Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us

Over the years, I have read heaps of books on true crime, I have even been reading the DSM-IV (Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders used by psychiatrists all over the world) Was a hard one to track down but I found a second hand copy going on eBay that I payed an absolute fortune for. I have this morbid fascination with the real life horrors. The people that have no conscience, the people that can kill their children, harm their animals or even cheat on their partners repeatedly as if they are just going out for a burger. This book is a brilliant study and explanation of psychopaths or otherwise known as sociopaths, those that cannot feel anything for others. No remorse, no empathy, no love. They are physically and mentally incapable of it and they walk among us each and every day. This book goes into detail about these people, their symptoms and their characteristics so you may be able to spot one and miss betting conned by them. This book had me shaking! Because its REAL! I can read your crazy killers, your inbred monsters, even your zombies but throw a true story in my face and I really see the horror. The horror that someone else experienced and that someone right now is experiencing as I write this review. The most horrible monster on the planet is us humans. How we treat each other, our planet, our animals and how egotistical and money hungry we really are. And this book covers a certain type of these people that fill up at least one quarter of the prison society. Psychopaths. The book has some unbelievable true accounts (yes, well aware of the use of language there in that paradox) as they honestly would be unbelievable if not coming from someone who has been in this industry for the last few decades. This man helped invent the test that determines if you have a psychopath on your hands or not. Beginning his career in British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, he started in prisons. He then moved up the chain and became a leader in the field. Also known as sociopaths, as many believe that social factors create these emotionally void people, he writes a easy to follow, filled with studies and interviews book on the subject. Some terrifying accounts I read were that of prisoners that tampered with his car, making it so these things would gradually give out with every intention to kill the driver inside at the time. Luckily, they didn't. The book has the mothers that kill their children and their careless words after the incident that shows you that they couldn't care less. Of how people manipulate and lie, even when caught out, they continue to lie or worse still, deny the lie ever came out of them. They don't care if they are busted, they don't care if they are put away and they don't care if they are stealing your grandfather's only present to you before he died. They simply only care about their next rush, their next free ticket, their next manipulation. They don't make friends, they make acquaintances to use up and spit out like pawns. Because they don't know how to get attached to anyone. The book is filled with the bastard next door, the men that feed of lonely hearts, how they get into your home, your mind, how they suck people dry and how the innocent people are often not believed at all as these people seem to delightful, so normal, so wonderful to be around. They are so good at playing the part that they are quite often not even noticed until it is too late and they have already stung you and fled the scene. Fraud artists, criminals, rapists, animal and child abusers, murderers, and even arsonists may fall into the category, with testing and diagnosis, the scariest thing about all this, is that you cannot do anything about it but just stay away from them. The law often sets them free and the youngest of them, the children, are often protected by parents, only to grow into stronger, more dangerous psychopaths that are set free into society to burn more bridges and break more hearts. The book does its best to help warn you what to look out for but at the same time, it explains how good these people are at pretending they are something they are not so that even himself has been fooled by one before! A fascinating read about a certain group of people that are more common and more in your life than you think. They may not be as drastic as murderers or child abusers but they are there, waiting for their opportunity to have some fun, get a fill of entertainment, use someone up or even score a few bucks to make their lives easier. I loved the book and although the later chapters weren't as interesting as it focused more on origins and causes which are so hard to determine, I still feel better knowing that sometimes it isn't just me when I really feel that someone is emotionally retarded. They very well may be someone that is incapable of it and sadly, their numbers are rising. Awesome book, check it out if you love true crime and psychology. I cannot recommend it enough.

