Podcast Episode

Defining Evil

The Merge Lab Deep Dive··2 August 2026·5 min

About this episode

The text explores how different fields define and understand evil. Religion views it as a moral rupture from the sacred order, while metaphysics questions its ontological status. Existentialism centers on human responsibility and choice, and philosophy examines evil as a moral, logical, and political problem. Psychology and science, on the other hand, treat evil as behavior that causes significant harm, influenced by factors like cognition, social dynamics, and reinforcement.