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The Act is an attempt to meet the public demand for dealing with certain persons who are a danger to the community and does not attempt to define syndromes of clinical or psychic phenomena. The problem is social and legal to a greater extent than medical or psychological, and there should be no objection to lawful extensions of the meanings of the words. The term 'moral imbecile' has been employed for the following types: (1) For the definitely feeble-minded in whom criminal conduct has been prominent. (2) For higher grade cases of feebleness of mind whose general conduct showed a lack of wisdom. (3) For cases showing signs of definite organic lesions the onset of which had been followed by changes in conduct but, in some, by relatively little impairment of intelligence. (4) For cases of definite or incipient psychosis with or without lowering of intelligence. (5) For fairly intelligent individuals of the psychoneurotic type. (6) For certain cases of sexual perversion without obvious mental disturbance. (7) For certain unstable individuals with moderate retardation in intelligence but with childish emotional reactions to reality, corresponding to Burt's 'temperamental defectives'. (8) For ordinary recidivists, which cases should not be classified as moral imbeciles. (9) For certain callous, ruthless individuals not lacking in intelligence. This group is typical of the definition. This wide reading of the Act by the medical and judicial authorities makes it possible to certify cases which might be cured by psychotherapy, and to label as permanent moral defect symptoms of temporary suppressions or repressions. Shrubsall believes the essence of the defect to be lack of feeling tone, which keeps the social reactions at an infantile level and checks the action of the herd instinct.