A sabedoria dos psicopatas

by Kevin Dutton

Provocativo a cada página, A sabedoria dos psicopatas é uma aventura fascinante que revela que nosso lado mais sombrio e cruel muitas vezes esconde o segredo do sucesso. Nesta viagem pelas vidas de psicopatas e seu comportamento, o psicólogo Kevin Dutton aponta que há uma escala de "loucura" dentro de todos nós. Ao reunir os últimos avanços de pesquisas de escaneamento cerebral e neurociência, Dutton defende que existem "psicopatas funcionais" entre nós – diferentemente de seus parceiros assassinos –, que usam suas personalidades inabaláveis e carismáticas para superar a sociedade comum, e surpreendentemente, em algumas áreas, quanto mais "psicopáticas" são as pessoas, mais chances elas têm de serem bem-sucedidas. Além disso, o autor argumenta a sociedade está mais "psicopática" do que nunca, afinal de contas, psicopatas tendem a ser corajosos, confiantes, interessantes, implacáveis e focados – as qualidades perfeitas para o sucesso no século XXI.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Science, Self Help, Audiobook, True Crime, Business

362 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 16, 2012

About the author

Dr Kevin Dutton is a researcher at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, and a member of the Oxford Centre for Emotions and Affective Neuroscience (OCEAN) research group.

He regularly publishes in leading international scientific journals and speaks at conferences around the world.

Reviews

[E · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, this was disappointing.

In sum, this book is about how some psychopathic qualities are actually really helpful and positive and incorporating them into your life can make you succeed. They can reduce anxiety and depression, make you more productive, and even make your more empathetic (although if you're a true psychopath with sadistic tendencies, the empathy payout is getting to enjoy the suffering of your victims more ... so, this isn't a heartwarming "hope for psychopaths" book).

Look, I'll be honest. I was kind of jealous of psychopaths after reading this book. I mean, I'd love to react to all situations in a cold and calculating manner, with a accompanying drop in blood pressure and heartrate. I'd love to be able to never take things personally, see projects through doggedly to the end, and keep myself from fearing by staying strictly in the "now." (And as far as getting that message across, it was more effective in this medium for me than those crunchy feely Eckhert Tolle books). I was actually approaching this book as a kind of self-help manual, because lawyers are really high on the psychopath list and if you can't beat them, join them. (Well, only for working hours, that is.)

What annoyed me is after all the promising studies, Dutton doesn't really tell us HOW to make the more positive traits of the psychopath into our own. While I understand part of the premise is that they're jsut "wired that way" (the author himself has part of his brain treated to feel like a psychopath for an afternoon). What I would've liked is something in the cognitive behavioral realm to get there. (There was also a mention of the dopamine-inhancing properties of amphetamines so I guess if all else fails ...) Instead, he wasted pages boycrushing on Special Forces agents, cops, and his childhood psychopathic friend who I'm unclear why he kept. Nope, he punted that to TIBETAN MONKS MEDITATING. Look, Tibetan monks have been doing that for a while. How about something more approachable?

At the very least, it would've been considerate of him to include the questionnaire used to measure the index of one's own psychopathic tendencies, even if I was just a little morbidly curious after discovering I have not issues whatsoever shoving fat guys in front of streetcars to save other people. Since most of the studies use this as a basis to pick their subjects and control group, it would've been helpful.

That said, I still learned enough from this book not to make it a tossup, but in the realm of essays on weird psychological phenomenon and its relevance, this had nothing on other books and lacked a real tongue-in-cheek (his OWN tongue, mind you) feel that probably would've made it roll a bit better. Instead, I felt like the author got too absorbed in exhibiting his comfort level around those tough manly manly psychopaths. The lack of female psychopaths in this book was also a real problem, even though he did point out they are the minority a contrast would've been nice since I think dealing with psychopathic females always has its own issues. In fact, given that he was targeting the "most successful psychopaths" and singing their praises to high heaven, some rep of the fairer sex would've been much appreciated. I mean, we're allowed to be lawyers now - even CEOs, the number ONE profession where you have a tendency to be a psychopath.

Stil, a quick read to break in my new Kindle. Not bad if you want to learn that a psychological label doesn't turn you into Hannibal Lecter, not so great when you'd prefer to learn how to serve the other side its own kidneys at trial.

[☘Misericordia☘ ⚡ϟ⚡⛈⚡☁ ❇️❤❣ · Rating 5 out of 5]

What the author was going on about and what I particularly liked here is that there is nothing simple about human mind. A verifiable psychopath can have a bunch of traits that anyone can have (probably not all at the same time, still, a bunch of those). A healthy person can have exactly same things.

For example, if you meditate, theta waves will be more often appearing on your EEG. Psychopaths (according to this researcher) have theta waves more often as well. Does meditation make you psychopathic? I doubt it.

Another interesting tidbit to consider: we can't diagnose psychopathy reliably. We can't even diagnose depression or bipolar or OCD or ADHD or pretty much anything else reliably. Fore more on this one can refer to the Rosenhan experiment: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosenha.... Yes, it's old. Have things gotten better? Why should they have? I don't think so. We just won't see any today's experiments of this eloquence: the medical industry is not going to let such things happen, anymore. The industry is lucrative and foolproof (try proving you aren't insane, ADHD, depressive, etc... ). Spoiler: you can't prove a negative. And to prove a positive you just have to check a bunch of inane questions, like: have you been feeling restless? do you often feel distracted? Even the way such questionnaires are built can affect our responses (positive/negative questions, the order of questions, priming... ), so if you are to be considered ill, you will be, whatever you do.

For one thing, it's dreadfully easy to go about our respective lives sticking labels at people:
- You are feeling restless? ADHD is your problem, have some prescription drugs and be gone! You'll be stoned but you won't be distracted...
- You want to be a surgeon/spy/policeman/priest? Psychopath, that's what you are - here are some handcuffs and obligatory therapy (and a surgery, maybe?) and a ban from some jobs and... whatever our society comes up with next...

We have somehow gotten prone to villainizing or glorifying conditions. Bipolar becomes a trademark of creativity, psychopathy of evilness... It's no good, since there is no absolute normality. Everyone is abnormal in some way and medicating everyone into uniformity is not the best way to go about building a healthy society.

