criminology. It encompasses the interface between law and psychiatry. According to the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, it is defined as "a subspecialty of psychiatr ...

as a specialty.

Early life and education

Shah was born on December 2, 1931, in Allahabad, where he received his B.A. from

Allahabad University The University of Allahabad is a Central University located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. It was established on 23 September 1887 by an act of Parliament and is recognised as an Institute of National Importance (INI). It is the 4th oldest mode ...

in 1952. He received part of his master's degree from

Lucknow University University of Lucknow (informally known as Lucknow University, and LU) is one of the oldest public state university based in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. LU's main campus is located at Badshah Bagh, University Road area of the city with a second ...

, after which he moved to the United States, where he received his masters' (1955) and doctoral (1957) degrees in

clinical psychology Clinical psychology is an integration of human science, behavioral science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically-based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well ...

from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

Career

From 1955 to 1956, Shah was an intern at

Spring Grove State Hospital Spring Grove Hospital Center, formerly known as Spring Grove State Hospital, is a psychiatric hospital located in the Baltimore, Maryland, suburb of Catonsville. Founded in 1797 as a general medical and psychiatric retreat, Spring Grove Menta ...

Catonsville Catonsville () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland. The population was 44,701 at the 2020 US Census. The community is a streetcar suburb of Baltimore along the city's western border. The town is known for its proximit ...

, Maryland. From 1956 to 1959, he was a consulting psychologist at the

Allegany County Mental Health Clinic Allegany is the name of several places in the United States: Communities * Allegany County, Maryland ** Allegany College of Maryland * Allegany County, New York * Allegany (town), New York, in Cattaraugus County **Allegany (village), New York, in ...

, after which he joined the Legal Psychiatric Services Division of the District of Columbia Health Department. He remained at the D.C. Health Department until 1966, spending much of his time there as chief psychologist. In 1966, he joined the

National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...

(NIMH), after which he became director of the Center for Studies of Crime and Delinquency, a program dedicated to researching antisocial and violent behavior. In 1987, he resigned as director of that program to focus more on research and consultation at the NIMH, where he subsequently became a senior scientist.

Death

On November 25, 1992, Shah died in the Shock Trauma Unit of the

University of Maryland Medical Center The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) is a teaching hospital with 789 beds based in Baltimore, Maryland, that provides the full range of health care to people throughout Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic region. It gets more than 26,000 inp ...

in Baltimore, as a result of injuries sustained in a car accident six days earlier. Shah was killed by a drunk driver. He is survived today by his six daughters and thirteen grandchildren.

Recognition

Shah received the Isaac Ray Award from the

American Psychiatric Association The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 39,200 members who are in ...

, as well as the Amicus Award from the

American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law The American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL) is a professional organization in the field of forensic psychiatry. History and organization It publishes the quarterly '' Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law''. The Acade ...

. Since 1995, the American Psychology-Law Society has awarded the Saleem Shah Early Career Award annually in his honor.

References

External links

Saleem A. Shah: The man and his imperative
''

Law and Human Behavior ''Law and Human Behavior'' is a bimonthly academic journal published by the American Psychology–Law Society. It publishes original empirical papers, reviews, and meta-analyses on how the law, legal system, and legal process relate to human behav ...

'', 1995, Thomas Grisso & Henry J. Steadman {{DEFAULTSORT:Shah, Saleem Alam 1931 births 1992 deaths Road incident deaths in Maryland Indian emigrants to the United States 20th-century American psychologists Scientists from Prayagraj University of Allahabad alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni National Institutes of Health people Forensic psychologists