The Gift of Fear
"Only human beings can look directly at something, have all the information they need to make an accurate prediction, perhaps even momentarily make the accurate prediction, and then say that it isn’t so."
— Gavin de Becker, The Gift of Fear (1997)
Introduction
| The Gift of Fear | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Full title | The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence |
| Author | Gavin de Becker |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Personal safety; Threat assessment; Violence prevention |
| Genre | Nonfiction; Self-help |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
Publication date | 1 June 1997 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardcover, paperback); e-book; audiobook |
| Pages | 334 |
| ISBN | 978-0-316-23502-0 |
| Goodreads rating | 4.2/5 (as of 28 October 2025) |
| Website | hachettebookgroup.com |
The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence is a nonfiction book on personal safety by Gavin de Becker.[1] It was first published in the United States by Little, Brown and Company on 1 June 1997.[2] The first-edition hardcover comprises 334 pages.[3] Its first-edition ISBN-13 is 978-0-316-23502-0.[3] The book emphasizes trusting intuition and recognizing “pre-incident indicators” to anticipate and avoid violence.[4]
Chapter summary
This outline follows the Dell paperback edition (1999).[5]
🚨 1 – In the presence of danger.
🔮 2 – Technology of intuition.
🎓 3 – Academy of prediction.
📢 4 – Survival signals.
🕵️ 5 – Imperfect strangers.
🎲 6 – High-stakes predictions.
⚔️ 7 – Promises to kill (understanding threats).
🔁 8 – Persistence, persistence (dealing with people who refuse to let go).
🧑💼 9 – Occupational hazards (violence in the workplace).
💔 10 – Intimate enemies (domestic violence).
🌹 11 – I was trying to let him down easy (date stalking).
🧒 12 – Fear of children (violent children).
👮 13 – Better to be wanted by the police than not to be wanted at all (attacks against public figures).
☢️ 14 – Extreme hazards.
🎁 15 – Gift of fear.
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References
- ↑ "The gift of fear : survival signals that protect us from violence". Library of Congress Online Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
- ↑ "The Gift of Fear (Hardcover)". Little, Brown and Company. Little, Brown and Company. 1 June 1997. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "The gift of fear : survival signals that protect us from violence". WorldCat. OCLC. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
- ↑ "The Gift of Fear (Back Bay Books)". Hachette Book Group. Back Bay Books. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
- ↑ "The gift of fear : survival signals that protect us from violence". Colorado Mountain College Library Catalog. Colorado Mountain College. Retrieved 28 October 2025.