Q:
Theta waves are associated with drowsy, meditative, or sleeping states. Yet in psychopaths, they occur during normal waking states, even sometimes during states of increased arousal. (c)
Q:
Traits that are common among psychopathic serial killers, Kouri observes—a grandiose sense of self-worth, persuasiveness, superficial charm, ruthlessness, lack of remorse, and the manipulation of others—are also shared by politicians and world leaders: individuals running not from the police, but for office. Such a profile... allows those who present with it to do what they like when they like, completely unfazed by the social, moral, or legal consequences of their actions. (c)
Q:
Psychopathy is like sunlight. Overexposure can hasten one’s demise in grotesque, carcinogenic fashion. But regulated exposure at controlled and optimal levels can have a significant positive impact on well-being and quality of life. (c)
Q:
I think the problem is that people spend so much time worrying about what might happen, what might go wrong, that they completely lose sight of the present. They completely overlook the fact that, actually, right now, everything's fine. You can see that quite clearly in your interrogation exercise. What was it that chap told you? It's not the violence that breaks you. It's the threat of it. So why not just stay in the moment? (c)
Q:
I realised from quite early on in my childhood that I saw things differently from other people,' he wrote. 'But, more than not, it's helped me in my life. Psychopathy(if that's what you call it) is like a medicine for modern times. If you take it in moderation it can prove extremely beneficial. It can alleviate a lot of existential ailments that we would otherwise fall victim to because our fragile psychological immune systems just aren't up to the job of protecting us. But if you take too much of it, if you overdose on it, then there can, as is the case with all medicines, be some rather unpleasant side effects. (с)
Q:
These eight independent satellite states of the psychopathic personality--Machiavellian Egocentricity, Impulsive Nonconformity, Blame Externalization, Carefree Nonplanfulness, Fearlessness, Social Potency, Stress Immunity, and Coldheartedness. (c)
Q:
... Psychopaths are shadowmancers', the agent tells me, a large-scale map of the US dotted with timelines, hotspots and murderous crimson trajectories plastered across the wall behind his desk.
'They survive by moving around. They don't have the same need for close relationships that normal people do. So they live in an orbit of perpetual drift, in which the chances of running into their victims again is minimised. (c)
Q:
Because of these exaggerated dopamine responses, once they focus on the chance to get a reward, psychopaths are unable to alter their attention until they get what they're after. (c)
Q:
The results were extraordinary. Over 70 percent of those who scored high on the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale correctly picked out the handkerchief-smuggling associate, compared to just 30 percent of the low scorers. Zeroing in on weakness may well be part of a serial killer’s toolkit. But it may also come in handy at the airport. (c)

[BlackOxford · Rating 1 out of 5]

In Praise of Evil

I can imagine a conversation with the author, Kevin Dutton, in the recovery ward after my last surgery: “Did you know that the cool, calculating, calm-under-pressure neurosurgeon who just did your spinal de-compression is a psychopath? Best in the business actually. You’re lucky you snagged him. Most of the medical psychopaths have moved to America” So now I know - psychopaths just have to find their appropriate role in society.

That in brief is Kevin Dutton’s argument. We ought to recognise that psychopaths, those folk characterised by an extreme “grandiose sense of self-worth, persuasiveness, superficial charm, ruthlessness, lack of remorse, and the manipulation of others,” have been stigmatised by their association with serial killers, sexual abusers, and other violent criminals. Psychopaths, he claims, can also play a productive role in society if we give them a chance.

Dutton employs some curious reasoning to get to this conclusion. For example, he writes that these same psychopathological traits: “… are also shared by politicians and world leaders: individuals running not from the police, but for office,“ as if achieving positions of power and influence demonstrates that psychopathology is a positive genetic adaptation to modern life. Leaders without conscience are simply not problematic for Dutton. Shame and feelings of personal responsibility have no place in his leadership-world.

Dutton then goes on to immediately cite a leading researcher in the field of mental disorders as if confirming his opinion about benign psychopathy. “Such a [psychopathic] profile,… allows those who present with it to do what they like when they like, completely unfazed by the social, moral, or legal consequences of their actions.” This Dutton believes is situationally virtuous, that it is the kind of ruthless, focussed, remorseless service we expect from people in charge - especially the robocop police and the best politicians money can buy!

The underlying assumption from which Dutton elaborates his view is that we’re all psychopaths to some degree, and further that this is a good thing. As he says, “… there’s evidence to suggest that psychopathy, in small doses at least, is personality with a tan—and that it can have surprising benefits.” I have no experience of a tanned personality, but I take him to me that such a thing has some aesthetic attractiveness.

And in this aesthetic evaluation of psychopathy Dutton is correct. I accept his judgement at face value. They lie well, and can charm the most wary of victims:

“If there’s one thing that psychopaths have in common, it’s the consummate ability to pass themselves off as normal everyday folk, while behind the facade—the brutal, brilliant disguise—beats the refrigerated heart of a ruthless, glacial predator.”

And this is what we all possess? Deep down we are all ice-cold predators? Hardly. Even the most pessimistic Gnostic never made such a claim. Even Augustine and Calvin left some wiggle room. Dutton is projecting a personal fantasy. The diagnosis of psychopathology is a defined medical condition. It’s not a spectrum. The neuroses prevalent in the population as a whole do not constitute pathological symptoms, tendencies toward psychotic breaks, or predictors of future violence. There is arguably a spectrum of mental health. But to claim that we all share the psychopath’s condition is absurd.

Dutton’s intention is clear. He wants us to empathise with the psychopath. Do they not bleed? Dutton provides everything from a mythical history of human evolution (predatory violence put food on the table) to descriptions of a wide variety of jobs in current society which can be filled by psychopaths (CEO, astronaut, entrepreneur, bomb disposal experts, terrorist perhaps). We need to promote a caring/sharing attitude towards these people who are wrongly categorised as a social menace. They should be welcomed not subjected to discrimination.

This to me is some king of faux tolerance gone mad. Psychopaths are domestic terrorists. Not all are violent criminals but a significant number are. And those who are not violent nevertheless destroy the lives of those over whom they have control. They start families, seek leadership roles, and run for public office precisely in order to dominate. From those positions they are able to inflict psychological and physical damage on whole populations. Having admitted that they succeed so well, Dutton still can’t understand that this is a social problem. As far as he’s concerned, the inmates are the most capable folk around to run the asylum.

Dutton portrays psychopathology as a sort of malevolent skill that we should recognise as such. But he also says that “…by being a psychopath, you in fact have an advantage over other people.” This sounds like a rallying call for the successful but still scorned psychopaths among us, not unlike the various pedophile groups which promote an ‘understanding’ of the naturalness of adult attraction to children. Dutton’s offers an equally creepy message.

