Product Description

The book presents a compelling portrait of male and female psychopaths, based on 25 years of distinguished scientific research, providing solid information and suprising insights for anyone seeking to understand this devastating condition.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10317 in Books
• Published on: 1999-05-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 236 pages

Review

'Fascinating, chilling, and accurate... The world's most renowned psychopathy researcher has leavened sharp scientific insights with page-churning case descriptions in a rare publishing feat: a book that is both highly readable and highly reputable.' - John Monahan, PhD

From the Back Cover
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.

Customer Reviews

A fascinating and indispensible insight
Robert Hare has delivered a fascinating insight into the terrifying world of the psychopath. Without Conscience is aimed at the layperson, as opposed to the academic, and is pitched perfectly. It is detailed enough to properly explain and simple enough to be intelligible to the average reader.

A concise background to the condition sets the scene before the main traits of the psychopath are revealed and explained along with pertinent anecdotes to demonstrate how these traits operate in practice. Hare also explores psychopathy in children and young adults, charting their development to adulthood as well as the pernicious influence of non-criminal psychopaths in the workplace.

This book is of particular importance because it brings the danger of psychopaths to the everyday reader who may well suffer at their hands in future, if they have not already. It appears that the public are largely ignorant to the extent of the threat posed by psychopaths because of ignorance to what a psychopath is, how many of them are out there and their incredible ability to appear to be what they are not.

Hare provides some strategies to combat the effect of psychopaths at close hand. While less than cast-iron (due to the nature of the disorder, not Hare’s writing) they might provide some assistance to people trying to cope with, or escape from one.

Hare goes on to mention how research is developing strategies to limit the negative behaviour of psychopaths. I look forward to reading the results in years to come.

A highly recommended read for anyone looking for a beginners insight to psychopathy or has been victimised by a psychopath.

Second only to being taught by the great man himself.
This is an excellent resource book for those working in the criminal justice field and the lay person alike. With all the myths and hype surrounding the term "Psychopath" this text provides a realistic description of these disturbing and predatory individuals within our society. I defy anyone to read this and not wonder if it's someone they know...

Wow! Now I Can Understand Why He . . .
All too frequently, we're confronted by people who do and say things that are beyond belief in their negative impact. And we're left wondering how these people can sleep at night...how they can live with themselves after doing or saying these things. Dr. Hare's book "Without Conscience" answers the question brilliantly. They simply lack the kind of conscience normal people have. What a scary fact! Without resorting to titillating details of psychopathic depredations, Dr. Hare writes lucidly, authoritatively and with a readability normally reserved to best-selling novels. A must-read, especially in these times when psychopathic behavior has become, in some unfortunate quarters, "cool."