Includes bibliographical references (pages 375-453) and index.

Introduction -- 1. Basic Instincts: How Violence Evolved -- 2. Seeds of Sin: The Genetic Basis to Crime -- 3. Murderous Minds: How Violent Brains Malfunction -- 4. Cold-Blooded Killers: The Autonomic Nervous System -- 5. Broken Brains: The Neuroanatomy of Violence -- 6. Natural-Born Killers: Early Health Influences -- 7. A Recipe for Violence: Malnutrition, Metals, and Mental Health -- 8. The Biosocial Jigsaw Puzzle: Putting the Pieces Together -- 9. Curing Crime: Biological Interventions -- 10. The Brain on Trial: Legal Implications -- 11. The Future: Where Will Neurocriminology Take Us? -- Notes -- Index.

With a 4-page full-color insert, and black-and-white illustrations throughoutWhy do some innocent kids grow up to become cold-blooded serial killers? Is bad biology partly to blame? For more than three decades Adrian Raine has been researching the biological roots of violence and establishing neurocriminology, a new field that applies neuroscience techniques to investigate the causes and cures of crime. In The Anatomy of Violence, Raine dissects the criminal mind with a fascinating, readable, and far-reaching scientific journey into the body of evidence that reveals the brain to be a key culprit in crime causation. Raine documents from genetic research that the seeds of sin are sown early in life, giving rise to abnormal physiological functioning that cultivates crime. Drawing on classical case studies of well-known killers in history—including Richard Speck, Ted Kaczynski, and Henry Lee Lucas—Raine illustrates how impairments to brain areas controlling our ability to experience fear, make good decisions, and feel guilt predispose us to violence. He contends that killers can actually be coldhearted: something as simple as a low resting heart rate can give rise to violence. But arguing that biology is not destiny, he also sketches out provocative new biosocial treatment approaches that can change the brain and prevent violence. Finally, Raine tackles the thorny legal and ethical dilemmas posed by his research, visualizing a futuristic brave new world where our increasing ability to identify violent offenders early in life might shape crime-prevention policies, for good and bad. Will we sacrifice our notions of privacy and civil rights to identify children as potential killers in the hopes of helping both offenders and victims? How should we punish individuals with little to no control over their violent behavior? And should parenting require a license? The Anatomy of Violence offers a revolutionary appraisal of our understanding of criminal offending, while also raising provocative questions that challenge our core human values of free will, responsibility, and punishment.From the Hardcover edition.