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The Ten Types of Human: Who We Are and Who We Can Be
This a previously-published edition of ISBN 9780099592549.
‘This book is the one. Think Sapiens and triple it.’ – Julia Hobsbawm, author of Fully Connected
We all have ten types of human in our head.
They’re the people we become when we face life’s most difficult decisions. We want to believe there are things we would always do – or things we never would. But how can we be sure? What are our limits? Do we have limits?
The Ten Types of Human is a pioneering examination of human nature. It looks at the best and worst that human beings are capable of, and asks why. It explores the frontiers of the human experience, uncovering the forces that shape our thoughts and actions in extreme situations.
From courtrooms to civil wars, from Columbus to child soldiers, Dexter Dias takes us on a globe-spanning journey in search of answers, touching on the lives of some truly exceptional people.
Combining cutting-edge neuroscience, social psychology and human rights research, The Ten Types of Human is a provocative map to our hidden selves. It provides a new understanding of who we are – and who we can be.
‘I emerged from this book feeling better about almost everything... a mosaic of faces building into this extraordinary portrait of our species.’ – Guardian
‘The Ten Types of Human is a fantastic piece of non-fiction, mixing astonishing real-life cases with the latest scientific research to provide a guide to who we really are. It’s inspiring and essential.’ – Charles Duhigg
‘Uplifting and indispensable.’ – Howard Cunnell
What readers are saying about 'the most important book in years':
‘utterly compelling…this one comes with a warning – only pick it up if you can risk not putting it down’ – Wendy Heydorn on Amazon, 5 stars
‘one of the most remarkable books I've read… I can genuinely say that it has changed the way I view the world’ – David Jones on Amazon, 5 stars
‘Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the human condition… a thrilling and beautifully crafted book’ – Wasim on Amazon, 5 stars
‘This is the most important book I have read in years’ – Natasha Geary on Amazon, 5 stars
‘an important and fascinating read… It will keep you glued to the page’ – Hilary Burrage on Amazon, 5 stars
‘a journey that I will never forget, will always be grateful for, and I hope will help me question who I am… a work of genius’ – Louise on Amazon, 5 stars
‘This is a magnificent book that will capture the interest of every type of reader… one of those rare and special books that demand rereading’ – Amelia on Amazon, 5 stars
‘I simply couldn’t put it down… one of the most significant books of our time’ – Jocelyne Quennell on Amazon, 5 stars
‘Read The Ten Types of Human and be prepared to fall in love’ – Helen Fospero on Amazon, 5 stars
‘This book is the one. Think Sapiens and triple it.’ – Julia Hobsbawm, author of Fully Connected
We all have ten types of human in our head.
They’re the people we become when we face life’s most difficult decisions. We want to believe there are things we would always do – or things we never would. But how can we be sure? What are our limits? Do we have limits?
The Ten Types of Human is a pioneering examination of human nature. It looks at the best and worst that human beings are capable of, and asks why. It explores the frontiers of the human experience, uncovering the forces that shape our thoughts and actions in extreme situations.
From courtrooms to civil wars, from Columbus to child soldiers, Dexter Dias takes us on a globe-spanning journey in search of answers, touching on the lives of some truly exceptional people.
Combining cutting-edge neuroscience, social psychology and human rights research, The Ten Types of Human is a provocative map to our hidden selves. It provides a new understanding of who we are – and who we can be.
‘I emerged from this book feeling better about almost everything... a mosaic of faces building into this extraordinary portrait of our species.’ – Guardian
‘The Ten Types of Human is a fantastic piece of non-fiction, mixing astonishing real-life cases with the latest scientific research to provide a guide to who we really are. It’s inspiring and essential.’ – Charles Duhigg
‘Uplifting and indispensable.’ – Howard Cunnell
What readers are saying about 'the most important book in years':
‘utterly compelling…this one comes with a warning – only pick it up if you can risk not putting it down’ – Wendy Heydorn on Amazon, 5 stars
‘one of the most remarkable books I've read… I can genuinely say that it has changed the way I view the world’ – David Jones on Amazon, 5 stars
‘Essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the human condition… a thrilling and beautifully crafted book’ – Wasim on Amazon, 5 stars
‘This is the most important book I have read in years’ – Natasha Geary on Amazon, 5 stars
‘an important and fascinating read… It will keep you glued to the page’ – Hilary Burrage on Amazon, 5 stars
‘a journey that I will never forget, will always be grateful for, and I hope will help me question who I am… a work of genius’ – Louise on Amazon, 5 stars
‘This is a magnificent book that will capture the interest of every type of reader… one of those rare and special books that demand rereading’ – Amelia on Amazon, 5 stars
‘I simply couldn’t put it down… one of the most significant books of our time’ – Jocelyne Quennell on Amazon, 5 stars
‘Read The Ten Types of Human and be prepared to fall in love’ – Helen Fospero on Amazon, 5 stars
848 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
843 people are currently reading
9453 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 260 reviews
February 6, 2018
For me this was up there with Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind for books which have the capacity to make you see the world and yourself differently. Wonderfully well written this is the most addictive non-fiction book I have ever read, there were times when I couldn't put it down. Blending seamlessly together personal stories, biographies, scientific research, philosophical ponderings, psychological experiments and historical examples the author paints a convincing case for why humans are who we are but also how we could possibly make ourselves kinder, more compassionate, braver, more understanding and all round better human beings. At times heart-breaking and hard to read you are none the less left with a feeling of hope, and the realisation that changing the world is possible even one tiny act at a time. A book I would highly recommend anyone to read.
January 20, 2018
I gave up third of way through - tedious writing. I found it frustrating the way the author introduced initially introduced content, stories, concepts and then left them there, coming back to them later before finally getting to his point - needed to flow much more for me
June 17, 2021
Dexter Diaz is a prominent human rights lawyer in the UK. Once he was representing the mother of 14 year old teenager who died in custody while being retrained by 3 officers. The boy was the youngest person died in such a way then. His mother could not comprehend how it could happen. And Dexter could not explain it then. This hefty tome is the result of his quest to understand the human nature. So much he wanted to be able to answer this question that he went to Harvard to study moral cognition (new science combining neuroscience, experimental and evolutionary psychology). He also travelled widely.
