This book is alternately scary,entertaining, & dubious. Before reading this book, I had never thought about psychopaths. Back in the early 70's when I was consdering pursuing a Phd in clinical psychology, I thought a lot about psychiatry, though in retrospect I realize that I knew very little.
So there's the Hare Test, which is supposed to ferret out those devious and dangerous people who are glib, smooth, and so believable, but ultimately devious and potentially dangerous and violent. Obviously you can't get many real psychopaths to sit down and take the test or submit to physical tests.
Someone in the book says 1% of the population are psychopaths. Maybe so, but I would venture that this is just a ballpark guess. Someone in the book says that psychopaths inhabit the highest reaches of business and industry. Maybe so, but I don't much too much stock again in such spirited guesses. Who really knows?
I grant that psychopathy is real. I would just add that we really probably don't much about it yet.
Psychiatry has been criticized from Day One. Criticism has been especially shrill in recent years. Nothing really new here.
As far as I know, I've never met a psychopath. They are scary sounding for sure. The books is entertaining as it talks about particular psychopaths. At the same time, I am dubious about some of the claims like the 1% and psychopaths in high places and psychopaths running the world because they so active and persuasive. Just guesses I think.
3 comments:
I am finishing the book. I am glad you read it. I will post about it too.
I do not agree with the 1% statistic, as it the data will be scored against the Psychopaths that are know, it leaves room for scrutiny about the validation of the 1% since not all Psycopaths have been diagnosed. To say that those in high powered jobs are running the country is a stigma on stereotyping, how can one man stereotype those in suck jobs as being a 'Psychopath' he can't, this is all just speculative, with no real conclusive or empirical research involved, it's a joke. Further more it is not the Psychopath who is in such jobs, it's the Narcissist, one should never confuse Narcissism with the Psychopath, as a Psychopath could score low on Narcissism, as a Narassist could score low on Psychopathy according to the PCL - R. It is my belief that psychology can mislead based on an unproven hypothesis, as far as I am concerned more research needs to be done, but I believe with an every changing world, of social shifts, trends, norms, more integration, affluence, poverty, it is with absolute certainty that the traits we know now towards Psycopathy will change and shift, as society moves forward, shifts and changes so does the human mind.
I find it bizarre people haven't worked with psychopaths. These aren't axe wielding monsters. These are career crushing, soul sucking bosses. I have definitely worked with senior officials who meet the 11 expected traits of psychopaths. Clearly and completely with examples.
I believe in fact it is proven. The 1% is not speculative. What are you people reading. I worked with a professor of psychology more than 8 years ago who used data in the lecture room on how to deal with psychos.The point was there is nothing you can do with them, only with yourself. To avoid them and get as far away from them as possible.
Some people are incredibly sheltered. 1% honestly seemed conservative. Perhaps you work in sheltered industries.
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