The Lucifer Effect

The world was shocked by the horrific abuses by ordinary young American soldiers of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison. Three British soldiers were also tried for similar charges.

Using the example of his classic Stanford Prison Experiment to explain how such abuse could have happened, Philip Zimbardo describes how he placed a random group of students together, calling some 'guards' and some 'prisoners' and how his study soon spiralled out of control and had to be terminated after only 5 days, as the 'guards' became increasingly power-mad and even sadistic.

'The Lucifer Effect' examines how the human mind has the capacity to be infinitely caring or selfish,kind or cruel, creative or destructive, and the ways in which the goodness of humanity can be transformed into bestiality. How well do we really known ourselves and how confident are we that we would resist and challenge an immoral or illegal system o oppression? Can we see our world accurately and without self-justification and recognise our own evil?

In this fascinating book, the author also shows that prisons of concrete and steel mirror the social prisons we create and enforce through poverty, racism, sexism and other forms of social injustice. We also build prisons for others through our indifference, disdain, ridicule, bullying and domination -- and even for ourselves through our own self-doubts and self-criticism.