The Concept and Mechanics of Natural Evil

BY GEORGE SALIS

EVIL CAN BE DEFINED AS something supernatural (pure evil), such as a dark force or a devil, or as something scientific (natural evil), relating to psychology. The former concept has been shown to increase retribution and hostility, the latter has demonstrated the opposite effect, leaning more toward restorative or rehabilitative justice, so it is paramount that we recognize pure evil as being scientifically groundless. The mechanics of natural evil will allow us to decrease the tendancy of criminals to reoffend through rehabilitation, as outlined by the framework of restorative justice.1

It has been argued that attempting to redefine evil out of a theological and religious framework and into a natural scientific paradigm is illusory and counterproductive2, 3 or that evil cannot be rigidly defined and is thus forever amorphous.4 On the contrary, to say that evil cannot exist outside the realm of metaphysics and theology or that it is unable to be defined objectively is to say that good cannot exist or be defined either. In principle, good acts could be measured as those that allow humans to flourish and, conversely, evil acts would be those that cause suffering. 5 In short, it is possible to measure actions on a gradient of good to evil based on the neurological effects they may or may not have on the brains of conscious beings. To call it evil is simply to distinguish the opposite end of a gradient that also contains good. And just as morality has been tied to theology but has now become secularized within humanism and other movements, so too can our concept of evil.

Diagnosing Evil

Having an understanding of evil begins with understanding morality, which has now been revealed to begin at a very early age.6 For example, in one of numerous studies conducted by Paul Bloom, et al. at their Yale laboratory, 6- and 10- month-old infants were shown a morality play in which a geometrical shape was either helped up a hill by another shape, or hindered. 7 When both the helping shape and hindering shape were placed on a tray and the infants were allowed to choose one, they overwhelmingly preferred the helpful shape.

In addition to developmental psychology, neuroscience has found that evil occurs in the brain, often in the form of psychopathy.8 Some psychopathic characteristics include a lack of empathy, compassion, anxiety, or guilt, a skewed theory of mind that results in a type of solipsism, a shortage of emotions, and a “willingness to do whatever it takes to satisfy their desires.”9 Simon Baron-Cohen argues that humans have an empathy circuit within the brain composed of 10 interconnected regions, and when the empathy circuit is faulty, an individual is unable to be empathetic and compassionate. This deficiency has been found to be related to both genetic and environmental causes, the latter being something such as an upbringing in which a child experiences severe physical and/or mental abuse. In the United States it is estimated that psychopaths make up approximately four percent of the general population,10 but nearly 25 percent of the prison population.11 Another form of empathy deficiency includes antisocial personality disorder, which is similar to psychopathy and is marked by characteristics such as impulsiveness, frequent lying, belligerence, and a lack of guilt. Antisocial personality disorder occurs in 47 percent of male prison populations and in 25 percent of female prison populations.12