The book is a combination of individual stories and his findings including the proposed psychologic theory. The individual stories are all related to so-called human rights violations form child slavery and using child soldiers in war zones to human trafficking and female genital mutilations. Also, he investigates such dilemmas like the right to die. On another hand, he presents findings from the labs in experimental psychology investigating the human nature. He is extremely curious and erudite individual. So the book is peppered with a lot of sometimes tangental but always very interesting information starting from life of the Gobi fish and finishing with the nostalgia experienced by Frederic Chopin.
At the core of the book is a theory that our actions are driven by 10 types of our behaviour. Those types are the models within our brain that get activated depending on the actual situation. And this activation is leading to a series of our actions. These types evolved with the evolution of a human. I do not want to mention all ten, but I give a few examples. Kingsman - the type which makes us to select and protect our kin as opposed to others. Parents-child is the obvious example. And Dexter starts the book with posing a relatively well known dilemma: if you need to make a choice during the school shooting whom would you safe: only your child or 40 other children except your child? Another example is a Romancer - again pretty obvious. But for whatever reason, expressed more in men than women. Dexter shows the study when men were happy to spend much more money on-line when an attractive female was present silently in the room. But not wise versa. That, together with another factors, has lead to the conclusion that there is a romancer in us ready for sacrifices to safe (not always successfully) a beloved. The third example, less obvious is “The beholder of beauty”. He claims that just born babies can recognise beauty. And, growing up some of them could become criminals if the perceived beauty does not belong to them. He illustrates with the men ordering acid attacks on the girls who previously rejected them. I found it much less convincing - strange feeling of beauty. There are another seven types from Rescuer and Nurturer to the Tamer of Terror.
This theory is not new of course. Even Jung was talking about something similar ages ago. What is new is that Dexter tries to bring about the evidence from the lab for this and the evolutionary nature of this. I have to admit I am very sceptical in the explanatory power of this model beyond what is obvious. Plus Dexter drives home the idea that our brain is responsible for our mind. We sort of all suspect this. But sofar no-one knows exactly how. It is the famous mind-body problem which has not been solved. So when for example Dexter brings neuroscience into this and tells that the pain of the others activates the same neurological network as our own pain, I am not convinced that I can project it into something called “The Perceiver of pain” , the one of his types. I also have a problem with the idea that the one of those types prevails in a concrete situation. It is somehow deprives us of the agency. “It is an an evolutionary aggressor in me who hit you. I am sorry” type of thing. I know Dexter probably means the opposite. That I should try to tame that aggressor type. But then we are going meta level “Who is I?” And his theory somewhat looses its explanatory power again.
Additionally, I doubt that some findings revealed in the artificial experiments of Western campuses would hold on a battlefield in some African country.
But in spite of all these reservations (and it would be one more at the end), I liked the book. The strongest part for me were the individual stories and human rights issues. Dexter takes us to such places we would not think of. Also he makes some issues, looking abstract to us (well at least to me) looking very much concrete. He introduces us to a boy called Anthony from Ghana who was sold into slavery by his own father. And Dexter shows all complexity of this situation. In another story, he takes us to Central African Republic. He is right when he says not many people even know about its existence. I did not. And he tells the story of three very different people dragged into never ending conflict there. In other stories, he brings attention to acid attacks, HGMs, trafficking and children prisoners and many other issues. He also for example visits Haiti to talk how people (predominantly women) survived the violence in the aftermath of the earthquake. A few times, I was afraid that the book was dragging into the territory of the sensational. But he timely put his foot on the brake.
When I was reading the book, I was wondering why it was not nominated on any prizes. It is fashionable now to write and read a hybrid fiction/non-fiction works. But for whatever reason, it is more popular when a writer of fiction introduces factual information in her works. At this case it is the opposite - it is definitely the work of non-fiction. But Dexter uses the whole toolbox of the fictional writing here. For example, the direct speech, dialogue and “being in the head of a character”. There are many example where Dexter would not be able to know in such a detail what his characters were talking about - before a battle for example. But he is bold in applying the fictional toolkit to make his writing more vivid. And it is vivid. How accurate it is? Sometimes I doubted this. For example, there is a story about the Russian boy “disciplined” by his PSD suffering father by holding him below the water level in a sink. I was not sure how it really took place. Unlike in the UK, they only very rarely would have a plug in a sink in Russia. Normally the water would float through without staying in the sink at all. So there are such details. But I think he has put a lot of efforts to convey the jest of situations accurately. At least I want to believe him. And the nature of these tales is such that the narrators, his interlocutors, cannot be always reliable after going through all that traumatic experiences.
In spite of some reservations, I really recommend this book. It is that kind of book to read and argue with loudly in the empty room. Or silently agree with. It is full of interesting ideas and It is good for discussion, even with the children. Later, I’ve listened Ito t in the car with my family and we had some interesting arguments about it. And though I sometimes felt somewhat irritated with Dexter’s persona, the people populating it would stay with me for a long time.
The book is a combination of individual stories and his findings including the proposed psychologic theory. The individual stories are all related to so-called human rights violations form child slavery and using child soldiers in war zones to human trafficking and female genital mutilations. Also, he investigates such dilemmas like the right to die. On another hand, he presents findings from the labs in experimental psychology investigating the human nature. He is extremely curious and erudite individual. So the book is peppered with a lot of sometimes tangental but always very interesting information starting from life of the Gobi fish and finishing with the nostalgia experienced by Frederic Chopin.
At the core of the book is a theory that our actions are driven by 10 types of our behaviour. Those types are the models within our brain that get activated depending on the actual situation. And this activation is leading to a series of our actions. These types evolved with the evolution of a human. I do not want to mention all ten, but I give a few examples. Kingsman - the type which makes us to select and protect our kin as opposed to others. Parents-child is the obvious example. And Dexter starts the book with posing a relatively well known dilemma: if you need to make a choice during the school shooting whom would you safe: only your child or 40 other children except your child? Another example is a Romancer - again pretty obvious. But for whatever reason, expressed more in men than women. Dexter shows the study when men were happy to spend much more money on-line when an attractive female was present silently in the room. But not wise versa. That, together with another factors, has lead to the conclusion that there is a romancer in us ready for sacrifices to safe (not always successfully) a beloved. The third example, less obvious is “The beholder of beauty”. He claims that just born babies can recognise beauty. And, growing up some of them could become criminals if the perceived beauty does not belong to them. He illustrates with the men ordering acid attacks on the girls who previously rejected them. I found it much less convincing - strange feeling of beauty. There are another seven types from Rescuer and Nurturer to the Tamer of Terror.
