Includes index and bibliography.

"An original and scientifically rigorous exploration of the darkest recesses of the human mind. Darkness lurks in all of us. If not all of us do evil, we all contemplate it. What can science teach us about why humans think and do bad things? And what do our reactions to deviance teach us about ourselves? Dr. Julia Shaw, a criminal psychologist, deals with the question of evil constantly. She comes from a world where people hunt monsters; where the police, lawyers and the public collectively take to their pitchforks and search for threats to society. In Evil, she 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. Drawing together science, psychology and philosophy, Dr. Shaw grapples with thorny dilemmas from "Would I kill baby Hitler?" to "Why do I want to murder my spouse?" to give a better understanding of the world, yourself and your Google search history."--From publisher.