[Simon Fay · Rating 1 out of 5]

In so far as dishing out some interesting facts on psychopathy this was a decent read. I'm all for learning the on/off switches that control what we define as our personalities and the book delivers on that front.

In terms of pointing out worthwhile lessons to be taken from the personality disorder it was oddly biased (the author claims his father and best friend are psychopaths) and even more muddled. It makes a case that there are some instances where having a 'me me me' philosophy is beneficial to yourself (duh) but makes absolutely no coherent case for how it's beneficial for society as a whole. It's an instruction manual on how to come out on top when the ship is sinking, rather than a book on how to fix the damn hole in the boat.

The author uses the game of 'chicken' to illustrate a possible instance where being a psychopath is a good thing, that the man who keeps his foot down on the pedal wins over the man who swerves out of the way. In terms of stats, I'm sure this plays out often enough for it to be a fun thought. In terms of applying it to international politics, I think one Cuban missile crisis is enough for the next millennium. Thanks anyway. I think I'd like some dudes in charge who don't get us into that game in the first place.

It's rare that I'm bothered to write a review and having done so now I'm second guessing myself - maybe the book was pure satire? A Ferenghi's guide to surviving humanity? In any case, I doubt many readers would take it that way.

[Kate Woods Walker · Rating 1 out of 5]

Psychopaths are not misunderstood geniuses with much to teach us about how to be human, as the author contends. They are murderers, rapists, child molesters and criminals of every stripe. They are Wall Street cheats and ruthless dictators. They are cult leaders, con men and reprobates.

I agree with the esteemed Martha Stout about this book. Here's what she had to say in The New Republic: http://www.newrepublic.com/book/revie....

Dutton seeks to normalize the horrors of the psychopathic personality, by selectively presenting the research of others, surrounded by souped-up prose. He should be ashamed of himself, but I suspect that's an impossibility.

[Kare Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ironically, both psychopaths and Tibetan monks detect deep emotions that are invisible to others. Psychopaths are much better at recognizing “those telltale signs in the gait of traumatized assault victims” notes The Wisdom of Psychopaths author, Kevin Dutton. Tibetan monks, steeped in meditative practice, are also especially adept at reading feelings that are hidden from the rest of us, Paul Ekman discovered. Ekman, is the preeminent expert on lying and on the six universally expressed emotions in the face — anger, sadness, happiness, fear, disgust and surprise. Scarily, psychopaths score especially high on the Hare Self-Report Scale of psychopathy in seeing those core expressions, especially the ones that make us most vulnerable, fear and sadness, according to Sabrina Demetrioff.

Another astounding finding was that, in lab tests, a Tibetan monk had no startle reflex reaction to “a gun being fired just centimeters away from the ear: the maximal threshold of human acoustical tolerance,” reports Dutton - yet others despite that finding. Ekman, and his co-researchers, Robert Levenson and Richard Davidson, concluded, according to Dutton, that “practicing a relaxed state of mind” is conducive to “keeping a cool head at one time or another.” Yet it appears that psychopaths don’t need that meditative practice to stay calm under pressure and or to be inordinately observant, especially of weaknesses in others. Psychopaths feel little or none of the arousal reactions (heart beat, sweat, blood pressure, etc.) that others have when viewing “a series of horrific, nauseating and erotic images,” found Dutton. Like the monks, psychopaths have greater self-mastery of their emotions. Unlike the monks, however, they seem to be born with this capacity to not feel nor react.

That may not be the most surprising conclusion from Dutton’s book however.

Unlike our common impression of psychopaths as dangerous serial killers, and some are, others use their high-performing capacity to remain calm in stressful times to conduct surgery, lead soldiers or become sought-after CEOs. After all, as Dutton suggests, if you’re having brain surgery, wouldn’t you want someone who is not distracted by feelings and completely in control and concentrating on the operation? If your life were in danger on the battlefield, wouldn’t you want someone who could coolly survey the situation and deeply recognize others’ reactions, to determine the best way to rescue you? Psychopaths adept detection of vulnerability is one of their most potent skills. See more at http://www.forbes.com/sites/kareander...

[Antigone · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book served to remind me how very arbitrary we are when it comes to categorizing things. Yes, classification assists us with our thinking and communication, but when we get lazy about it and start using those categories with ambivalence, as a fast-talking sort of shorthand, we sacrifice the thousand degrees of a thing to the very shallow aim of making our point. Psychopathology is such a classification, and encompasses a wide range of qualities and behavioral patterns. While you may hope never to meet a stone-cold killer with a mind possessed of such particular thrust, as Mr. Dutton rightly points out, you do in fact pray to encounter a surgeon, a policeman, a SEAL team member, and quite possibly a divorce lawyer equipped with a healthy share of such cognitive traits.

Your author, it should be stated up front, is a real geek on the subject - meaning there's a lot of quirky passion going on in this work. Mr. Dutton, it can be safely said, never met a study he didn't like and includes them by the dozens. This becomes a bit of a problem when he begins to refer back to them, and to refer back to the scientists who ran them, and you start to lose your bearings in that referential muddle. Additionally? Way too many metaphors used less to clarify than to ornament the text. Readability is challenged - and loses on occasion.

Still, there's some interesting stuff going on in the corners here. Who knew, for example, that psychopaths were extremely adept at mindfulness? That the only people on earth who surpass their expertise in the practice are Buddhist monks? (The rest of us, regardless of our time and effort, will hardly hit the chart.) And his trip to Broadmoor, the high security prison, to commune with the murderers inside? Beyond fascinating.