This theory is not new of course. Even Jung was talking about something similar ages ago. What is new is that Dexter tries to bring about the evidence from the lab for this and the evolutionary nature of this. I have to admit I am very sceptical in the explanatory power of this model beyond what is obvious. Plus Dexter drives home the idea that our brain is responsible for our mind. We sort of all suspect this. But sofar no-one knows exactly how. It is the famous mind-body problem which has not been solved. So when for example Dexter brings neuroscience into this and tells that the pain of the others activates the same neurological network as our own pain, I am not convinced that I can project it into something called “The Perceiver of pain” , the one of his types. I also have a problem with the idea that the one of those types prevails in a concrete situation. It is somehow deprives us of the agency. “It is an an evolutionary aggressor in me who hit you. I am sorry” type of thing. I know Dexter probably means the opposite. That I should try to tame that aggressor type. But then we are going meta level “Who is I?” And his theory somewhat looses its explanatory power again.
Additionally, I doubt that some findings revealed in the artificial experiments of Western campuses would hold on a battlefield in some African country.
But in spite of all these reservations (and it would be one more at the end), I liked the book. The strongest part for me were the individual stories and human rights issues. Dexter takes us to such places we would not think of. Also he makes some issues, looking abstract to us (well at least to me) looking very much concrete. He introduces us to a boy called Anthony from Ghana who was sold into slavery by his own father. And Dexter shows all complexity of this situation. In another story, he takes us to Central African Republic. He is right when he says not many people even know about its existence. I did not. And he tells the story of three very different people dragged into never ending conflict there. In other stories, he brings attention to acid attacks, HGMs, trafficking and children prisoners and many other issues. He also for example visits Haiti to talk how people (predominantly women) survived the violence in the aftermath of the earthquake. A few times, I was afraid that the book was dragging into the territory of the sensational. But he timely put his foot on the brake.
When I was reading the book, I was wondering why it was not nominated on any prizes. It is fashionable now to write and read a hybrid fiction/non-fiction works. But for whatever reason, it is more popular when a writer of fiction introduces factual information in her works. At this case it is the opposite - it is definitely the work of non-fiction. But Dexter uses the whole toolbox of the fictional writing here. For example, the direct speech, dialogue and “being in the head of a character”. There are many example where Dexter would not be able to know in such a detail what his characters were talking about - before a battle for example. But he is bold in applying the fictional toolkit to make his writing more vivid. And it is vivid. How accurate it is? Sometimes I doubted this. For example, there is a story about the Russian boy “disciplined” by his PSD suffering father by holding him below the water level in a sink. I was not sure how it really took place. Unlike in the UK, they only very rarely would have a plug in a sink in Russia. Normally the water would float through without staying in the sink at all. So there are such details. But I think he has put a lot of efforts to convey the jest of situations accurately. At least I want to believe him. And the nature of these tales is such that the narrators, his interlocutors, cannot be always reliable after going through all that traumatic experiences.
In spite of some reservations, I really recommend this book. It is that kind of book to read and argue with loudly in the empty room. Or silently agree with. It is full of interesting ideas and It is good for discussion, even with the children. Later, I’ve listened Ito t in the car with my family and we had some interesting arguments about it. And though I sometimes felt somewhat irritated with Dexter’s persona, the people populating it would stay with me for a long time.
September 1, 2018
I rate it two stars in order to get some readers attention, because I think this books is overrated here.
I have to addimit that the author has a great talent to get me hooked. You just can't put this book away, mainly because some science and psychology researches /stories presented by the author are rather interesting or moving. The parellel narrative structure is also fairly engaging.
At the very beginning, the author claimed our humans mind are modular, each module are highly specialized in 'confronting certain repeating, real, highly relevant survival and reproductive challenges.' So I assumed each type of human was such a module that the author wanted to discuss in depth. I expected the author to introduce the characteristics of each type and how they dealing with various survival and reproductive challenges. However, apart from those interesting anecdotes and stories, I didnt get many hardcore arguments about the the types of human.
For example, in part three, the author introduced a few cases of some paralyzed patients and some people in persistent vegetative state. And the whole point I got from this chapter was that the author was trying to say that we human being were highly influenced by the idea of the ultimate disaster: death. I just don't see the nessecity that the author introduced me so many cutting edge researches in medical and science and those patients’ stories mearly wanted to tell me that death is affecting on us.
I feel the author presenting the stories and researches just for the sake of engaging the readers. They are not tightly connected with or supporting the arguments the author wants to make, if there are any interesting arguments.
I think you will get disappointed if you are looking for a brainy book.
I have to addimit that the author has a great talent to get me hooked. You just can't put this book away, mainly because some science and psychology researches /stories presented by the author are rather interesting or moving. The parellel narrative structure is also fairly engaging.
At the very beginning, the author claimed our humans mind are modular, each module are highly specialized in 'confronting certain repeating, real, highly relevant survival and reproductive challenges.' So I assumed each type of human was such a module that the author wanted to discuss in depth. I expected the author to introduce the characteristics of each type and how they dealing with various survival and reproductive challenges. However, apart from those interesting anecdotes and stories, I didnt get many hardcore arguments about the the types of human.
For example, in part three, the author introduced a few cases of some paralyzed patients and some people in persistent vegetative state. And the whole point I got from this chapter was that the author was trying to say that we human being were highly influenced by the idea of the ultimate disaster: death. I just don't see the nessecity that the author introduced me so many cutting edge researches in medical and science and those patients’ stories mearly wanted to tell me that death is affecting on us.
I feel the author presenting the stories and researches just for the sake of engaging the readers. They are not tightly connected with or supporting the arguments the author wants to make, if there are any interesting arguments.
I think you will get disappointed if you are looking for a brainy book.
