...The Sociopath Next Door Author: Martha Stout Book Review By: Nicole Hanks April 8, 2013 “1 in 25 ordinary Americans secretly has no conscience and can do anything at all without feeling guilty. Who is the devil you know?” “A chilling accurate portrayal of evil—the decent person’s guide to indecency.” Jonathan Kellerman If a sociopath lives next door, don't go over for coffee. In fact, don't admit to them that you drink coffee, don't talk to them, and for the love of all that's holy, don't ever ask if you can borrow a cup of sugar. Not even if you're baking a cake that is guaranteed to find you true love, a promotion, and give you the winning lotto numbers. Do not make nice with a sociopath. Or so you'll think after reading Martha Stout's book. The Sociopath Next Door is an intriguing look at these devious, tricky people who live a life without a conscience. She describes the sociopath as a person who doesn't have guilt or remorse, or a sense of conscience. Literally they have no conscience. Their minds are such that the sociopath is free to run among us in the world, doing what they like without feeling bad or upset. They don't lie awake at night, wishing they could take back a nasty remark. They don't bite back and keep from saying nasty things to the clerk at Blockbuster when asked to check their backpacks at the store. If they say something awful, they're not going to feel sorry for it. That really seems to be the gist of sociopath, the total lack of remorse or regard...
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...Devoid of Empathy The Sociopath, often referred to as a Psychopath or as one having an anti-social personality sickness is a callous, remorseless, self-established man or woman. However these with this sickness aren't insane-they are completely conscious of what they're doing and what the consequences of their movements might be. They make their choices rationally, no longer out of delusion. Sociopaths lack what's referred to as the affective part of empathy meaning that they are mindful of how the other person is feeling or what they are thinking but they easily do not care. As they see it, folks are just objects to use for their possess gratification. They're manipulative and ruthless predators who most likely pick those people who are...
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...Characteristic Traits among Genders: The Sociopath and Psychopath by Evelyn J. Dotson MS, University of Phoenix, 2015 Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science Psychology University of Phoenix March, 2015 Abstract Psychopathic and sociopathic general characteristic traits are found in both genders in various populations. More research on the general characteristic traits of females is needed. Research for the female populations will give professionals information about the differences displayed between genders. Different applied sciences will also further their knowledge in treatment options for either tendency. The study used explored if any differences existed between genders with intensified levels of psychopathic traits in regard to psychopathy factor scores. The sample consisted of 2,500 people of both genders (52.6% women) (M=22.15; SD=1.38) from the generalized population, aged 20-24. Results displayed women with psychopathic personality traits had significantly higher levels of behavioral tendencies than men of the same. The genders did display a difference in aggressive behavior. The men showed a significant amount of aggressive behaviors compared to the women. The gender differences displayed in the seven psychopathic features show the variations needed for treatment options. Differences and Similarities in Generalized Characteristic Traits among Genders: The Sociopath and Psychopath by Evelyn J. Dotson ...
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... This discussion is about a case study of O.J. Simpson, the famous football hero and even more famous subject of the most infamous murder trial in contemporary American history. Orenthal James Simpson was the subject of a California trial regarding a brutal murder of his wife Nicole Brown-Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. Both victims were horribly murdered, the ferocity of these murders was apparent with the fact that Nicole Brown Simpson and Mr. Goldman’s heads were almost completely severed from their bodies. Truly, whoever committed this crime was a sociopath with no cognition of the normality that our society consider right or wrong. Yes, the question remains if Mr. Simpson committed this horrible, psychopathic act, this paper will delve into the scenario that he did, although he was figured innocent (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009) The disorder in question is sociopathic, so what is a sociopath? Also known as Antisocial Personality Disorder, the definition is: Psychopaths have a personality disorder characterized by an abnormal lack of empathy combined with abnormally immoral conduct despite an ability to appear normal. In basic terms, psychopaths have an ability to live among social structures yet possess little or no emotion or empathy towards others married with extremely violent tendencies (U.S. National Library of Medicine, Marc) Biologically speaking, Simpson could have inherited abnormal behaviors from birth. Simpson’s father was noted as...
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...defeated, he retreats back to his hole to die while the Danes celebrate. But, what if Grendel was not as bad as he seemed and was rather misunderstood. In the epic of Beowulf, We see Grendel lives with his mother in a cave underneath a mere, cast out from society. He would have been raised away from the rest of civilization and unable to learn their customs and what they consider to be normal and acceptable behaviour, and would be something akin to a wild animal. With...