Without Conscience - Eye-opening book for victims of psychopaths Review by Avraham Azrieli (author of The Mormon Candidate and other novels) For lovers of horror films and novels, the image of a psychopath is immortally attached to blood, gore, rape and depravity. But world-leading psychopathy expert Robert D. Hare, PhD, serves us with a chilling yet fascinating book about psychopaths who walk among us every day. They might not be eating their victims' flesh, but are nonetheless actively ruining the lives of those whose misfortune is to be family members, business associates, or random targets of a psychopath's financial, emotional, or sexual abuse. "Without Conscience" is based on decades of research, sharing with the readers the concepts, principles, and checklists used by mental-health professionals in diagnosing psychopaths. But rather than a dry, scholarly book, this is an exciting page-turner, filled with breathtaking examples of real patients, quoting their coldblooded words as they described truly shocking actions - without remorse! The point about psychopaths is: They're not really 'haters' or passionate evil mongers. As opposed to other harmful or troubled individuals, psychopaths are distinguished because they have feelings only for themselves. Their view of the world is dominated by total egotism, lack of remorse, blindness to others' feelings, denial of personal responsibility, disregard to society 'rules,' and pathological lying to justify bad acts or shift responsibility to others, often to the victims themselves. Interesting yet unnerving is the fact that psychopaths are often charming and intelligent. They know all the right things to say, but it's all part of a clever puzzle, forming a mask of normalcy. In fact, they don't feel love or hate as normal people do. Psychopaths see others only as useful possessions, as sources of goods and services -- money, home, food, social status, sex, etc. Because they flaunt the rules, they can be very exciting partners for a while, until reality hits and the costs of being with the psychopath becomes unbearable. This one-dimensional perspective psychopaths have on the surrounding world--egocentric, caring only for 'Number One'---is the reason psychopaths can cause so much agony to family and other victims, but feel no regrets or guilt. Psychopaths actually don't feel empathy for others. They don't really 'see' other peoples' pain, even though they often make a credible show of deep regrets and tearful apologies in order to regain what they need from others. While this is not a self-help book, it provides life-saving information for anyone victimized by a ruthless charmer. Hare provides checklists for diagnosis by mental health professional, who should be consulted and engaged for proper diagnosis. But for the layperson, the first indication that you might be dealing with psychopathy (and not other anti-social behavior) is brazen lying. Psychopaths often say things that are clearly untrue or self-contradictory, but they speak with total conviction and appear to really believe in the lies they utter. This total conviction causes victims to hesitate about confronting the lies because, ironically, the victims are usually normal and capable of empathy, which means they don't want to hurt a person's feelings by accusing him of lying. In addition, normal people seek to avoid conflict. Ironically, with psychopaths, such delays inevitably lead to worse conflicts. At any event, when the behavior become unbearably egregious and the lies are called on, the psychopath will usually change the subject shamelessly, come up with other lies, or, if pushed into a corner, become irate or violent. While many psychopaths victimize others financially or criminally, the condition is especially relevant in dealing with domestic abuse. If a wife/husband/child abuser is a psychopath, it means that this person is not treatable and will not change, unlike a person who's driven to abusive behavior by upbringing, culture, drugs/alcohol, or mental illness. This distinction--whether there's any hope of real, positive, and lasting change of behavior--is obviously the key factor in deciding how to resolve such heartbreaking situations. I recommend Robert D. Hare's book "Without Conscience" for anyone interested in human psychology--and particularly for anyone dealing with an abusive relationship. It's an easy read, a captivating book, rich with true stories of real-life patients.

Coincidentally reading this book around the time I watched the documentary 'Trump: An American Dream' is the most chilling experience I've had in a while.