September 1, 2017
Two of the best books I have read this year have been written by human rights lawyers (the other being "East West Street"). I kept seeing this book at the 2017 Hay-on-Wye festival but didn't see his talk sadly as I think this book is a masterpiece blending true, riveting stories that cover topics as diverse as slavery, rescuing people from hopeless situations, assisted suicide, FGM (female genitalia mutilation), horrific revenge, the power of a parents love and others. The stories are gripping and Dias can paint a wonderful picture wether in a cold, empty bar in Russia, talking to a wonderful lady who communicates one letter at a time with her eye or the effects of people living different lives in places as far as Africa or USA or Asia. Much as this stories can grip (and they do), he uses these to tell us about who we are, what we are and why do we sometimes behave in an often myriad, different ways. I hope as many people read this wonderful book mixing wonderful narratives with neuroscience and other scientific research, philosophy, and moral dilemmas and questions. I loved this book and it has made me want to contribute to changing the world to a better place. Let's build bridges rather than walls. It's not a quick read but the author brings everything together at the end, as if listening to the vibrations of a symphony with all the pieces coming together. Brilliant! I only wonder why is wasn't reviewed in many papers but feel lucky I stumbled upon it. A few weeks have passed since reading but I can't forget it.
May 17, 2018
This is a long but deeply rewarding book about the ten types of human behavior that we have evolved. The author mixes empirical evidence with stories of people he met. These deeply human recollections are at times heart breaking. They are real though. People who have loved and lost and overcome. And those who haven’t. I am definitely glad I picked it up!
October 9, 2018
I found this book quite difficult at the start. Part of me hadn’t realised the full background of the book - I had thought that it was a neuroscience book whereas it is in face written by a human rights lawyer. There is certainly a good load of neuroscience in there, but in the end, it is really about stories of people from across the world, some of whom have endures tremendous suffering, some of whom have achieved amazing things, and some who have done both. I found the style incredibly irritating at the start. The book is essentially dividing into ten sections, each one about a different ‘Type’ of human behaviour that the author believes is part of our evolutionary makeup. In each section, he tries to illustrate this by telling us a story about a one of more people that help to make the point, interweaving these stories with bits of science and research. The aim, I’m sure, is to keep the reader interested and make it a bit more of page turner, but the outcome, at least for me, was confusion and frustration. I’d be reading about a child slave in Africa being forced to dive off a fishing boat, some other children drowning in lakes, suddenly switch to some neuroscience about the way the brain works, and then find myself back as “Meanwhile, Anthony was ...”. If you are putting down and picking the book up during this time, it gets very confusing. Is Anthony the child who drowned or the slave? I did get used to it as the book developed and I think in later chapters, there were fewer threads all being woven together, but it did almost lead me to giving up completely on the book about 15% of the way through. I am glad that I persevered as I started to become more familiar with both the way that the book was written, and the point of the different stories. It is a moving and interesting book. I’d suggest that it could benefit from being a bit shorter - there seemed moments where we were suddenly lectured about a scientific point, and I don’t really see why everyone in the book had to have their hair described, but these are small niggles really. It’s a long book, so I wouldn’t recommended wholeheartedly to everyone, particularly those who don’t read much, but I do think that there is lots of interest in it, and I’m glad that I kept going and read it.
April 19, 2018
It was a marathon to finish this book but it is a book I can't stop thinking about. It was hard going because of all the sad and overwhelming human suffering Dexter describes to make his point and give examples for ten human traits. The book covers child slavery, human trafficking, acid violence, female genital mutilation, child soldiers and sex slavery. He also talks about some uplifting things humans can do like rescuing a stranger. Dexter is a human rights lawyer and driven to understand why humans do the things they do. Like a good lawyer he tells us the facts and gathers his evidence to draw conclusions using the latest research in neuroscience, evolution, social psychology and many of his own personal interviews. He presents the best and worst of human nature and then asks what you would do. I found the book fascinating but highly disturbing. One because there is so much suffering in the world caused by humans hurting each other but also because, as Dexter says, we may all be capable of such 'crimes' and 'heroics' depending on the circumstances we are faced with. This book is the most arresting thing I have ever read and I think Dexter Diaz is the most wise and deeply thoughtful man I have come into contact with.
August 15, 2018
Five stars for content, half a star for style!
A well researched book and while I feel that Dias stands on the right side of debates that concern humanity and the future of the race, I can’t help on occasion but feel that this book is a bit of a vanity project, it suffers from narrative overfit, self promotion and occasional frivolity.
A well researched book and while I feel that Dias stands on the right side of debates that concern humanity and the future of the race, I can’t help on occasion but feel that this book is a bit of a vanity project, it suffers from narrative overfit, self promotion and occasional frivolity.
November 14, 2018
For a book so long, this was surprisingly light on content or at least it feels that way. There's some great stuff in here, but clarity suffered for narrative style. Each section tells you about a bit about psychology/neuroscience and makes it come alive with a specific example taken from a real world thorny problem. The issue I have is that the threads in each section are "braided" together, this attempts to hold reader interest by stringing you along from hook to hook and this did work to some extent, but the cost is in clarity. At no point did I assemble a coherent picture of what each of these types were, or become convinced that these were true types that represent a neurological evolutionary blueprint or whether they are collections of behaviours that can be organised interpreted as a type. It's possible that the evidence was there, but it wasn't stated clearly enough for my comprehension, or perhaps I'm just skeptical about types after too much exposure to jungian/freudian/enneagram pseudo science. To an extent, it feels like the science behind each of the types were subordinated to the stories that he collected. There was no systematic attempt to consider the behaviours outlined and how the types behave under a range of circumstances. There's a lot in it that makes sense in the book and I think that many people will get something from this, and the style is different from most psychology books you'll read, but I think I may find myself needing to read the references to satisfy myself fully.
December 14, 2019
It starts with a really nice idea of digging into ten fundamental concepts of human behaviors, and investigates them. After a couple hundred of pages starts losing control and loses the structure. The author could organize the book in a shorter but concise way. An interesting read, but you will need to spend lots of time to keep track of what is going on after a couple hundreds of pages to get what is trying to be told.
April 29, 2021
Menschenrechts-Anwalt Dexter Bias erzählt wahre Geschichten von seinen Klienten.
