Without Conscience by Robert D. Hare

“Without Conscience" by Robert D. Hare is one aimed towards making the general public aware of the many psychopaths that inhabit the world we live in. Throughout the book Hare exposes the reader to a number of short stories; all with an emphasis on a characteristic of psychopaths. Hare makes the claim that close monitoring of psychopathy are vital if we ever hope to gain a hold over Psychopathy- A disorder that affects not only the individual but also society itself. He also indicates one of the reasons for this book is order to correctly treat these individuals we have to be able to correctly identify who meets the criteria. His ultimate goal with the text is to alleviate some of the confusion in the increase in criminal activity by determining how my of this is a result of Psychopathy.

Hare sets the stage by introducing us to his first encounter with a psychopath; an inmate referred to as "Ray". Rays introduction to Hare's life began with the instantly climatic interactions of pulling a knife in Hare's face. Hare did not know that incident was a test. From that day forth, Ray continued to wreak havoc on Hare's life with ridiculous favors even after he left the facility and was working for an educational institution. Though this first short story we are introduced to the first of many characteristics of the psychopath; charm. The distinct ability to gain the trust and affections of those around them is a characteristic that is strongly stressed throughout the opening of the book. Many people come forth with tales of individuals they encountered who charmed them out over nearly anything from finances to peace of mind.

Psychopaths could not be discovered through traditional psychological testing because such test required self-r...

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...res of the psychopaths and gives the reader various examples of these individuals playing out these characteristics in everyday life. A widely used checklist is provided so the reader can get a wide spanning view of what is accounted for when scoring a psychopath. This form of research is very important within the deceitfulness of this population; it allows the professional to ignore their words and examine their actions. Hare made it clear that it is not uncommon for there to be an emotional and verbal disconnect from their actions. With virtually no emotional functioning psychopaths feel no remorse for the offenses that they commit and it is very important that we work towards using the opportunities we have to study and assist these populations; not only for them but for ourselves.

Works Cited

Robert, H. (1993). Without conscience. Guilford Publications.