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Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us (Paperback)
by Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
| Category:
Psychopathy, Psychology, Non-fiction |
| Market price: ¥ 198.00
MSL price:
¥ 178.00
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Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
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 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
This is an exciting, highly informative and truly frightening account of the nature and behavior of psychopaths. |
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Author: Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
Publisher: The Guilford Press
Pub. in: January, 1999
ISBN: 1572304510
Pages: 236
Measurements: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BA00334
Other information: The first edition
ISBN-13: 978-1572304512
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- MSL Picks -
This work of pop psychology merits attention because Hare has pioneered in the field of psychopathy, which is still in a formative state. Psychopaths, he asserts, are neither sociopaths nor psychotics but rather are people who are well aware of the difference between right and wrong and ignore the distinction. Additionally, they are egocentric and have no feelings of empathy, guilt or remorse. They view others as potential victims, and they leave a trail of unhappiness behind them in those who have succumbed to their deceitful manipulations. Whether nature or nurture underlies their aberration is still uncertain; they are almost impossible to treat, according to Hare, because they are convinced that they have no psychological or emotional problems. Although, as he notes, much of the literature on psychopathy is scientific, Hare here presents material in a form accessible to lay readers.
- From quoting Publishers Weekly
Target readers:
General readers
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- Better with -
Better with
The Passion of the Western Mind
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Robert D. Hare, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Canada.
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From Publisher
Most people are both repelled and intrigued by the images of cold-blooded, conscienceless murderers that increasingly populate our movies, television programs, and newspaper headlines. With their flagrant criminal violation of society's rules, serial killers like Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy are among the most dramatic examples of the psychopath. Individuals with this personality disorder are fully aware of the consequences of their actions and know the difference between right and wrong, yet they are terrifyingly self-centered, remorseless, and unable to care about the feelings of others. Perhaps most frightening, they often seem completely normal to unsuspecting targets - and they do not always ply their trade by killing. Presenting a compelling portrait of these dangerous men and women based on 25 years of distinguished scientific research, Dr. Robert D. Hare vividly describes a world of con artists, hustlers, rapists, and other predators who charm, lie, and manipulate their way through life. Are psychopaths mad, or simply bad? How can they be recognized? And how can we protect ourselves? This book provides solid information and surprising insights for anyone seeking to understand this devastating condition.
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Introduction
1. "Experiencing" the Psychopath
2. Focusing the Picture
3. The Profile: Feelings and Relationships
4. The Profile: Lifestyle
5. Internal Controls: The Missing Piece
6. Crime: The Logical Choice
7. White-Collar Psychopaths
8. Words from an Overcoat Pocket
9. Flies in the Web
10. The Roots of the Problem
11. The Ethics of Labeling
12. Can Anything Be Done?
13. A Survival Guide
Epilogue |
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| View all 10 comments |
John Monahan, Ph.D. (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-30 00:00>
Fascinating, chilling, and accurate... The world's most renowned psychopathy researcher has leavened sharp scientific insights with page-turning case descriptions in a rare publishing feat: a book that is both highly readable and highly reputable. |
Canadian Psychology (MSL quote), Canada
<2006-12-30 00:00>
The book is written in a sincere and easily readable fashion for a general audience. The research and clinical literature is described in nontechnical terms with a minimum of jargon, making the work accessible to a wide audience. |
Kirkus Reviews (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-30 00:00>
A fascinating, if terrifying, look at psychopaths: the often charming, glib, sane-seeming people who rape and murder - and rip - off S & Ls - without a second's thought because they utterly lack the emotions that add up to the defining human characteristic of conscience. Hare (Psychology/University of British Columbia) gives thumbnail sketches of one psychopath after another - from John Wayne Gacy, the serial murderer who liked to entertain children as "Pogo the Clown,'' to mere kids who torture and kill not only animals but other children. The author isolates the essential traits of the psychopath by using a "psychopath checklist,'' a system of assessment he's devised during ten years of clinical practice with psychopaths in Canadian prisons. Again and again, Hare's rating system has verified a definition devised in 1941 by psychologist Hervey Cleckley, who concluded that psychopaths lack all personal values: "It is impossible for [the psychopath] to take even a slight interest in the tragedy or joy or the striving of humanity as presented in serious literature or art,'' Cleckley wrote. "He is also indifferent to all these matters in life itself.'' Hare cites provocative new evidence that the brain function of psychopaths may differ from that of normal adults: It seems that the speech of psychopaths is controlled by both hemispheres rather than by just the left, as is typical. In addition, "neither side of the [psychopath's brain] is typical in the processes of emotion.'' While all the implications of psychopathic brain function remain unclear, Hare makes a strong case for the view that psychopaths are born, not made - and that, crucially, little can be done to unmake them. While advocating the firm training of psychopaths to consider rationally the outcome of their actions - substituting head for heart - the author warns that denying the incorrigible nature of these cold, calculating beings will allow even more of them to prey on society. A chilling, eye-opening report - and a call to action. |
A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-07-04 00:00>
This is an excellent introduction to the world of the psychopath. The checklist is an excellent diagnostic tool. I found myself wondering, if the brain scanning work Dr. Hare describes (Chapter 8) is accurate, why we don't skip all the therapy & subjective analysis and just wire 'em up?
I would recommend this book as a good basic introduction for the lay person, and an excellent resource for any person in the field of couples counseling, premarital counseling, or any other sort of relationship therapy. Perhaps if people could recognize the signs of psychopathic behavior early enough, their lives would not be destroyed by sick relationships. The best defense against psychopaths is to recognize them for what they are and not get tangled in their web. Here is what left me feeling the most hopeless: the book had no real good advice for what to do when you realize that the person you've chosen as a best friend, spouse, business partner, etc. is a psychopath, long after you've entangled your life & fortunes with him/her.
This book left me saddened. There are people in my life I have tried to understand, hoping that if I could only "get where they're coming from", I could develop some empathy & caring for them instead of being utterly repelled. But, if, as Dr. Hare states, Psychopaths are not curable or treatable, what's the point? It's hopeless. Our society is not one in which some authority figure could administer tests, prove that the person is not curable and is incapable of rehabilitation, and then put them to death. For good or ill, that's just not the way we do things. In the case of proven psychopaths, I sort of wish it was. |
View all 10 comments |
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