Anhand dieser Geschichten untergliedert er 10 verschiedene menschliche Typen, denen wir eigentlich selten begegnen. Es sei denn man ist mit der Grausamkeit der Welt verbunden. Von Geschichten verkaufter Kinder durch die Eltern, die von ihren Käufern ausgebeutet werden bis hin zum Mord.
Und gerade in diesen Extremsituationen machen sich unterschiedliche Charaktere bemerkbar, die der Autor analysiert und auch mit neurowissenschaftlichen und psychologischen Analysen füttert.
Der Aufbau des Buches ist außergewöhnlich und die Inhalte sehr detailliert.
Anhand dieser Geschichten untergliedert er 10 verschiedene menschliche Typen, denen wir eigentlich selten begegnen. Es sei denn man ist mit der Grausamkeit der Welt verbunden. Von Geschichten verkaufter Kinder durch die Eltern, die von ihren Käufern ausgebeutet werden bis hin zum Mord.
Und gerade in diesen Extremsituationen machen sich unterschiedliche Charaktere bemerkbar, die der Autor analysiert und auch mit neurowissenschaftlichen und psychologischen Analysen füttert.
Der Aufbau des Buches ist außergewöhnlich und die Inhalte sehr detailliert.
June 22, 2018
Dexter Dias, Queen’s Counsel, part-time Crown Court judge and visiting researcher at Harvard and Cambridge opens this, his 6th book, with a burning question - why do we do what we do to other human beings? In other words, what motivates our actions towards our fellow man, and why do we inflict so many horrible acts upon each other?
In this book, described as ‘part of a project to forge a new understanding of who we are and who we can be’, Diaz takes us on his travels in the capacity of a human rights barrister all over the globe. In every corner of Earth Dias finds suffering: where children are sent to jail, never to emerge; where women and children are sold for the price of a month’s wages or less; where women are doused in acid for the smallest of slights; where people are locked in the most torturous of prisons are denied the succour they deeply desire; where warfare and natural disasters bring out the worst monsters of our psyches; and where girls are routinely mutilated for the sake of a tradition that no one can explain. Yet he also finds the extraordinary ones: the people who risk everything and even sacrifice themselves for the sake of a friend, a lover, a child, and oftentimes, complete strangers.
The people he finds leads Dias to identify ten types of humans - the ones who inhabit our psyches and lead us to make monumentous choices in our lives. These he calls the Kinsman, the Perceiver of Pain, the Ostraciser, the Tamer of Terror, the Beholder, the Aggressor, the Tribalist, the Nurturer, the Romancer and the Rescuer. We all display a combination of these traits, and they decide for us what we do when in extenuating circumstances.
The blurb on the book notes one reviewer’s comparison to Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens, a not unfair equivalence. Harari’s work uses the scope of human history to show how our past can explain where we are today, and similarly, Dias’s work tries to extrapolate from evolutionary science, as well as psychology, anthropology and neuroscience to explain what motivates and informs human action. Both books are invaluable insights into the complexity of the human psyche and both excellent reads on their own merit.
Ten Types of Humans was a heavy read in more ways than one. It is very tough to plumb the depths of human suffering and focus on the harm we inflict upon each other, and the 800 pages of slow, meticulous sifting of human experience can be at times taxing on the attention span. It doesn’t really help that Dias has a storytelling style that is deliberately suspenseful and verges on the melodramatic. At certain junctures he drops you in the middle of the action without any context, so you wonder if your edition has some missing pages. He also weaves multiple storylines and timelines together, so if you have the tendency to poly-read or tackle books in a leisurely manner you may find it somewhat hard to follow. Final verdict: it was a gripping though somewhat harrowing read with much food for thought and invaluable insight, and I found it well-worth the read.
In this book, described as ‘part of a project to forge a new understanding of who we are and who we can be’, Diaz takes us on his travels in the capacity of a human rights barrister all over the globe. In every corner of Earth Dias finds suffering: where children are sent to jail, never to emerge; where women and children are sold for the price of a month’s wages or less; where women are doused in acid for the smallest of slights; where people are locked in the most torturous of prisons are denied the succour they deeply desire; where warfare and natural disasters bring out the worst monsters of our psyches; and where girls are routinely mutilated for the sake of a tradition that no one can explain. Yet he also finds the extraordinary ones: the people who risk everything and even sacrifice themselves for the sake of a friend, a lover, a child, and oftentimes, complete strangers.
The people he finds leads Dias to identify ten types of humans - the ones who inhabit our psyches and lead us to make monumentous choices in our lives. These he calls the Kinsman, the Perceiver of Pain, the Ostraciser, the Tamer of Terror, the Beholder, the Aggressor, the Tribalist, the Nurturer, the Romancer and the Rescuer. We all display a combination of these traits, and they decide for us what we do when in extenuating circumstances.
The blurb on the book notes one reviewer’s comparison to Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens, a not unfair equivalence. Harari’s work uses the scope of human history to show how our past can explain where we are today, and similarly, Dias’s work tries to extrapolate from evolutionary science, as well as psychology, anthropology and neuroscience to explain what motivates and informs human action. Both books are invaluable insights into the complexity of the human psyche and both excellent reads on their own merit.
Ten Types of Humans was a heavy read in more ways than one. It is very tough to plumb the depths of human suffering and focus on the harm we inflict upon each other, and the 800 pages of slow, meticulous sifting of human experience can be at times taxing on the attention span. It doesn’t really help that Dias has a storytelling style that is deliberately suspenseful and verges on the melodramatic. At certain junctures he drops you in the middle of the action without any context, so you wonder if your edition has some missing pages. He also weaves multiple storylines and timelines together, so if you have the tendency to poly-read or tackle books in a leisurely manner you may find it somewhat hard to follow. Final verdict: it was a gripping though somewhat harrowing read with much food for thought and invaluable insight, and I found it well-worth the read.
October 8, 2018
I was disappointed with this book:
Although at times it was interesting and entertaining, most of it is written in a lengthy way. Could have told the same story in a decent way in half of the pages.
The base of the book are the 10 modules which we are supposed to have inherently; this part could be resumed in 10 pages as the content from my perspective is low. The rest of the book are, at times entertaining, stories to support the existence of the different human modules. At times I feel there is a disconnect with the objective, and the storyline.
