Psychopathy Unmasked: The Rise and Fall of a Dangerous Diagnosis

by Rasmus Rosenberg Larsen

Overview

Why our fascination with psychopaths is scientifically wrongheaded, and how the criminal justice system has misused the controversial science of psychopathy.

Psychopathy is a widely acknowledged personality disorder associated with callous unemotional traits and antisocial behaviors. Psychopathic persons are described as dangerous predators incapable of empathy and moral intuition, and while they are believed to make up only around 1 percent of the general population, forensic experts claim they are disproportionately responsible for the majority of violent crimes. Today, psychopathy assessments are being widely used in the legal system to inform a variety of judicial decisions. In Psychopathy Unmasked, Rasmus Rosenberg Larsen provides a critical rebuttal of psychopathy and its legal use, scrutinizing central claims about the diagnosis that have traditionally served to justify its role in the criminal justice system.

It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of offenders undergo a psychopathy assessment each year in North America. This book surveys and discusses contemporary developments in psychopathy research where studies have consistently shown that psychopathic persons, contrary to mainstream beliefs, are not meaningfully more dangerous than, or psychologically different from, ordinary non-psychopathic criminals. Based on these disqualifying findings, Larsen argues that we should end the use of psychopathy assessments in the legal system.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780262552202
Publisher:	MIT Press
Publication date:	06/17/2025
Pages:	328
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.96(d)

About the Author

Rasmus Rosenberg Larsen is Assistant Professor of Forensic Epistemology and Philosophy of Science at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Senior Scientist at the National Center for Ontological Research. His research has appeared in journals like The Lancet: Psychiatry; Psychology, Public Policy, and Law; and Philosophical Psychology.

Table of Contents

Contents
Introduction: The Problem of Psychopathy 1
Chapter 1: The Rise of Psychopathy Research and Its Legal Influence 19
Chapter 2: How Dangerous Are Psychopaths? 54
Chapter 3: Are Psychopaths Untreatable? 80
Chapter 4: Are Psychopaths Morally Colorblind? 119
Chapter 5: The Psychopathic Brain 163
Chapter 6: Psychopathy Theories as Falsified Explanations 193
Chapter 7: Psychopathy as a Zombie Idea 239
Chapter 8: A Dangerous Diagnosis 271
Conclusion: The Fall of a Dangerous Diagnosis 307

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Larsen’s Psychopathy Unmasked challenges everything we thought we knew about the so-called psychopathic personality disorder. It has the potential to revolutionize forensic psychology research and practice like few other books before it.”
—Shadd Maruna, University of Liverpool; author of Making Good: How Ex-Convicts Reform and Rebuild Their Lives

“There are countless books on psychopathy, but Psychopathy Unmasked is the first scholarly book to provide a critical analysis of psychopathy. Larsen skillfully challenges what we think we know about psychopathy by rebutting myths with sound scientific knowledge.”
—David DeMatteo, Professor of Psychology and Professor of Law, Drexel University

“A tour-de-force accounting of the abuses of the prejudicial ‘psychopath’ diagnosis in court, this book additionally debunks several sacred cows in the research community—ultimately questioning whether psychopathy should be considered a legitimate scientific concept.”
—John F. Edens, Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University