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...Young 1 Whitney Young Troy University Oct 3, 2014 Young 2 The Academy Award winner Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson also known as Mel Gibson, father of 8, has had many accomplishments. He played the lead role in the movie Braveheart, directed Passion of the Christ, and recently starred in a the box office hit, Expendables 3. He has had a lot of highs and lows of his career and has done everything from winning multiple awards to receiving DUI's followed by public outbursts. You did not hear much about him being a “bad boy” during the 80's or 90's, but in the last 15 years his behavior has gotten progressively worse. What could have caused this Oscar winner to have so many issues? [Gibson, 2014]. During a documentary, Mel Gibson announced that he was bipolar. He said, “I had really good highs, but some very low lows. I found out recently I'm manic depressive”. [ABC News, Marikar]. Mel Gibson has been accused of being a homophobic, racist, and misogynistic pig. While fans and critics may blame his behavior on substance abuse or accuse him of being a megalomaniac, he has been diagnosed with bipolar I disorder. The difference between bipolar I and bipolar II disorder is mania which Gibson suffers from. Mania is only found in bipolar I disorder. (Comer, p. 245). During his arrest for his DUI, he made remarks about Jews being responsible for all the wars in the world. He then came back and apologized...
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...About Psychopaths… Psychopath is a term that is often herd in a wide variety of contexts but what does it really mean? Not to be confused with antisocial personality disorder, psychopathy is actually a more severe form of the former disorder. Sociopathy, as it is also known, is defined as “a psychological construct describing amoral and antisocial behavior.”[1] A psychopath is a person who “has deficits or deviances in several areas: interpersonal relationships, emotion, and self-control. Psychopaths lack a sense of guilt or remorse for any harm they may have caused others, instead rationalizing the behavior, blaming someone else, or denying it outright.”[2] A person suffering this disorder will exhibit behavior that does not accord with society’s laws and will lack a moral conscience that tries to control this unethical behavior. Because Sociopathy is a personality disorder there are no physical symptoms but instead one must rely solely on obeserving behavior to identify the mental illness. Psychopaths behavior can be tracked to the early years of childhood. It is very common for children with this disorder to exhibit violence towards animals, bedwetting until a late age, and pyromania. It is possible for children who are not psychopaths to display these behaviors as well so they are not a good way to measure whether a person has the disorder or not. Among adults a clear lack of nervousness and worries acompanies a lack of delusinoal thinking. As a result psychopaths tend...
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...resulting treatment of the individual pushes them into performing the deviant role. Also called "societal reaction" theory. Part II Select three of the identity categories below and name or describe at least 3 related stereotypes for each: Race Ethnicity Religion Gender Sexual orientation Age Disability Category Stereotype 1 Stereotype 2 Stereotype 3 Race- The Chinese Chinese people are quiet Chinese people are the most polite Chinese women are submissive Disability- Mentally ill They are helpless and to be pitied They are thought to be sociopaths and murderers They are thought to be “freaks of nature” Sexual Orientation- Bi-sexuals They are thought to be highly sexual, enjoying more tan one partner at a time They are considered indecisive They are thought to spread sexual diseases Part III Answer each question in 100 to 150 words related to those stereotypes: What are the positive aspects of the stereotypes, if any? There are only a few positive aspects of the stereotypes concerning the Chinese and the mentally ill. There were no positive aspects regarding bi-sexuals. Some positive aspects for the Chinese were that most people have the misconception that Chinese people are quiet, and that they are polite. This...
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...crime, or even death. Georgina’s life enters the parallel universe without any warning when a “tidal wave of blackness” sweeps over her. This frightening description of the sudden and unpreventable onset of profound depression sets the stage for the memoir’s exploration of Kaysen’s own struggles. She notes that even from within the parallel universe of illness, one is aware of the reality left behind. Kaysen and the other patients are trapped in more than one kind of parallel universe. Behind the barred windows of the hospital ward, the girls are conscious of the events taking place in the world around them but are unable to participate. In this chapter we learn that Susanna is depressed, when the doctor puts her in the cab he asked her what she did and she replies that she is sad. I feel that Susanna is just overwhelmed and lost control of everything, I think that at one point everyone gets overwhelmed by things in their life. Also Kaysen’s interaction with the doctor sheds light on both the reality of Kaysen’s illness and the chilling consequences of a medical establishment too quick to pronounce someone ill. Kaysen puts up little resistance to the doctor’s hurried diagnosis, even when he draws conclusions from an offhand observation about a pimple. She considers escaping, but pleads exhaustion. In truth, Kaysen doesn’t need to “escape”: she is eighteen and can leave any time she chooses. Too exhausted by depression, however, Kaysen relents. Her fear in this scene is justifiable...
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...that psychopathic behavior is genetic, not all psychopaths go on to become serial killers (Brogaard, 2012, n.p.). Deutschman (2005) stated that psychopaths are “glib, charming, manipulative, deceitful, ruthless--and very, very destructive” (n.p.). When you think about these qualities does anyone come to mind? Maybe the person is not a technical psychopath, but putting it into perspective like this helps to see how common these characteristics are. Chivers (2014) raised the issue that you could possibly work with a psychopath and not even be aware of it. He went on to summarize a study done by criminal psychologist, Robert Hare and stated that Hare and “another researcher looked at 203 corporate professionals and found about four percent scored sufficiently highly on the PCL-R to be evaluated for psychopathy.” The PCL-R is a test created by Hare that evaluates a person to “determine whether someone is a psychopath” (n.p.). As far as the four percent goes, that means that about eight out of those two hundred and three people is a psychopath. This research proves that a person can have psychopathic traits and not be a serial killer. Although it has been proven that psychopathy can be genetic, it does not prove to be the only reason of why a person comes to be a serial...