I saw some readers comparing it with sapiens, my opinion is that it is far away from it in content and quality.
Although at times it was interesting and entertaining, most of it is written in a lengthy way. Could have told the same story in a decent way in half of the pages.
The base of the book are the 10 modules which we are supposed to have inherently; this part could be resumed in 10 pages as the content from my perspective is low. The rest of the book are, at times entertaining, stories to support the existence of the different human modules. At times I feel there is a disconnect with the objective, and the storyline.
I saw some readers comparing it with sapiens, my opinion is that it is far away from it in content and quality.
August 5, 2018
My ratings of books on Goodreads are solely a crude ranking of their utility to me, and not an evaluation of literary merit, entertainment value, social importance, humor, insightfulness, scientific accuracy, creative vigor, suspensefulness of plot, depth of characters, vitality of theme, excitement of climax, satisfaction of ending, or any other combination of dimensions of value which we are expected to boil down through some fabulous alchemy into a single digit.
October 3, 2021
Three stars because this book is very thought provoking and full of fascinating information. But it didn’t need to be 750 pages; all points could have been made in under 400. By the end I was just extremely annoyed by the fluff and additional length of the book, which added little value IMO.
May 15, 2021
Not easy to digest but totally worth it. In spite of the bitter end of some stories he tells, Dias manages to leave you hopeful. He brings research from cognitive psychology and neurosciences to support the existence of the 10 types of human.
August 25, 2020
I loved this book. Not for the 10 types of human it was aiming to introduce, but for all the stories that went with it, people we've met thanks to the author, their lives, battles, strengths. It's one of the most important books i've read. One that makes me want to change my life. One that makes me want to change the world. One that makes me believe that i could do both. I know i will read it again. I hope i will find it as enlightening and eye-opening as i have done this time round.
February 4, 2018
I highly recommend this book to anyone with the slightest interest in why people behave the way they do. How we can be capable of so much good and so much awfulness.
Yep, it's a big fat book. But I struggled to put it down. Mr. Dias weaves the stories of people he's met/worked with as a human rights lawyer with science and research so deftly that I blew through this book. Amazing insights into human behavior.
The stories can be heartbreaking, but there are also people out there, fighting the good fight; I hope this book inspires everyone who reads it to do what they can to make things better.
I liked this book so much that I've already given it as gifts to five other people.
Yep, it's a big fat book. But I struggled to put it down. Mr. Dias weaves the stories of people he's met/worked with as a human rights lawyer with science and research so deftly that I blew through this book. Amazing insights into human behavior.
The stories can be heartbreaking, but there are also people out there, fighting the good fight; I hope this book inspires everyone who reads it to do what they can to make things better.
I liked this book so much that I've already given it as gifts to five other people.
December 11, 2018
No idea why this is so highly rated. Perhaps the first edition (500 pages shorter) was less exhausting.
ADHD writing, way too many story lines handled in a piecemeal and disorganized manner, too many space fillers that do nothing but bore and add to the page count (and this reader's despair). I have never come across anything like this, and hope never to again.
ADHD writing, way too many story lines handled in a piecemeal and disorganized manner, too many space fillers that do nothing but bore and add to the page count (and this reader's despair). I have never come across anything like this, and hope never to again.
May 7, 2024
While I don't necessarily agree with the blurb that this is similar to Harari's Sapiens, it was nonetheless an interesting walkthrough of several mental modules human beings might work with / through in their life.
July 12, 2024
This book wasn’t what I expected. It was a lot deeper than I had anticipated. I had originally believed this book to be based on different types of people but instead it focuses on the different types within each person.
I found this book very interesting in many levels and liked the combination of both the scientific aspect as well as personal experiences from people across the global.
I don’t believe it fully answers the questions it sets out in this book. But he is very open and clear with that. But it’s a start… A start to understand what drives us, why we do certain things in certain situations. It is a great start to help uncover why we act or react in certain situations and get to know ourselves better and with that, understand others better.
I would recommend people read this book. It allows another way to look at ourselves and our surroundings. I am glad I have had the opportunity to read such a book.
I found this book very interesting in many levels and liked the combination of both the scientific aspect as well as personal experiences from people across the global.
I don’t believe it fully answers the questions it sets out in this book. But he is very open and clear with that. But it’s a start… A start to understand what drives us, why we do certain things in certain situations. It is a great start to help uncover why we act or react in certain situations and get to know ourselves better and with that, understand others better.
I would recommend people read this book. It allows another way to look at ourselves and our surroundings. I am glad I have had the opportunity to read such a book.
October 2, 2025
Actually can’t believe I managed to finish this mammoth of a book but I’m really glad I did. This was super well researched without losing elements of story telling and keeping me engaged throughout. I’ve learnt so much about the Types Diaz proposed but even more so about the extent of human rights issues continuing to affect millions worldwide, in countries many haven’t heard of, towards the vulnerable and forgotten. This is an incredible and insightful look into human nature and how, while it certainly underpins our behaviours, assuming its control over us is to ignore its unlimited nuances.
4/5 stars
4/5 stars
July 18, 2019
The book first caught my attention when a praise on the cover states 'Think Sapiens and triple it', a reference to renowned historian Yuval Noah Harari's book 'Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind'. That immediately intrigued me, since 'Sapiens' is one of my all-time favorite nonfictions of all time by one of my all-time favorite writers.
Author Dexter Dias is a human rights barrister from the UK who is also a researcher at Cambridge University and Harvard University, so it might not come as a surprise that his book deals with morality and ethics, and seeks to answer one fundamental question: who we really are. Writing from evolutionary, neuroscientific, sociological and philosophical points of view, he takes upon the incredible task of understanding the fundamental understanding of the human mind, and why we are capable of making the most benevolent acts and the most inhuman atrocities at the same time.
The book explores the human mind through series of hypothetical dilemmatic questions. Would you choose to save your own son at the cost of the lives of 25 other children? Would you save a stranger from a lake that can end up killing yourself? Would you end the life of a loved one if he wishes to die? In a way, 'The Ten Types of Human' is a comprehensive view into ethics through thought experiments, and is a thought-provoking biblical journey for readers who are particularly interested in discussions on morals, famous examples being the Trolley Problem and MIT's Moral Machine. As the title suggests, these questions are addressed in the form of ten 'types' of people that inhibit inside us all.