[Mohammad · Rating 2 out of 5]

سایکوپت ها بیماران ذهنی هستن که رفتار ضد اجتماع و خشونت آمیز دارن بدون اینکه دچار عذاب وجدان یا ترس یا استرس بشن. بیشتر شامل مجرم هایی می شه که مرتکب جرایم خشونت بار مثل قتل، تجاوز و شکنجه و ... می شن.
دو فصل ابتدایی سعی می کنه تا تفاوت آدم های سایکوپت رو با بقیه مشخص کنه. این آدم ها یک سری ویژگی هایی دارن که باعث می شه اعتماد به نفس بالایی داشته باشن، نترس، خونسرد، متقاعدکننده و سنگدل باشن و البته شرمندگی و عذاب وجدان رو هم تجربه نمی کنن. به هیچ عنوان هم براشون اهمیتی نداره که دیگران چه نظری در مورد اونها رو رفتارشون دارن. این ویژگی ها علاوه بر این دسته از مجرم ها توی یک سری از آدم های دیگه هم وجود داره که رفتار ضداجتماع و خشونت بار ندارن و در بسیاری از مواقع توی موقعیت های رهبری و مدیریت هم قرار می گیرن. مثلا سیاسیون، مدیرها، پلیس ها، دلالان بورس، وکلا، نظامیان، جراح ها و مواردی از این دست. تفاوت بین این دسته از آدم ها با مجرمان سایکوپت هم بررسی شده.
آزمایش های زیادی روی قاتل ها و متجاوزها و بقیه انجام شده تا تفاوت اونها رو با بقیه مشخص کنه و نویسنده تعداد زیادی از این آزمایش ها رو ذکر می کنه و توضیح می ده.
هدف کتاب اینه که نشون بده افراد عادی هم می تونن از این ویژگی ها و خصوصیات رفتاری استفاده کنن و توی زندگی موفق تر بشن. این ویژگی ها توی هفت مورد خلاصه شدن: سنگدلی، تمرکز، مقاومت ذهنی، نترس بودن، زندگی در لحظه و کنش گرا بودن.
البته دیگه توضیح نمی ده چطور می شه این ویژگی ها رو ایجاد کرد یا این دیوونه ها چطور این ویژگی ها رو به دست آوردن. فقط می گه بعضی جاها این خصوصیات به کار میاد و می تونه به فرد کمک کنه تا موفق بشه. مثلا یک جراح سنگدل خیلی از یک جراح دلرحم موفق تره.
ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
موضوع جالبی بود. بعضی از موضوعاتی که توی کتاب هم اومده جذاب بود. منتها هدف اصلی کتاب برآورده نمی شه. آخرش نمی فهمیم که چکار کنیم که از این ویژگی ها استفاده کنیم و چطور اونها رو به دست بیاریم. یک سری ویژگی هایی بیان شده که بدون نیاز به آزمایش های پیچیده مغز و اعصاب هم قابل حدس بودن. ساختار کتاب هم مبهم و نارسا بود. می تونست خیلی بهتر باشه.
ــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
در حاشیه: حجم بیشتر آزمایش هایی که برای این موضوع انجام شده بود، مربوط به اسکن مغز، بررسی امواج مغز و بررسی خون و موارد مشابه می شه. یعنی به طور کاملا فیزیکی می خوان ببینن چه چیزی باعث این تفاوت می شه. خیلی وقت ها قاتل های سریالی که اعدام می شن یا می میرن، مغزشون رو بررسی می کنن و به دنبال تفاوت ها می گردن. که خوب خیلی وقت ها این تفاوت وجود نداره.
از طرف دیگه جامعه علمی ان ال پی رو به رسمیت نمی شناسن و اون رو شبهه علم می دونن. که خوب البته درسته. چون روش ها و تکنیک هایی که توی ان ال پی به کار می ره قابل محاسبه و اندازه گیری و آزمایش تحت شرایط کنترل شده نیست. هر فرد با فرد دیگه متفاوته و میزان تاثیرگذاری روش ها هم بنا بر این موضوع تغییر می کنه.
وقتی کتاب رو می خوندم به این موضوع فکر می کردم که هر چند اینکه بفهمیم چه قسمتی از مغز موقع فکر کردن فعال می شه و احتمال بروز چه واکنش هایی بیشتره می تونه کمک کننده باشه، اما شاید نادیده گرفتن محتوای فکر و نحوه نگرش فرد به مسئله هم می تونه کار نادرستی باشه. توی ان ال پی مودالیتی ها، ساب مودالیتی ها و استراتژی ها دقیقا به این موضوع تمرکز می کنن. علمی نیست، اما تا جایی که من دنبال کردم اگه به دقت انجام بشه کارآمده. اینکه نویسنده نمی تونه نشون بده چطور می شه رفتار و دیدگاه مناسب رو به دست آورد دقیقا جاییه که ان ال پی می تونه کمک کنه. بفهمیم اون دیوونه ها چطور اون کار رو انجام می دن و ما هم همون استراتژی رو تقلید کنیم.
ـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
یک شعر قشنگ آخر کتاب اومده. شمع و پروانه!

[Marta :} · Rating 2 out of 5]

This rating has a lot to do with my expectations, but also with the fact that I don't agree with the author's view. I'm a psychology student and like many people I'm interested in psychopaths and how their minds work. My roommate got this book from one of her friends and because she gave up on it, I ended up reading it to see how it is. So, I went almost blindly in this one, not knowing what to expect. From the title and the synopsis, I was expecting stories about popular psychopaths, like Ted Bunty and so on. This book is more general than that, it presents some theories, some studies about psychopaths, about how some of them are functional (actually have important functions in our world). They are businessmen, politicians, lawyers and judges and the author wonders if we should learn something from psychopaths, if we should learn to be focused on the present, to have a cold empathy (focused on perception) rather than a warm one (focused on feelings).
Then he started with all this debate about how we are all turning into psychopaths because of social media and so on. Let's agree to disagree. I'm tired of hearing all these stupid remarks about my generation being full of narcissists, I feel like we're rather the most insecure generation out there because of social media.
I think some of his theories were interesting, but he went a little too far. While it's important to make people aware that some psychopaths are among us and not all of them are criminals and so on, I'm not sure it will be beneficial for our society if all of us turned into 'functional psychopaths'.

[Breakingviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

By Martin Langfield

If you’ve ever thought your boss is a psychopath, you may be right, according to psychologist Kevin Dutton. And if you’re a top-flight markets trader, captain of industry, surgeon or soldier, you may well be one yourself. But that’s OK, says Dutton. It may even be optimal.

“The Wisdom of Psychopaths,” an exploration of serial killers, monks, spies and CEOs through the prism of personality tests and neuroscience, is a good book lurking within a bad one. In this regard it perfectly reflects its theme, which is that among the dark traits which make a person psychopathic nestle behaviors and abilities that are not only necessary, but good, for individuals and society. In the seeds of evil, he proposes, wisdom may be found.

An Oxford University research psychologist, Dutton may discomfit many readers with an almost adolescent joy in mixed metaphors and grating puns, relishing the shock value of his premise as he liberally applies the term “psychopath” to all kinds of people. It may sound like he is suggesting sadistic ax-murderers or serial rapists lurk within all men, but his point is rather more subtle. Perhaps this approach is a deliberate attempt to open the reader’s mind to new ideas. Or perhaps he needs a more restrained editor.

