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Last broadcast on Mon, 2 May 2011, 09:00 on BBC Radio 4.
Synopsis
Andrew Marr explores how far empathy, or the lack of it, can explain cruelty. Simon Baron-Cohen proposes turning the focus away from evil or specific personality disorders, and to understand human behaviour by studying the 'empathy circuit' in the brain. Gwen Adshead, a forensic psychotherapist at Broadmoor Hospital and the crime writer Val McDermid question whether this would help in their line of work, and the philosopher Julian Baggini tries to pin down what we mean when we talk about the self.
Producer: Katy Hickman.
SIMON BARON-COHEN
Simon Baron-Cohen is Professor at Cambridge University in the fields of psychology and psychiatry. He is also the Director of Cambridge’s internationally-renowned Autism Research Centre. His latest book is Zero Degrees of Empathy: A New Theory of Human Cruelty (published by Allen Lane).
GWEN ADSHEAD
Gwen Adshead is a consultant forensic psychotherapist at Broadmoor Hospital, a high-security psychiatric hospital in Berkshire. She is presently writing a book about evil.
JULIAN BAGGINI
Julian Baggini is editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Philosophers’ Magazine. His latest book is The Ego Trick: What Does It Mean To Be You? (published by Granta).
VAL McDERMID
Val McDermid is a bestselling crime writer. Her latest book in the Tony Hill/Carol Jordan series will be published in September.
Broadcast
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Mon 2 May 201109:00
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