Evil

Shaw (criminology & psychology, Univ. Coll. London; The Memory Illusion) presents a spirited challenge to the traditional meaning of "evil." Contrasting scientific research findings with belief systems described as outmoded, chapters cover an array of bad behavior, including murder, sexual deviance, and paedohebephiles, as well as social phenomena such as Nazism, terrorism, and destructive forms of groupthink. A unique outlook on "creepiness" is also provided. The author argues that human behavior is nuanced and wide ranging, even in the case of such transgressions. But rather than applying moral judgments to such conduct, society's focus should shift to the promotion of prosocial values and individual heroism. Rejecting the label of moral relativism, she accepts the reality of harmful behavior (e.g., rape, genocide) and argues that science can aid in mitigating its effects. The volume concludes with extensive notes, and, as a whole, could complement classics on deviance such as Kai T. Erickson's Wayward Puritans. Though the tone is informal and direct, there's a steady litany of research findings that may potentially overwhelm general readers. VERDICT A stimulating and provocative study that may be suitable for cutting-edge book discussion groups and ardent students of deviant behavior.--Antoinette Brinkman, formerly with Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., Evansville

December 1, 2018
An academic plumbs the compelling science of nefarious behavior.In this culmination of 13 years of work as "a student, lecturer and researcher," Shaw (Criminology and Psychology/Univ. Coll. London; The Memory Illusion: Why You Might Not Be Who You Think You Are, 2016) offers an accessible approach to the concept of evil, encouraging readers to "rethink and reshape what it means to be bad." Avoiding the pitfalls of being overly encyclopedic, the author focuses her expertise on using science and rational thought to try to explain why we do terrible things to each other. However, she writes, "heinous crimes are generally seen as more of a circus show than something we should try to understand." Following her astute psychological profiles of Hitler and Jeffrey Dahmer and their hideously corrupt moral decision-making, the author turns her attention to the concept of killing. She writes, "while on the one hand we condemn murder, many of us also fantasize about it." Curious readers will be riveted by Shaw's deliberate, rational discussions of such taboos as cyberbullying, homicide, pedophilia, and the ways money and power corrupt the souls of formerly good men and women. A monumental task for the less tolerant, she implores us not to "dehumanize those who dehumanize others." However, in situations such as that of the price-gouging pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli, generating sympathy can be next to impossible. Readers acutely attuned to their own sexual self-expression may be especially intrigued by the chapter on an erotic smorgasbord of "wildly aberrant" taboo paraphilia. Shaw's intellectual scrutiny is bolstered by statistical data, experiments, and academic research studies from neuroscientists, who underscore the true scientific nature of wrongdoing and wickedness through the human experience. Capably written with a smooth mix of scientific insight and theoretical thought, the book will hopefully inspire empathy and understanding rather than hysteria and condemnation.A consistently fascinating journey into the darker sides of the human condition that will push on the boundaries of readers' comfort zones.

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