Still, a razor-sharp intellect with a serious academic purpose lurks behind the loose phrasing and wordiness. Dutton stacks up references to interlocking personality studies, brain scans and physiological examinations, comparing members of the general population with those behind bars and those who excel at certain sharp-end professions. His argument is that most “psychopaths” aren’t violent, and indeed most aren’t locked away. Many excel in society precisely because they possess, in a more moderate or controlled way, the same traits that land their more antisocial brethren in a world of hurt.

The key traits include: ruthlessness; intense capacity to focus, excluding all distractions such as fear; powerful reward motivation; a disposition to action; acute ability to read emotions in other people, without being moved by them; charisma; mental resilience; and mindfulness, the ability to live in the present moment.

Many people have some of these traits, he says. Those who can manage to flick them on and off according to circumstance have a powerful toolkit for doing well in life, particularly in high-risk, high-reward professions. Those with only partial control of such traits, or who have them jammed full-on all the time, may severely hurt others, ruin their own business or even damage the world economy. Those who lack any such traits should try to embrace a few, Dutton suggests.

In examining CEOs, Dutton also cites a 2005 academic study that compared business managers, psychiatric patients and hospitalized criminals in a psychological profiling test. “A number of psychopathic attributes were actually more common in business leaders than in so-called disturbed criminals,” Dutton writes, listing attributes such as superficial charm, egocentricity, persuasiveness, lack of empathy, independence, and focus. The main difference lay in the “antisocial” traits, with the criminals’ physical aggression, impulsivity and lawbreaking dials cranked up higher.

One of Dutton’s own surveys, in which visitors to his website take a personality test called the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale and give details of their professions, found that CEOs ranked highest on the scale, followed by lawyers, TV and radio workers, salespeople, surgeons and journalists.

Dutton interviews “functional psychopath” special-forces soldiers, financial traders, lawyers and doctors, often in exotic locales, who speak of experiencing altered states of consciousness when entirely focused on their work, akin to the concept of “flow” or “optimal experience” of Hungarian psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. One of the most intriguing of Dutton’s insights is the similarity he relates between certain psychopathic traits and those exhibited by experts in Buddhist meditation. Both are very good, for example, at reading emotions in people’s faces, embracing new experiences, remaining in the moment and practicing detachment.

To say psychological traits required in killing and in making a killing in the markets are not dissimilar may seem trite. Yet Dutton, despite his tendency to showboat, uses that observation as a starting point for a disconcerting and intelligent exploration of the outer reaches and useful inner depths of at least some human minds.

[ميرنا المهدي · Rating 5 out of 5]

قراءة ثانية ممتعة تمامًا كما كانت قراءتي الأولى له من أربع سنين.
أكثر كتاب علم نفس ممتع ومفيد ومشوق يتناول اضطراب السيكوباتية بشكل علمي وبسرد مبسط مثير للاهتمام.

[Marija S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I expected too much from this one.

It is not so much that it left me unconvinced, but I still have trouble with discerning what Dutton's hypothesis was in the first place. The book appears to be a mumbo jumbo of anecdotes, scientific article and book excerpts, snaps from interviews, lectures, conversations. It is easy to read and has insightful points which remain just that - points of reference for further exploration - but I often failed to grasp the meaning the author was trying to underline by them.

I have encountered the term 'psychopath' while studying criminal and related laws, and it did help a lot as a background for this book, because the author left out some pretty important things like statistics (e.g. gender distribution), how do psychopaths function when they're not breaking moral/legal norms (relationships, friendships, offspring care,..), how to test yourself to see where you are on the scale, etc.. but for example got into explaining some relatively uninteresting and tedious interpretations of traits in psychology testing. Also, to jump from theme to theme without reaching any conclusion or drawing a line, just to be brought back to the same topic only with an additional example, is a repetitive and tiring practice of this author.

The biggest minus of this book (apart that it is popular science, with a big emphasis on 'popular') is that it painfully lacks structure and a clear way of presenting a thesis. Sometimes, while reading, I was under the impression that the interviewees should be the ones writing a book (which most of them, accidentally, did) and that this book is just some guy stealing crumbs off tables of experts, investigators, real life psychopaths, etc. and not doing a top notch job out of it either.

In short, psychopaths are not 'wise', they are simply differently hard-wired.

At least this book cleared out for me why I disliked politicians and lawyers. And James Bond.

[Mrnica · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author is "that guy". He has some vague attempts at being self deprecating but just can't hide how much he wants to make love to himself--not in the normal masturbatory way, but in a creepy doppelganger gangbang sort of way.

Also, the book reads like an excessively long blog post.

The article on this book from Scientific American Mind covers anything you might want to learn without the nausea and the bitter taste of haterade.

[Cassandra Kay Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really unique take on a perhaps taboo subject matter. I though that his information was well presented, interesting, and definitely took a more broad view of the mind and psychosis. Its an enjoyable read and I really enjoyed how he took others views in account such as Steven Pinkers thoughts on violence in society. I would read this again.

[Jimmy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Something did not seem quite right about this book. I have read articles calling the book unscientific. It jumps around all over the place with some science, cultural references, and so on. And the author keeps repeating the words psychopath, psychopathic, and psychopathy until it became almost . . . well . . . um . . . you know . . . psychopathic.

[Razvan Zamfirescu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Spicuiri din recenzia finala care se gaseste pe blogul meu



..........................................
Kevin Dutton e fanul tuturor psihopaților. Și îi place atât de tare de ei încât ajunge la concluzia că aceștia sunt chiar înțelepți și că dețin anumite abilități care ne-ar putea ajuta pe noi (când spun noi nu mă refer și la mine din motive evidente ) să fim mai buni în ceea ce facem. Mai competenți. Mai puternici. Mai inteligenți. Mai altfel decât marea majoritate plictisitoare a oamenilor care muncesc și trăiesc pe acest pământ jinduind după succes și luptându-se cu depresia când văd că altul are mai mult deși muncește mai puțin, deși e mai prostănac etc.

