"In this century of mass violence with millions of people massacred around the world, we need to learn from the vital lessons contained in Dutton's wise analysis of the causes, consequences and solutions of these crimes against humanity." -- Philip G. Zimbardo, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Stanford University
Donald G. Dutton is Professor of Psychology at the University of British Columbia. A Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Dutton has researched violence in forensic and domestic situations across 30 years. He has led court-mandated treatment groups for violent offenders, interviewed spousal killers, and authored four books plus more than 100 articles on the psychological mechanisms of violence perpetrators. Dutton has appeared on Dateline NBC, Larry King Live, National Public Radio, and Good Morning America.
Dutton's volume….[i]s neither fictional prose nor cinematic image;
nor is it a study of a particular historical act. Rather, is is a
carefully documented work that leads the reader on a journey into
humanity's heart of darkness through a chapter-by-chapter account
of the brutal litanies of genocide, holocausts, military massacres,
lynchings, prison riots, rapes, serial killers, and wars of the
20th century….[W]hat makes Dutton's volume unique and….[e]ssential
reading for everyone is its straightforward, clear, and
unadulterated presentation of the panorama of brutality that marks
the 20th century….Dutton has written a book for our era that should
be read by everyone. It compels us to explore the human heart of
darkness.
*PsycCRITIQUES*
Describing his work as a marriage of social and forensic psychology
with history, Dutton aims to explain the psychological mechanisms
that generate extreme violence, including genocide, military
massacres, lynchings, and prison riots. Sadly, he finds that most
people are capable of visiting horrific violence against others,
especially in social situations wherein a subjectively defined
out-group becomes perceived as a threat to an in- group's view of
their place in the world. He also identifies B process dominance as
the mechanism by which individuals become inured to brutality.
However, he notes remaining limitations in psychological
explanations of extreme violence.
*Reference & Research Book News*
[A]n exceptionally well written text which highlights an area of
study which aggression and forensic researchers should take more
interest in to understand both what promotes mass violence and what
protects against it. I think Dutton has produced a book on this
topic worthy pf accolade, if not simply for highlighting the
importance of these issues and for presenting a detailed outline of
how such atrocities have presented across the medieval and modern
world. I hope that the text serves to stimulate empirical research
into this important area of emerging study, and would encourage the
disciplines of forensic psychology, sociology, and anthropology in
particular to take interest.
*International Society for Research on Aggression*
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