Dias's book is utterly compelling from start to finish; it presents 10 individual 'human beings' that are inherent in all of us, figurative representations of our moral ethics that make up who we are, and Dias elaborates by using lessons from excerpts of people he has interviewed from all walks of life in different parts of the world - be it a former slave in West Africa or a stroke survivor in the UK. He follows the same scientific nonfictional route as other famous works dealing with similar topics, such as Steven Pinker's 'The Better Angels of our Nature' and 'Blank Slate', and Richard Hawkins's 'Selfish Gene'.
Yet at the same time, he focuses on the human aspects of the people he has interviewed, which runs along the same line as Oliver Sack's 'The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat'. His first-person novelist writing style for a scientific topic of understanding the human mind is a fresh experience for readers who are usually acquainted with more mechanical writing approaches. Hence in a way, Dias's empathetic fictional/nonfictional writing approach is what separates his book from Harari's 'Sapiens', which approaches its own topic purely from a logical, impartial standpoint.
Despite being a nonfiction, Dias's book presents itself as one that blurs the boundary between what is real and what is fictional, with stories of real people so incredible that it challenges readers' ability to fathom the true extent of the human psyche. Dias demonstrates his sheer versatility as an author through his deft writing, switching from suspense to empathetic for different occasions (with hints of British-style dry humor), and weaves a continuous yet nonlinear narrative among the people he's interviewed whose disparate stories carry a common theme: the essence of humanity, both good and bad.
Just to be clear, the ten types aren't necessarily mutually exclusive to one another. Like the stories of post-earthquake Haiti and violence-ridden Central African Republic, some types such as the Aggressor and Tribalist overlap each other, or how none of the types are any superior than one other - each type can be as benevolent or heartless - which is what Dias tries to be say as human beings exhibit different types depending on the environment, as he writes about his experiences with people from different backgrounds to exhibit how each type manifests itself under extreme situations.
'The Ten Types of Human' is a serendipity in bibliographic form, one that bears the image of a science book but at the same time is a collection of memoirs of real people with incredible stories. Dias tells us their stories with literary finesse, balancing elegant and dispassionate writing with riveting and sentimental narrative. Personally, I wish that Dias would consider writing a novel next. It is one of those books that makes readers reconsider the way they look at themselves and life itself, by understanding how we think and behave and marvel at the sheer mystery of the different human beings that reside in all of us.
So, is this better than Harari's 'Sapiens'? I personally dislike to compare things or people, especially when 'Sapiens' and 'Ten Types of Human' deal with two different topics, but both are pretty much up there as among the best nonfictions I've ever read and owned a copy of. It is more than 800 pages long, yet it never for once felt like a chore to read every page. It's that compelling. I offer my best ovation to this; it's a literary (and even underrated) masterpiece that deserves to be read by everyone. Simply astounding; this one gets my standing ovation and a coveted recognition as an all-time favorite read.
Author Dexter Dias is a human rights barrister from the UK who is also a researcher at Cambridge University and Harvard University, so it might not come as a surprise that his book deals with morality and ethics, and seeks to answer one fundamental question: who we really are. Writing from evolutionary, neuroscientific, sociological and philosophical points of view, he takes upon the incredible task of understanding the fundamental understanding of the human mind, and why we are capable of making the most benevolent acts and the most inhuman atrocities at the same time.
The book explores the human mind through series of hypothetical dilemmatic questions. Would you choose to save your own son at the cost of the lives of 25 other children? Would you save a stranger from a lake that can end up killing yourself? Would you end the life of a loved one if he wishes to die? In a way, 'The Ten Types of Human' is a comprehensive view into ethics through thought experiments, and is a thought-provoking biblical journey for readers who are particularly interested in discussions on morals, famous examples being the Trolley Problem and MIT's Moral Machine. As the title suggests, these questions are addressed in the form of ten 'types' of people that inhibit inside us all.
Dias's book is utterly compelling from start to finish; it presents 10 individual 'human beings' that are inherent in all of us, figurative representations of our moral ethics that make up who we are, and Dias elaborates by using lessons from excerpts of people he has interviewed from all walks of life in different parts of the world - be it a former slave in West Africa or a stroke survivor in the UK. He follows the same scientific nonfictional route as other famous works dealing with similar topics, such as Steven Pinker's 'The Better Angels of our Nature' and 'Blank Slate', and Richard Hawkins's 'Selfish Gene'.
Yet at the same time, he focuses on the human aspects of the people he has interviewed, which runs along the same line as Oliver Sack's 'The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat'. His first-person novelist writing style for a scientific topic of understanding the human mind is a fresh experience for readers who are usually acquainted with more mechanical writing approaches. Hence in a way, Dias's empathetic fictional/nonfictional writing approach is what separates his book from Harari's 'Sapiens', which approaches its own topic purely from a logical, impartial standpoint.
Despite being a nonfiction, Dias's book presents itself as one that blurs the boundary between what is real and what is fictional, with stories of real people so incredible that it challenges readers' ability to fathom the true extent of the human psyche. Dias demonstrates his sheer versatility as an author through his deft writing, switching from suspense to empathetic for different occasions (with hints of British-style dry humor), and weaves a continuous yet nonlinear narrative among the people he's interviewed whose disparate stories carry a common theme: the essence of humanity, both good and bad.
Just to be clear, the ten types aren't necessarily mutually exclusive to one another. Like the stories of post-earthquake Haiti and violence-ridden Central African Republic, some types such as the Aggressor and Tribalist overlap each other, or how none of the types are any superior than one other - each type can be as benevolent or heartless - which is what Dias tries to be say as human beings exhibit different types depending on the environment, as he writes about his experiences with people from different backgrounds to exhibit how each type manifests itself under extreme situations.
'The Ten Types of Human' is a serendipity in bibliographic form, one that bears the image of a science book but at the same time is a collection of memoirs of real people with incredible stories. Dias tells us their stories with literary finesse, balancing elegant and dispassionate writing with riveting and sentimental narrative. Personally, I wish that Dias would consider writing a novel next. It is one of those books that makes readers reconsider the way they look at themselves and life itself, by understanding how we think and behave and marvel at the sheer mystery of the different human beings that reside in all of us.
