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Michael E. McCullough – Beyond Revenge – The Evolution of the Forgiveness InstinctWhy is revenge such a pervasive and destructive problem? How can we create a future in which revenge is less common and forgiveness is more common? Psychologist Michael McCullough argues that the key to a more forgiving, less vengeful world is to understand the evolutionary forces that gave rise to these intimately human instincts and the social forces that activate them in human minds today. Drawing on exciting breakthroughs from the social and biological sciences, McCullough dispenses surprising and practical advice for making the world a more forgiving place.Michael E. McCullough (Miami, Florida), an internationally recognized expert on forgiveness and revenge, is a professor of psychology at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, where he directs the Laboratory for Social and Clinical Psychology.Acknowledgments ixIntroduction: Three Simple Truths AboutRevenge and Forgiveness xiii1 Putting Vengeance and Forgiveness Back intoHuman Nature 12 Revenge Is a Problem: Counting the Costs 203 Revenge Is a Solution: Three EvolutionaryHypotheses 414 The Retribution Solution: The Evidencefor Adaptation 625 Family, Friendship, and the Functionsof Forgiveness 886 The Forgiveness Instinct 1127 The Forgiving Brain 1348 “To Promote and to Maintain Friendly Relations”:Making Forgiveness Happen 1579 From Neurons to Nations 18110 Divine Forgiveness and Righteous Revenge 20211 Homo ignoscens 224Notes 239Bibliography 261The Author 283Index 285