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...JEFF COOPER PALADIN PRESS BOULDER, COLORADO Principles of Personal by Jeff Cooper Copyright 01989 by J ISBN 0-87364-497-2 Printed in the United Sl Published by Paladin P Paladin Enterprises, In< Boulder, Colorado 8031 (303) 443-7250 Direct inquiries and/or orders to the above address. PALADIN, PALADIN PRESS, and the "horse head" design are trademarks belonging to Paladin Enterprises and registered in United States Patent and Trademark Office. All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, no portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the publisher. Neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for the use or misuse of information contained in this book. Contents Preface ....................................... vii Introduction ..................................... 1 Principle One: Alertness ...........................5 Principle Two: Decisiveness .......................11 Principle Three: Aggressiveness ....................17 Principle Four: Speed.............................23 Principle Five: Coolness ..........................27 Principle Six: Ruthlessness ........................33 Principle Seven: Surprise ..........................39 A Final Word ................................... 43 Preface It is not common for one to enjoy rereading something that he wrote a decade previously. Times change, styles change, attitudes change, and most of all people grow, both intellectually...
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...guilty of the crime. If even one person were put to death under false accusation and/or improper utilization of the judicial system then our society should feel shamed. To me taking the life of an innocent man is the worst possible act in society. Whether if it is done in an alley or on a gurney, similar to the one drawn by Boggess, it is a despicable act. Seeing this documentary did not change my mind. Many see Boggess as heartless criminal with no remorse and even less understanding of his crime. He killed two men in cold blood, like that of his own I assume. I, too, see him for all those things, but I see him more as a mentally disorder man living in a society that he does not fit in. After being proven of his crimes, Boggess should have been imprisoned and examined mentally and treated. Whether he was a sociopath, psychopath, something else, or completely free of...
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...Reconciliation What is insanity? Some would say that insanity is the seed of disorder in one’s mind, and that those who suffer from insanity, can’t see the world for what it really is. But what if insanity is just the society’s way of dismissing those with a different understanding of the fundamentals of the world. Many people treat those with mental disorders as less than humans, many people just dismisses everything they have to say. This question of disorder becomes very relevant in the short story “Reconciliation” by Polly Clark. The main character and narrator, Laura have developed a different view of the world than most people. The narrator of the short story is a first-person narrator, and therefore she is bound to be Subjective. The story she tells us is seen from her point of view, and it is always a problem, if only one point of view is used on actions. Especially if the narrator has problems seeing the world through uncoloured glasses. The narrators mind is a mess, this is clearly seen in the first line off the story in which she didn’t bring her shoes to work “It's my first day …. and I have forgotten my shoes” (p. 1 l. 1) This show that...
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...Ones perception of happiness can be quite different from another’s (Scalet and Arthur, 2014). For example, one may define happiness through wealth and success and another may define happiness, not on the material things they own but the family they have and the choices they have made through life. Aristotle also suggests happiness conforms to goodness of virtue (Kucukuysal and Beyhan, 2011). To be happy and good, one must make the right choices. Virtue is taught and learned. The ability to define happiness and decide what is virtuous is an individual choice based upon life teachings and experience. In order to make someone else happy, you must be happy with yourself. Life’s choices, treatment of others should be made with the best of intentions and cause no harm to others. Scalet and Arthur (2014) have suggested the quality of life is determined by activities and that a happy person will never do what is hateful and mean but will live life with dignity and always do what is best. Kant’s theory suggests that actions determine morality and one must not only act in accordance to duty but for the sake of...
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...As Devlin pointed out, a law should be based considering the social values which make up the moral fabric of a society. The moral purpose of the criminal law is not limited to laws aimed at protecting individuals from other individuals’ conduct. Rather, the criminal law serves to protect certain accepted social values which make up the moral fabric of an enduring society. At the time of initial enactment, Sec 377 IPC was responding to the values and morals of the time in the Indian society. The question now arises what is the current morality of our society? Traditionally Indian culture is said to be very liberal in cases concerning sexual conducts. The 600-700 years of Mughal dynasty and 200 years of colonial rule along the imposition of British Laws into IPC and other legal laws have certainly impacted our tradition and morality. The moral fabric of Indian society is an inter-twined nexus of different fabric of different tradition. Union of India, on the basis of 42nd reports of law commission of India wherein it was observed that Indian society...
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