Cu alte cuvinte, Dutton a găsit o variantă să scrie o carte motivațională plecând de la faptul că anumite caracteristici ale personalităților cu simptome de psihopatie sunt chiar benefice pentru omul normal dacă acesta știe cum să-și interiorizeze respectivul comportament. Sunt de acord cu Dutton! Cum să nu ai de câștigat în momentul în care nu ești în stare să empatizezi și ești dispus să calci totul în picioare ca să-ți atingi scopul? Cum să nu te simți bine în pielea ta când ești un optimist incurabil care nu reușește să discearnă binele de rău? Psihopații sunt cei mai tari! Unul dintre motivele pentru care aceștia sunt foarte tari și șmecheri și plini de succes este tocmai faptul că marea majoritate a oamenilor nu sunt psihopați, nu vânează conflicte și războaie, nu urmăresc să se răzbune cu orice preț, nu visează cadavre sau oameni dezmembrați etc. E ca și cum s-ar pune lupii paznici la oi – ceea ce se cam întâmplă dat fiind succesul psihopaților.

Dincolo de ideea interesantă și oarecum amuzantă a lui Dutton nu mai e nimic demn de reținut. Dutton încearcă să scrie o carte care se vrea un studiu științific combinat cu un stil ușor jurnalistic pe alocuri, cartea ajungând să fie într-un final mai degrabă o carte motivațională decât orice altceva. Dincolo de faptul că Dutton nu prea are răbdare să-și dezvolte teoriile astfel încât să le facă credibile mai are probleme și la organizarea ideilor, fapt care duce bineînțeles la o plictiseală îngrozitoare.

Dutton e incredibil de plin de sine – așa cum ar trebui să fie absolut orice scriitor de cărți motivaționale, totuși – atât de plin de sine încât ajunge să fie cred că singura persoană de pe această planetă în stare să identifice în câțiva pași și în urma unor întrebări banale un psihopat. Doctori care-și bat capul să înțeleagă această boală și se feresc să pună astfel de diagnostice sunt de domeniul trecutului! Dutton are soluția! Sună acum la 07xxxxxx și o să primești o poză în care autorul zâmbește misterios alături de un exemplar din extraordinara sa carte!

.......................................

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Wisdom of Psychopaths begins with a few strikes against it. First, one suspects the publisher commissioned it as a knockoff of Jon Ronson's The Psychopath Test, published a year earlier. Second, it's vaguely framed as a self-help book, although it never really commits to the concept.

Regardless of the publisher's intention, Kevin Dutton turns out to hold the better credentials—he's a research psychologist at Oxford University—and acquits himself well as a nonfiction author. (He can be forgiven for not being quite as fun as Ronson; few are). Already familiar with the real-life test of Ronson's title, although I have not read his take on the subject, I gave in to the "wisdom" hook and plowed ahead.

The Wisdom of Psychopaths moves as quickly and entertainingly as any survey of research and literature can, not just of psychopathy—which to me is inherently fascinating—but theories of personality in general, and the experiments behind them. I later read that Ronson had been criticized for taking some liberties with the research; in this way, if Dutton's book was at all intended a follow-on, it seems less a me-too entry and more like a corrective by someone from the field.

Dutton also makes a persuasive enough case that certain character traits associated with psychopathy—charm, focus, and fearlessness, among others—can be advantageous, if one can keep it in check. For anyone who wants to get ahead (unsurprisingly, in business especially) it can help to become something of a "method psychopath". Alas, Dutton doesn't spend much time with that, but if he writes that as a follow-up, I'll be there.

[Fernando del Alamo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cuando hablamos de psicópatas tendemos a pensar que son los clásicos asesinos que salen en las películas. Este libro es un estudio a fondo de a gente que posee estas características. Un psicópata no tiene por qué ser un asesino, sino que actúa en muchas ocasiones, de la forma lo más racional posible casi obviando las emociones. Y también pueden ser empáticos.

Recomendado para todos los públicos.

[Persephone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last autumn, I came across this article in the Globe and Mail which includes an interview with author Kevin Dutton and an overview of his book The Wisdom of Psychopaths. I felt a dropping in my stomach as I read it, because at the end of the article were two lists: one denoting leadership traits, the other the corresponding psychopathic traits. The first list came fairly close to describing my father. The second list pretty much nailed him. I sat in a mild state of shock for a few minutes, then logged into my local library's web site and put a hold on the book.

Dr Kevin Dutton begins The Wisdom of Psychopaths with tales of his own father and his father's audacity. Neither Dutton's dad nor mine was a serial killer (so far as I know). This is the point. We use the term "psychopath" as a synonym for "serial killer". This isn't so, and Dutton is by no means the first person to make this point. Most of us probably personally know people living with autism, Parkinson's Disease or schizophrenia. (I certainly do.) Why wouldn't we also know functional psychopaths?

Dutton describes how the very qualities that help politicians, surgeons, military intelligence operatives, CEOs and sales people rise in their professions and succeed in what they need to do are similar to the traits shared by some of the most dangerous people in our society. He calls these "The Seven Deadly Wins": ruthlessness, charm, focus, mental toughness, fearlessness, mindfulness (as in living in the here and now), and action ("Psychopaths," Dutton declares, "never procrastinate.").

As I read, I thought of the possible psychopaths I'd encountered in my own life: a boy at school who could turn friendliness on and off when it suited him, a teaching partner whose relationships with the students we shared made me uneasy, at least two of the Resident Fan Boy's bosses, and yes, my own charming, reckless, and heartless father.

I admit, though, I'm nothing but an armchair psychologist and this book, written in a glib, popular-science style, is nothing more than food for thought. An interesting read, but not something on which to base your life philosophy. Unless, like a psychopath, you have little in the way of a conscience.

[Solodchi Andreea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recomand cartea celor pasionați de psihologie, de criminali în serie și celor ce recunosc că suntem cu toții un pic nebuni, acesta fiind totuși un atu ce lucrează în favoarea societății actuale.
Psihopații nu sunt neaparat cei din închisori, ci acei oameni calculați, ce nu-i perturbă nimic în acțiunile lor, populari, lipsiți de emoții și sensibilitate.
Au oare oamenii de succes pusă în mod corect eticheta de psihopați? Poate fi un chirurg prestigios, ori un om de afaceri potent, un sfânt, ori un lider politic lipsit complet de emoții? V-ați gândit vreodată că de aici pornesc performanțele lor ca maximă concentrare pe rezultate, pe logica egocentrică impecabilă și pe abordarea totalmente nemiloasă a execuției oricărui scop, în luarea de decizii urgente, în situații cruciale, fără remușcări și ezitări? Însă cei ce nu-și exersează nemaipomenitele abilitați în mediile potrivite? Ce se întâmplă cu aceștia? Abia ăștia devin problematici, căci lipsa empatiei împreună cu un narcisism feroce, plus sânge rece naște monștri.
Și totuși, starea de psihopatie e de fapt o anomalie sau chiar următorul pas al evoluții psihicului uman?