Robert Hare rend compte de plus de 30 ans de recherches et des résultats de ses travaux. Depuis son premier stage comme psychologue en prison, alors jeune universitaire inexpérimenté en route vers un doctorat, confronté pour la première fois à un psychopathe, jusqu'au chercheur à la tête d'une équipe, mettant au point des batteries de tests et d'évaluation du degré de psychopathie, tout un monde s'ouvre au travers de cet ouvrage. La réalité psychologique qu'il décrit fait souvent froid dans le dos tant l'absence d'émotions, d'empathie, de remords chez les psychopathes atteint des niveaux que je n'imaginais pas auparavant. L'ouvrage s'ouvre sur le récit de son premier stage en prison, durant lequel il a été confronté à un psychopathe qui a voulu l'utiliser, le manipuler et sans doute, mais l'auteur n'a pas de preuve, essayé de le tuer en sabotant sa voiture qu'il avait laissé à l'atelier mécanique de la prison, où ledit psychopathe travaillait en tant que détenu. Ce récit permet de rentrer de plein pied avec le regard de celui qui n'a pas conscience de cet autre monde et ne sait pas se protéger. Le profil psychologique du psychopathe est décrit de manière très précise et on sent que l'auteur connait son sujet. Il s'agit là de vraie vulgarisation : pas d'une description superficielle par quelqu'un qui masque son ignorance, ou son manque de maîtrise du sujet. L'auteur est un scientifique qui sait de quoi il parle, et si son propos est toujours accessible, il donne des références et fait des remarques qui permettent d'approfondir et nourrir sa réflexion. Il met d'ailleurs en garde contre un diagnostic rapide et abusif porté par un non professionnel. Cet ouvrage change des livres qui trainent un peu partout sur les pervers narcissiques, les harceleurs, les manipulateurs, etc. mais qui ne définissent pas objectivement et précisément de quoi ils parlent et font des amalgames très critiquables laissant penser au lecteur qu'il est simple et facile de cerner ce type de profil et les repérer dans son entourage. Ce n'est pas le cas. Un psychopathe est une personne qui présente plusieurs traits de personnalités, et un seul ne suffit pas. Cet appel à la prudence est important car la tentation est grande de traiter de psychopathe toute personne avec qui nous avons des problèmes relationnels. Les traits de la psychopathie se déploient sur deux axes complémentaires : émotions et relations. Sur le plan émotionnel un psychopathe est : baratineur et superficiel, égocentrique et grandiose, sans remords ni culpabilité, trompeur et manipulateur, vide d'émotions. Sur le plan relationnel les symptômes sont : impulsivité, faibles contrôles du comportement, besoin d'excitation, absence de responsabilité, problèmes de comportement tôt, un comportement antisocial à l'age adulte. L'auteur prend le temps de détailler, expliquer chacun des traits avec beaucoup de sérieux et de rigueur. Il émaille ses définitions d'exemples tirés d'interviews menées par lui et son équipe, d'extraits de journaux ou procès, d'extraits de romans. Cette alternance de théorie et cas concrets est particulièrement réussie. Les interviews de tueurs en série font parfois froid dans le dos, et je me suis surpris à éclater de rire tant les propos semblent décalés et d'un autre monde que le mien. Le rire est un mécanisme de défense, j'ai pu le constater à la lecture de l'ouvrage. Hare analyse les causes possibles qui sont selon lui un mélange de biologie et d'environnement. En tout état de cause, ce n'est clairement pas un problème d'éducation même si des environnements favorisent la psychopathie. Là encore, sa prudence et sa rigueur scientifiques font plaisir à lire. Il pose la question des traitements possibles tout en restant pessimiste et finit par des conseils sur la meilleure façon de gérer de telles personnes que nous sommes tous amenés à rencontrer un jour ou l'autre dans notre vie. En effet, les cas de tueurs en série sont la partie émergée de l'iceberg et tous les psychopathes ne sont pas des tueurs, ils sévissent parfois dans les grandes entreprises, la politique, les associations et font des ravages. Un livre fascinant et très riche, passionnant tant par ses apports théoriques que par les témoignages qu'il réunit.

Una utile lettura per chiunque abbia a che fare con soggetti con psicopatici. Contiene anche sezioni su come evitare di finire nella rete e su come limitare i danni.

Very explanatory descriptions on person those who does not have conscience.

Robert Hare's book is a must-read for anyone interested in psychopathy. A leading expert in the field, Hare provides rare insight into the mind of the criminal psychopath, covering the biological, psychological, and social considerations for the aetiology of this disorder. Research has most certainly moved on since Hare wrote this book in 1993 but it is still relevant, and a great place to build a base-level knowledge of the subject. For further, more recent reading, I highly recommend The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey Into the Dark Side of the Brain and The Psychopath Whisperer: Inside the Minds of Those Without a Conscience . Whilst Hare, creator of the PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist - Revised), has been criticised for his research, in particular because it is based predominantly on criminal and violent psychopaths, he does not profess to have a wide understanding of non-criminal/violent psychopaths, and in fact admits that little research is available in this area because where there is an abundance of the disorder in prisons, it is less easy to spot a psychopath living happily amongst the rest of the 'normal' population - a fair point I'd say. Without Conscience takes the reader through the history of Hare's work, including some funny anecdotes and precarious situations to keep a heavy subject readable. It's not a hefty read at 220 pages (not including chapter notes and references) and it was so fascinating I read it in two sittings. Hare is excellent at recommending further reading; I finished the book with a full page of notes and web links pointing to additional research. Ultimately, I finished the book feeling educated and ready to learn more, and with a broad understanding of psychopath both as a disorder and the effects it can have on others. This book is not a coping mechanism for those affected by psychopaths, but is an excellent research or academic resource, but doubles as a recreational read - rare in a book. Like most authors on the subject of psychopathy, Hare is fairly deterministic in his theories, but less so than those that lean more towards the biological explanations for the disorder, so you will receive a relatively balanced theory. If psychopathy is a topic of interest to you, then this book is vital to your reading - having built on the work of Hervey Cleckley, often referred to as the father of psychopathy, this book will fill in the missing pieces of the puzzle. Highly recommended - an excellent piece of work.