iggnaseous's review
4.0
Though The Sociopath Next Door is ostensibly about sociopathy, and about the potentially frightening phenomenon of sociopaths among us, along the way it suggests something fundamental about moral reasoning and human nature. Sociopaths, Stout explains, are members of a small percentage of the population (about 4% in the US) that do not have a working conscience. Conscience guides and directs behavior, through deep emotional connections to others, to such a degree that it seems impossible that it is not a universal human trait. In the book, those who live and work with sociopaths generate justifications and explanations for their sociopathic behavior. The daughter of a sociopath tells herself that as a child her father didn't talk to her for a week after receiving low marks in school because he's just very demanding; employees of a sociopath CEO say that he is ruthless and cunning; neighbors find a sociopath awful or mean. They do not imagine that these individuals lack a sense of attachment or obligation to others, and cannot form the bonds "closely aligned" with the spectrum of emotions called love. Able to act without the authority of conscience, the regard for how others think and feel, sociopaths have an astonishing advantage over the rest of us, and their psychological states raise some questions about moral theology.
In Romans 1, Paul claims that all humans stand under judgment because the knowledge of God has been revealed to them. Is this knowledge conscience? Aquinas seems to think so. The word conscience comes from conscientia, a term Aquinas used to label the mistake prone human capacity to make decisions about behavior (Stout herself notes this). Given the existence of sociopaths, the plain and universal knowledge of God Paul describes in Romans 1 is not so plain or universal. If there is something like a faint intuitive awareness of God that keeps us from engaging in a long list of debase/ antisocial behavior, sociopaths lack it and therefore the logic of the argument breaks down. Paul’s argument needs refinement.
What of the center of what Paul is saying in that text, "the righteous shall live by faith"? Is it applicable to the sociopath? Or to put it another way: is repentance necessary for salvation? For that matter, what is repentance and is repentance reducible to remorse? If so, can those without remorse be saved? Questions worth pondering.
Stout also raises questions about the basic disposition of human nature and the prevalent "shadow side" theory of human nature--the idea that any human action could be described to any human. Ironically, good-hearted people are usually the most willing to ascribe to the most radical form of this theory. They could, under the right circumstances, become mass murderers. Against this fundamentally pessimistic characterization of the human person as having a proclivity to turn evil, Stout argues that the conscious-bound person "does not, in some sense cannot," kill, rape, torture, or steal. They cannot "trick someone into a loveless relationship" nor willfully abandon their own children. They might do so under the influence of a malevolent leader, a psychotic break, or drugs, but otherwise this behavior is most often limited to sociopaths.
Though at times Stout seems to glamorize sociopaths rather than criticize them, she nonetheless has written a thought-provoking, entertaining, and even lyrical study. Stout's psychological insights reveal the inner workings of the morally and raise philosophical and theological questions. Stout astutely makes some of these connections herself, providing the reader with a jumping off point for further reflection. Ultimately, The Sociopath Next Door is about what makes people good, and that is something worth thinking about.
In Romans 1, Paul claims that all humans stand under judgment because the knowledge of God has been revealed to them. Is this knowledge conscience? Aquinas seems to think so. The word conscience comes from conscientia, a term Aquinas used to label the mistake prone human capacity to make decisions about behavior (Stout herself notes this). Given the existence of sociopaths, the plain and universal knowledge of God Paul describes in Romans 1 is not so plain or universal. If there is something like a faint intuitive awareness of God that keeps us from engaging in a long list of debase/ antisocial behavior, sociopaths lack it and therefore the logic of the argument breaks down. Paul’s argument needs refinement.
What of the center of what Paul is saying in that text, "the righteous shall live by faith"? Is it applicable to the sociopath? Or to put it another way: is repentance necessary for salvation? For that matter, what is repentance and is repentance reducible to remorse? If so, can those without remorse be saved? Questions worth pondering.
Stout also raises questions about the basic disposition of human nature and the prevalent "shadow side" theory of human nature--the idea that any human action could be described to any human. Ironically, good-hearted people are usually the most willing to ascribe to the most radical form of this theory. They could, under the right circumstances, become mass murderers. Against this fundamentally pessimistic characterization of the human person as having a proclivity to turn evil, Stout argues that the conscious-bound person "does not, in some sense cannot," kill, rape, torture, or steal. They cannot "trick someone into a loveless relationship" nor willfully abandon their own children. They might do so under the influence of a malevolent leader, a psychotic break, or drugs, but otherwise this behavior is most often limited to sociopaths.
