Deliberate, gratuitous cruelty to others causes enormous suffering. We constantly hear of such cruelty in the form of torture, tyranny, imprisonment, bombings, and similar behavior, not to mention interpersonal acts of cruelty such as belittling others, teasing, bullying, racial prejudice, betrayal, and the like. This webinar will discuss some of the psychological, biological, and social sources of cruelty.
We will continue with an attempt to understand the psychology of sadism, genocidal behavior, and cruelty to animals. Dr. Corbett will then discuss the nature of torture, its psychological and political roots, and its effects on its victims and perpetrators. Finally a discussion of cruelty to oneself, including forms of self-torture such as masochism, self-mutilation, and the issue of self-induced pain found in some ascetic religious practices, religious martyrdom, and the controversial issue of stigmata.