"Viața nu ar trebui să fie o călătorie spre mormânt făcută cu intenția de a ajunge acolo în siguranță, într-un corp arătos și bine conservat, ci, mai degrabă, ar trebui să pornești la drum demarând în trombă și să ajungi epuizat, perimat și strigând cât poți de tare: Mamă, ce cursă!" (Hunter S. Thompson).

[Wanda Pedersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you choose to read this book, I would advise regarding it completely as entertainment. Don’t expect it to reveal too much about the issue of psychopathy—it tells the reader much more about the author than about this mental condition.

This is a book to be enjoyed for its anecdotes, not for its scholarship. The author seems to believe that quite a number of psychopaths populate his life—from his father to one of his childhood friends. Plus he tells an entertaining story of his visit to Broadmoor Hospital, where psychopaths are securely housed.

Despite the author’s enthusiasm, I’m not sure that we regular folk have anything of any great import to learn from psychopaths. Much more significant in my opinion is the ability of regular folk to recognize these damaged people and deal with or avoid them, something that the author doesn’t even broach. This seems to be more the author as a fan, rather than a realist. Despite this, an entertaining read.

[Klaudia_p · Rating 2 out of 5]

Początek był bardzo obiecujący. Do połowy książka całkiem interesująca, dużo naukowych faktów/ciekawostek. Niestety,im dalej w las, tym gorzej, a końcówka to już równia pochyła. Rozdziałem o "świętych" i psychopatach jestem zażenowana (to czyste fantazjowanie autora...) , i wolałabym o tym zapomnieć.

[Viola · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 zvaigznes. Kaitināja haotiskais pasniegšanas veids. Galvenā atziņa - mazāk emociju, vairāk aprēķina! Nekādā gadījumā neglorificēsim psihopātus, bet ir lietas, ko no viņiem derētu pamācīties. Kā reiz teica Wednesday Addams: "Emotions equal weakness".

[Stella Popa · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Întelepciunea psihopaților"
Kevin Dutton

Well, well, dragi psihopați și/sau mai puțin, eu îs Stella și am trăsăturile unui psihopat!
- Bună ziua, Stella! 😁
Fericirea este în necunoaștere, ca și pierzania de altfel! Cine a inventat moneda a fost un geniu, a înfruptat mintea și a convins-o să descopere ambiguitatea sau dualitatea lucrurilor care ne înconjoară!
Același lucru îl întâlnim și în cărțile scrise de Kevin Dutton, copilul unui psihopat (tatăl lui), care a decis să ne lumineze lumea nestingherită al acestuia.
Nu toți oamenii sunt psihopați, dar aproape toți avem unele trăsături comune cu purtătorii acestui "stigmat" psihologic. De exemplu, un chirurg, polițist, avocat, pompier, lider, conducător, manager, atlet etc au în arsenal un caracter și cumpăt diferit de cel al unui artist, vânzător, scriitor.
Lipsa periodică de empatie, curajul nesăbuit, rezistența fizica cât și cea psihologică la presiune și violență, semnele distinctive ale unor oameni care pot exercita o meserie mai periculoasă sau emoțional instabilă! Asta este partea pozitivă, mai mult sau mai puțin, al acestei istorii.

În imagine apar alte "calități" care crează monștri, la propriu!
Mitomania, lipsa totală de empatie, impulsivitate, violarea drepturilor, grandonamia, lipsa de siguranță, frică, regret sau vină, charismă superficială, alcatuiesc hora unui profil de psihopat "perfect"!

Aveți în fața dumneavoastră un ghid în lumea celor "diferiți", pentru a cunoaște mai bine un termen care în societatea noastră este, încă, unul puțin cunoscut sau plin de prejudecăți.

Cartea vine cu exemple de reprezentanți, răspunsuri la întrebări, cauzele și dezvoltarea, emotiile, avantajele și frustrările acestei laturi atât de discutate în ultimul timp de psihologi, psihopatia.
Pe lângă păreri comune și divergențe, un lucru este clar pentru toți, avem psihopați peste tot, unii sunt necesari ca aerul, alții ținuți după 10 lacăte, iar pentru a identifica, mai ușor aș spune eu, un psihopat, vă invit să deschideți paginile acestui studiu, cultura generală va avea doar de câștigat în urma acestei achiziții!

Nu este o lectură complicată, găsiți un limbaj accesibil, chiar și cei care nu au idee de psihologie vor reuși să priceapă tot mesajul acestei cărți.

Editura Globo mersi mult pentru carte!
#foxbooks #citimpentruschimbare #kevindutton #Întelepciuneapsihopaților

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually this is even better than I anticipated, in that the author directly argues his point with some decent supporting evidence. Other books that are trying to make an interesting point (e.g. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking) often don't really go anywhere other than trying to blow your mind with neat and quirky things that studies have found. And what is the author's point? That psychopaths are useful in some areas of society, and that people can do better at some things if they have psychopathic tendencies. He talks a lot more about the Serial Killers and Spies, but he does tie in Saints towards the end.

There's a lot of good stuff to learn in here about the current state of psychopath research, including that there are (interview) tests that are pretty good at differentiating psychopaths from regular people, although the DSM IV doesn't differentiate psychopathy from ASD (the author makes a good argument for doing so). Dutton keeps returning to the issue of whether psychopaths feel empathy, where it seems they can under conditions that don't bring out their psychopathic behavior, and in fact they are apparently much better at reading emotional states than regular people.

There were a couple of things I wish were elucidated a bit more in book, where they are just kind of dropped like curiosity bombs: that psychopaths don't have the normal "alert" brain wave that EEGs read from people (beta waves), and instead have theta waves which normal people have when drowsy or in deep meditation. Also, there's a statement that psychopaths don't procrastinate, which if it's true would be a very good self-indicator. However, there's not much to back up that claim.

[Long Nguyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written at a very accessible level for a casual reader of psychology, packed with moments of humor and active thinking, and ultimately an enjoyable read. It makes one wonder where on the sliding scale we'd be, or at least I did.

