The Science of Hate

Review An important read, combining an expert use of data with moving, personal storytelling. A key text for how we live now. -- David Baddiel A truly insightful book that can help us all understand why hate can overpower us. It is wise, disarming, persuasive and compassionate. -- Robin Ince Powerful . . . From personal histories to broader social patterns, from individual criminal cases to the latest neuroscience and psychology, Matthew Williams' brilliant forensic dissection of hate reveals its insidious power - but also its weaknesses. This book is not just about how and why hate happens - it's about how to combat it. -- Alice Roberts If we want to come together, we must take a cold hard look at what is keeping us apart. The Science of Hate does just that. It is a forensic exploration of the patterns of thinking that we inherit or absorb or cultivate, and how prejudice tips over into hate. Matthew Williams's genuine curiosity and disarming writing style make for a truly engaging read. Bringing a scientific sensibility to such an emotive subject takes out the heat a little, and allows us to reflect on our conscious and unconscious biases in what feels like a safe space; after all, hate is an inside job. -- Caryl Lewis ― Guardian ('Books to Bring Us Together') This is an incredibly powerful, important and valuable book on what causes hate and how we can help prevent and defeat it. -- Peter Tatchell Fascinating . . . meticulously researched . . . written in a really accessible manner . . . expansive in approach and supplemented with so many real-world case studies. This is a really key contribution to our understanding of the divides in our society, and how these can perhaps be repaired. -- Dr Pragya Agarwal Williams is masterful at making this complex topic accessible, so we can all better understand hate and the dark side of human behaviour and finally, start to tackle it. -- Nova Reid Fascinating and beautifully written. I heartily recommend it. -- Hugo Rifkind ― Times Radio Fascinating . . .a harrowing but illuminating work, being released at a time when hate appears to be on the ascendency but far from trying to stop it, some of the world's most powerful people seem to be using it to manipulate millions . . . At times it reads more like a thriller. -- David Marsland ― Evening Standard An indispensable guide to what's gone wrong both here at home and in much of the Western world. -- Neil Mackay ― The Herald What motivates hate crime and how can it be reduced? These questions cross disciplinary boundaries in the social sciences, from criminology to sociology and psychology. So, too, does The Science of Hate, expertly weaving together perspectives from different disciplines, to explore these questions. -- Dr Siân E. Jones ― The Psychologist An extraordinary book. ― BBC Radio Scotland Matthew Williams has produced not only an accessible and beautifully researched book about the social, psychological and cultural conditions which drive people to hate, but also an invaluable tool kit that should be employed to eradicate hate from our communities. -- Professor Emeritus David Wilson ― author of SIGNS OF MURDER and A PLOT TO KILL Professor Matthew Williams is one of the most noted scholars of cyber-hate in the world and has a particular gift for rendering complex analysis comprehensible. His interest in hate crime is long standing and it has been his passion to communicate his own deep understanding of the subject to a general audience. -- Professor Mike Levi, Cardiff University, Senior Research Fellow at RAND Europe and Senior Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute Professor Williams' expert analysis has been fundamental to several high-profile prime time TV documentaries on the rise of hate crime and speech. He has the unique ability to translate highly complex science into meaningful, accessible and impactful journalism that a mass audience can easily comprehend. -- Mark Alden, award-winning Seri