So, is this better than Harari's 'Sapiens'? I personally dislike to compare things or people, especially when 'Sapiens' and 'Ten Types of Human' deal with two different topics, but both are pretty much up there as among the best nonfictions I've ever read and owned a copy of. It is more than 800 pages long, yet it never for once felt like a chore to read every page. It's that compelling. I offer my best ovation to this; it's a literary (and even underrated) masterpiece that deserves to be read by everyone. Simply astounding; this one gets my standing ovation and a coveted recognition as an all-time favorite read.
June 21, 2024
A book that definitely takes its time. The stories in this book really make you think. About yourself, your life and the world in general. Some of the stories made me cry and think how is it possible to behave like that? Some stories made me think about how resilient people can be, how some people can put up with so much?
These stories from different parts of the world really open up your world view. You start to think about how you behave and how these types live inside you.
I just think the author has made the book harder to follow by telling several stories at the same time.
These stories from different parts of the world really open up your world view. You start to think about how you behave and how these types live inside you.
I just think the author has made the book harder to follow by telling several stories at the same time.
January 22, 2022
if this book had just kept going, i wouldve just kept reading. i cant stop thinking about it. from the description, you would think this book is an interesting but dense sludge through psychology, sociology, and neuroscience, but honestly, i have only read a handful of nonfiction science-y books that are filled with this much heart and sincerity. this reads like a thesis for optimism about humanity. this book is full of science, but really, its mostly full of stories and the anecdotal, to impress upon you where the science is drawn from
September 3, 2019
A fascinating book once you get past the initial confusion of the chapter layouts!
To explain, each chapter starts with the random story of someone, a "case study" if you like, of Dexter Dias's, to highlight the point he's making. Then he jumps away from that story, goes to something else, then something different again, then references the initial case study again! And so is the structure of this mega book. And it happens in each chapter.
In all fairness, for a book of 800+ pages, the subject matter is highly interesting, harrowing, shocking and revealing. It covers everything from ethics to law, to philosophy to psychology, via female FGM, child slavery, human trafficking and every other element of the human psyche.
I got this out from the library and have raced through it (as a side note, it has been in the library since 2017 and no one else has borrowed it!! Possibly due its size!!)
Recommended for students of human life=all of us!
To explain, each chapter starts with the random story of someone, a "case study" if you like, of Dexter Dias's, to highlight the point he's making. Then he jumps away from that story, goes to something else, then something different again, then references the initial case study again! And so is the structure of this mega book. And it happens in each chapter.
In all fairness, for a book of 800+ pages, the subject matter is highly interesting, harrowing, shocking and revealing. It covers everything from ethics to law, to philosophy to psychology, via female FGM, child slavery, human trafficking and every other element of the human psyche.
I got this out from the library and have raced through it (as a side note, it has been in the library since 2017 and no one else has borrowed it!! Possibly due its size!!)
Recommended for students of human life=all of us!
July 25, 2023
This was very interesting and so nice to read. I especially loved the constant combination of the science and experiments with the real life stories of people. It made me able to not just understand it but also really see it and feel it.
January 25, 2021
{Two stars - I finished Type 5 (The Aggressor) and couldn't continue on, but having flicked through, I don't think the book changes tack.}
I feel it would be more accurate to describe this book as a series of reminisces from Dias on his journeys as a human rights lawyer, interspersed with "interesting" studies plucked from the fields of neuroscience and psychology. These stories and scientific curios are then loosely organised into the titular "Ten Types of Human" (more accurately "Ten Things Many Humans Do, In Certain Situations".) His writing style seems affectatious - needlessly complex sentence structures; frequent irrelevant callbacks to earlier chapters; endlessly dropping in tidbits of knowledge with no narrative/argumentative benefit.
If you're looking for "I heard about an interesting study..." fodder for dinner table conversation, this book has what you want.
If you're looking for some PG-rated tales of human rights abuses, this book will be of interest.
If you're looking for "a roadmap of the hidden parts of us", steer well clear.
I suspect Dias would be a scintillating dinner guest (if a bit overbearing), but this book fails to deliver on it's very title.
I feel it would be more accurate to describe this book as a series of reminisces from Dias on his journeys as a human rights lawyer, interspersed with "interesting" studies plucked from the fields of neuroscience and psychology. These stories and scientific curios are then loosely organised into the titular "Ten Types of Human" (more accurately "Ten Things Many Humans Do, In Certain Situations".) His writing style seems affectatious - needlessly complex sentence structures; frequent irrelevant callbacks to earlier chapters; endlessly dropping in tidbits of knowledge with no narrative/argumentative benefit.
If you're looking for "I heard about an interesting study..." fodder for dinner table conversation, this book has what you want.
If you're looking for some PG-rated tales of human rights abuses, this book will be of interest.
If you're looking for "a roadmap of the hidden parts of us", steer well clear.
I suspect Dias would be a scintillating dinner guest (if a bit overbearing), but this book fails to deliver on it's very title.
July 28, 2019
Amazing stories but I dont think the author is enough of a social scientist to categorize people like this. It felt too disorganised and sketchy.
Also the chapters chop and change from one story to the next. Just as you're getting into something he stops it and begins another one. By the time he came back to finishing it I was forgetting what the story was about. It was disruptive to reading flow.
I think the level of detail in it was a bit inconsiderate to the reader. The book could have easily been 300 pages shorter.
I would have been happy to read this book if it were just tales he retold from his travels and experiences in human rights. It wasnt a great social science book, but the stories were A+.
It truly does cover the best and worst that we humans are capable of. Instead of his points fitting into ten neat boxes, they just made it seem way more complicated than that.
Also the chapters chop and change from one story to the next. Just as you're getting into something he stops it and begins another one. By the time he came back to finishing it I was forgetting what the story was about. It was disruptive to reading flow.
I think the level of detail in it was a bit inconsiderate to the reader. The book could have easily been 300 pages shorter.
I would have been happy to read this book if it were just tales he retold from his travels and experiences in human rights. It wasnt a great social science book, but the stories were A+.
It truly does cover the best and worst that we humans are capable of. Instead of his points fitting into ten neat boxes, they just made it seem way more complicated than that.
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