The contrast between saints and sinners gets a little blurry as Dutton tries to make the case that in moderate doses, some psychopathic traits are very beneficial to society. I wonder then, if it's at all possible to prevent the negatives while capitalizing on the positives. Of course, this is a bit greedy, to want the cake and eat it too. But the alternative is to not have these traits floating about at all, and that doesn't seem beneficial either (nor is it possible, given reality).

An undercurrent topic also surfaces occasionally, the interaction between what is a natural talent and what can be acquired. The author does not seem to address it directly though. The reader is left to judge and go from there, not that it's a bad thing to think on the evidence by one's self.

[Pena Eduard-Andrei · Rating 5 out of 5]

,,Mintea își ajunge sieși căci ea
Cerul îl face iad, și iadul in cer îl poate transforma"

[Moon Stream · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kitabı çox sevdim. Haqqında heç eşitməmişdim hardasa, ama satışda gördüm və dedim mövzusu tam mənlik.
Kitabda əslində varlığını bildiyimiz, amma fərqində olmadığımız, qarşılaşsaq belə kim olduqlarını tam anlaya bilmədiyimiz psixopatlardan bəhs edilir. Kitabı oxuduqca ciddi anlamda həm ürpərirdim, həm də heyranlıq duyurdum onlara. Kitabı oxuyana qədər əsla belə bir düşüncədə olmazdım. Amma sözün əsl mənasında, mətanətli, iradəli bir psikopat, öz xüsusiyyətlərini cinayət törətməkçün və ya kiməsə zərər vurmaq üçün sərf etməyənləri, onlar bizdən qat-qat öndə gedirlər. İstər iş həyatında olsun, istər cəmiyyətdə olsun. Onlar öz xarizmaları ilə insanları cəlb edirlər, qorxu duyğusundan uzaq olduqları üçün bizim cəsarət edə bilməyəcəyimiz şeyləri edə bilirlər, emosionallıqdan uzaq olduqları üçün şəxsi münasibətlərdə, ya da hər hansısa bir mövzuda qərar verərkən tərəddüd etmirlər və s.
Kitabın müəllifi bizə təkcə onların şəxsiyyətini, xarakteristikasını göstərməklə qalmır, onları müxtəlif və əsasını tapmış elmi təcrübələr göstərərək açıqlayır. Eləcə də, əgər biz doğru dozda psixopatların özəlliklərindən ala bilsəydik həyatımızda çox daha böyük işlər bacara biləcəyimizi göstərir.
Bu kitabı oxuduqdan sonra sadəcə o insanları deyil, özümüzü də kəşf edirik. İçimizdəki o qaranlıq tərəflərimizi.
Amma bu kitabın tək özəllikləri bunlarla bitmir. Mən indiyədək xəbərim olmayan bir çox informasiya ilə də qarşılaşdım. Həm məni heyrətə düşürən, həm də qorxudan. Ən maraqlısı mikroifadələr oldu. Biz üzümüzə hər hansı bir ifadəni verməyə çalışarkən sadəcə bir neçə milisaniyəlik üzümüzdə yerləşən ifadələrə deyilir. Hansı ki, həmin ifadələr bizim məhz əsl duyğumuzu ifadə edir, amma bu ifadələrin adi nəzərlə fərq edilməsi demək olar ki çox çətindir.
Yazarın üslubu da çox xoşuma gəldi. Kitabı oxuyarkən əsla sıxılmadım. Sanki bir roman oxuyurmuşcasına maraqla çevirdim səhifələri. Bizimlə söhbət edərmişcəsinə və araya incə zarafatlar, eləcə də öz ifadələrinə canlılıq qatmaq üçün müxtəlif əsərlərdən, filmlərdən sitatlar gətirməsi, hər fəslin başlanğıcına yerləşdirdiyi və həmin fəsillə əlaqəli başlıq-sitatlar çox xoşuma gəldi.
Qısacası bu kitabı mütləq ama mütləq oxuyun. Sizə çox şey qatacağına qarantiya verə bilərəm. Həm informasiya bazanızı genişlədəcəksiz, həm də kimlərlə üzbəüz olduğunuzu daha yaxşı anlayacaqsız, ən əsası öz həyatınızda da tətbiq etməli olduğunuz şeylərin fərqinə varacaqsız(narahat olmayın mən psixopatlıq yaxşı bir şeydi, psixopat olmaq lazımdır demirəm, sadəcə onlarda olan bəzi özəlliklər, lazımi dozda istifadə edilsə həyatımızda çox şeyin dəyişəcəyini demək istəyirəm, yazarın da dediyi kimi). 👍❤📚
Son zamanlar roman oxumaqdan çox elmi-araşdırma, psixoloji kitabları daha çox marağımı çəkir nədənsə. Bu anlamda uğurlu kitablar seçdiyimə sevinirəm və davam edəcəm😊

[John Cooper · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author begins his book by explaining that his own father was a psychopath. On what evidence? It seems that while he was driven to succeed, he was undeterred by failure, and his spirits never sank. If this seems like unsupported reasoning to you, you may find the rest of the book irritating as well. The author consistently uses the two techniques illustrated by his introduction: label anyone who strongly exhibits any trait among the many associated with sociopathic personality disorder as a "psychopath"; and burden every page with sensationalism until it groans. So the early sections of the book explain to us that many surgeons, who are masters of cold precision at the operating table, are psychopaths. Special Forces members, who love danger and seem fearless, are psychopaths. Anyone who succeeds at the difficult and often merciless decisions associated with growing a business is probably a psychopath.

How much more interesting this book would have been if the author had identified himself as a psychopath. I don't know whether he is, although I suspect he could be fit into his own loose definition. Unfortunately, he chooses to present himself as one of the inferior majority, doomed to approaching life with all the usual fears and hesitations. The section where he visits Broadmoor Prison, where universally acknowledged psychopaths are housed, should have been one of the strongest parts of the book, providing a little insight into the mindsets of the most remorseless killers. Instead, the visit is milked for every drop of amateur dramatics, as he describes himself quaking with fear as he gazes into the predator's steely eyes, and so on ad nauseum. It's as clumsy and shallow as a high-schooler's field trip report.

If you can wade through all the crap (the ability to do so being a psychopathic trait), there is value to be had here, particularly in the research studies cited, which you are of course free to Google and learn more about, if your curiosity hasn't been dampened by the predictable and repetitive claims that "what they found was astounding." The raw material that remains visible suggests what a good book about this subject might have been like.