Zombie ideas are social science theories that have been thoroughly debunked, but which are still widely believed, even by social scientists, writes Rasmus Rosenberg Larsen at Aeon. Race science is an extremely toxic example.

Psychopaths are widely believed to have no emotions or empathy, yet research shows they have both.

Doesn’t explain why some people are serial killers and otherwise monsters.

People want to believe that psychopaths are broken people — not like us — but they are just people who made bad choices.