Though at times Stout seems to glamorize sociopaths rather than criticize them, she nonetheless has written a thought-provoking, entertaining, and even lyrical study. Stout's psychological insights reveal the inner workings of the morally and raise philosophical and theological questions. Stout astutely makes some of these connections herself, providing the reader with a jumping off point for further reflection. Ultimately, The Sociopath Next Door is about what makes people good, and that is something worth thinking about.
britomarte's review
DNF - good, but not up for it right now. Saving so I'll go back to it.
kairosdreaming's review
3.0
I forget how this came to be on my reading list, but when I saw it the other day I picked it up again out of curiosity. It was an interesting book, but more hype than anything.
The Sociopath Next Door explores the possibility of there being sociopaths all over. It tells why they are the way they are, who they could be, and why they do the things they do. The book even goes so far as to say that about 4% of the population is probably sociopathic. That's quite a large number if you think about it. The author also explores what a conscience is and why sociopaths don't appear to have one. Largely the book gives examples of a few sociopaths and their behaviors, and gives some minor details on sociopaths in general.
The book makes a lot of good points on the behaviors to look out for in a sociopath. The problem with it is that I think every person exhibits these behaviors here and there in their life (and I don't think I've just been surrounded by an exorbitant amount of sociopaths in my life). The key is finding a reoccurring pattern. She does make a good point that most sociopaths look like everyone else and to an extent behave like everyone else. Not all can be a Sadaam Hussein and instead we may not ever realize that the person we've been working with possesses no conscience. A scary thought for sure but the majority of sociopaths we come in contact with will have no effect on our lives. Or at least these are the lessons I took from the book.
The chapters are nicely separated and the writing is scientific yet still approachable for the average person. I do think that the book could create some paranoia. While there is a lot of talk about what they do, I really don't think the book is a comprehensive guide for recognizing the sociopath. It also tends to go on and on about the same topics without delving in more deeply in other important areas. There is a lot for instance about the story of one of the sociopaths, but hardly any information on how to avoid these types.
An interesting book for sure but not one that I would base any social actions on. Definitely a good read if you are interested in psychology.
The Sociopath Next Door
Copyright 2005
218 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com .
The Sociopath Next Door explores the possibility of there being sociopaths all over. It tells why they are the way they are, who they could be, and why they do the things they do. The book even goes so far as to say that about 4% of the population is probably sociopathic. That's quite a large number if you think about it. The author also explores what a conscience is and why sociopaths don't appear to have one. Largely the book gives examples of a few sociopaths and their behaviors, and gives some minor details on sociopaths in general.
The book makes a lot of good points on the behaviors to look out for in a sociopath. The problem with it is that I think every person exhibits these behaviors here and there in their life (and I don't think I've just been surrounded by an exorbitant amount of sociopaths in my life). The key is finding a reoccurring pattern. She does make a good point that most sociopaths look like everyone else and to an extent behave like everyone else. Not all can be a Sadaam Hussein and instead we may not ever realize that the person we've been working with possesses no conscience. A scary thought for sure but the majority of sociopaths we come in contact with will have no effect on our lives. Or at least these are the lessons I took from the book.
The chapters are nicely separated and the writing is scientific yet still approachable for the average person. I do think that the book could create some paranoia. While there is a lot of talk about what they do, I really don't think the book is a comprehensive guide for recognizing the sociopath. It also tends to go on and on about the same topics without delving in more deeply in other important areas. There is a lot for instance about the story of one of the sociopaths, but hardly any information on how to avoid these types.
An interesting book for sure but not one that I would base any social actions on. Definitely a good read if you are interested in psychology.
The Sociopath Next Door
Copyright 2005
218 pages
Review by M. Reynard 2011
More of my reviews can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com .
mazza57's review
I have had this book from the linrary so long they must think I have lsot it. It is a very interesting and easy read with relevance to some of the people in history and some people in power toady
rachel_reece's review
5.0
I was married to a sociopath. This book was absolutely life-changing for me and so helpful in reestablishing my footing and understanding what happened.
treehuggeranonymous's review
2.0
I started out really enjoying this book. The anecdotes on psychopaths is interesting. It's easy to read and starts by posing questions with some support from Freudian analysis. Had I known that psychoanalytic theory was the closest the book would come to using psychology to analyse conscience I'd probably have given the book a hard pass. The book seems to rely more on bibical teachings than psychological research, which is a shame given that the topic has a lot more to do with the latter field. This does not seem like a book written by a person with a background in psychology.