Book description
Psychopath. No sooner is the word out than images of murderers,
rapists, suicide bombers and gangsters flash across our minds.
But unlike their box-office counterparts, not all psychopaths are
violent, or even criminal. Far from it. In fact, they have a lot of
good things going for them. Psychopaths are fearless, confident,
charismatic, ruthless and focused - qualities tailor-made for success
in twenty-first century society.
In this groundbreaking adventure into the world of psychopaths,
renowned psychologist Kevin Dutton reveals that there is a 'scale of
madness' along which we all sit. Incorporating the latest advances in
brain scanning and neuroscience, he shows that there is a fine line
separating a brilliant surgeon and a serial killer, illustrating the
spectrum of psychopathy with some insightful and startling case studies.
The Wisdom of Psychopaths is an intellectual rollercoaster
ride that combines original scientific research with bold
on-the-ground reporting from secret monasteries, Special Forces
training camps and rarefied psychopath wings of maximum-security
hospitals. Provocative, engaging and surprising at every turn, The
Wisdom of Psychopaths reveals a shocking truth: beneath the hype
and the popular characterisation, psychopaths have something to teach us.
Dr Kevin Dutton teaches social psychology at the University of
Cambridge, where he is Research Fellow at the Faraday Institute of
Science and Religion at St Edmund's College. He regularly publishes in
leading international scientific journals and speaks at conferences
around the world. He is the author of the acclaimed
Flipnosis: The
Art of Split-Second Persuasion
.
