Evil - by Julia Shaw

About the Book

Dr. Julia Shaw, a criminal psychologist uses the latest scientific research to offer a more enlightened and nuanced explanation for why people behave so badly and how we can prevent evil acts by understanding more profoundly how such acts come about - and what truly makes us evil.

Book Synopsis

What is it about evil that we find so compelling? From our obsession with serial killers to violence in pop culture, we seem inescapably drawn to the stories of monstrous acts and the aberrant people who commit them. But evil, Dr. Julia Shaw argues, is all relative, rooted in our unique cultures. What one may consider normal, like sex before marriage, eating meat, or being a banker, others find abhorrent. And if evil is only in the eye of the beholder, can it be said to exist at all? In Evil, Shaw uses case studies from academia, examples from and popular culture, and anecdotes from everyday life to break down complex information and concepts like the neuroscience of evil, the psychology of bloodlust, and workplace misbehavior. This is a wide-ranging exploration into a fascinating, darkly compelling subject.

Review Quotes

"A consistently fascinating journey into the darker sides of the human condition that will push on the boundaries of readers' comfort zones."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"Julia Shaw has crafted a brilliant panorama that elucidates humanity's dark side in her masterpiece, Evil. This science-based foundation for studying the minds of sadists, mass murderers, freaks and creeps, as well the new role of tech in promoting evil is presented in a totally engaging fashion. For me, it is the other bookend with The Lucifer Effect for understanding the many evils around us (and sometimes in us) along with the monumental evil of mass apathy of doing nothing when we should stand up, speak out, and take wise and effective actions as Everyday Heroes."--Philip Zimbardo "Ph.D. Professor Emeritus, Stanford University, author of The Lucifer Effect"

"Stimulating and provocative."-- "Library Journal"

About the Author

Julia Shaw is an honorary research associate at the University College London. Born in Germany and raised in Canada, she has a MS in psychology and law and a PhD in psychology from the University of British Columbia. She is a regular contributor to Scientific American.