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183 reviews for:
The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey into the Dark Side of the Brain
James Fallon
3.26 AVERAGE
183 reviews for:
The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey into the Dark Side of the Brain
James Fallon
3.26 AVERAGE
funny
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
very intriguing, slightly concerning; all the best things are.
An interesting read into the life of a psychopath. The book can be 'dry' at points if one does not have previous knowledge of medicine / psychology .
Fallon writes well and detailed.
Fallon writes well and detailed.
this one is a hundred times better than that " the psychopath next door" book. the author has a knowign sense of humor about his state of being, and can actually stand outside of him self. this is quite like John Elder Robson's experience, minus the charm and the hedonism
I have a strange fascination with the biological basis of antisocial behavior (i.e the basis of violence) especially psychopathy, so this memoir of a neuroscientist really sparkled my interest. This book contains verifiable sources about research on psychopathy, mixed with personal experiences of the writer, with an interesting twist about infamous murderers in his family lineage. I think the way he tells his stories are very self-centered and narcissistic, which makes an excellent example of one of the traits of psychopaths. While I was reading the book, I kept wondering if I would ever pick up certain clues that something was off with him if I ever saw him interacting with others. I suppose psychopaths are very good at being charming, so most likely superficial interactions wouldn't be enough to detect one. Anyways, I liked the book, especially because the author's 'voice' in this book is like seeing things through him: many reviewers hated his narcissistic point of view, but I think it gives insight into how a borderline psychopath perceives people and events. Most likely, whether you liked his book or not, Fallon probably doesn't care.
Finally, one important point, in my opinion, is that he admits in the very end, that even if you have a genetic predisposition towards psychopathy or any antisocial behavior, a nurturing environment, like the one he had growing up, could have a great positive impact on one's behavior, mitigating negative traits that could otherwise lead to violent outbursts.
Finally, one important point, in my opinion, is that he admits in the very end, that even if you have a genetic predisposition towards psychopathy or any antisocial behavior, a nurturing environment, like the one he had growing up, could have a great positive impact on one's behavior, mitigating negative traits that could otherwise lead to violent outbursts.
challenging
informative
slow-paced
All of the nice, interesting science bits were overshadowed by excessive bragging; I kind of feel sorry for everyone around him.
I very much enjoyed the science in this book. I felt like it wasn’t dumbed down and it went into a lot of details about the specific parts involved, which I appreciated.
Additionally, I think I liked this book for the same reason others hated it. His inner thinking isn’t pleasant. That’s the point.
I liked this book because, on top of the in depth science, it really does give you a sense of the thinking patters of those with strong antisocial personality disorder/ psychopathy. Yes, he’s narcissistic. Grandiose sense of self worth is a big factor in psychopathy! He says he’s this fun guy that everyone likes, and though I doubt he’s as liked as he thinks he is, I bet he does have a lot of people who do like to be around him at times when he’s turned on the charm. I like that in this book he’s honest enough to explain that he’s charming as a way to manipulate people for a gain, rather than to just be a pleasant person.
At one point he is talking about a letter his sister and daughter wrote him about their feelings being hurt. He talks about how it annoyed him at first but now he understands their hurt, but in all honesty he just doesn’t care. Seriously he says this! This honesty regarding his reaction and subsequent insight into him not giving a shit regardless of recognizing he should, is exactly why I liked this book. As a psychologist I found it very helpful.
Additionally, I think I liked this book for the same reason others hated it. His inner thinking isn’t pleasant. That’s the point.
I liked this book because, on top of the in depth science, it really does give you a sense of the thinking patters of those with strong antisocial personality disorder/ psychopathy. Yes, he’s narcissistic. Grandiose sense of self worth is a big factor in psychopathy! He says he’s this fun guy that everyone likes, and though I doubt he’s as liked as he thinks he is, I bet he does have a lot of people who do like to be around him at times when he’s turned on the charm. I like that in this book he’s honest enough to explain that he’s charming as a way to manipulate people for a gain, rather than to just be a pleasant person.
At one point he is talking about a letter his sister and daughter wrote him about their feelings being hurt. He talks about how it annoyed him at first but now he understands their hurt, but in all honesty he just doesn’t care. Seriously he says this! This honesty regarding his reaction and subsequent insight into him not giving a shit regardless of recognizing he should, is exactly why I liked this book. As a psychologist I found it very helpful.
I picked this up because I saw a couple of interviews of the author online. He didn't seem to go into some of the juicy details I was hoping to hear about & figuring he was being canny so as to encourage people to pick up his book, I did so. I was a bit disappointed, but I guess I shouldn't have been. It has a very slow start. Fallon has to give you background on himself & his field...which he does, but it's pretty dry. He loves talking about himself & does so, to an irritating degree. Some information simply didn't need to be included. It was interesting to see how he brushed aside any guilt or culpability for many of the things he did, especially as a child, categorizing them as 'pranks' and 'harmless.' These included stealing cars & doing property damage. He claims that he has more recently been able to recognize the pain he has caused his family from various actions (flirting, forgetting a grandchild alone at home, skipping out on family events to party), but he truly is not ashamed or contrite. Which, according to his brain chemistry, makes sense. It was interesting, but I think that you can be fairly satisfied from watching some of his interviews & talks on YouTube.
One interesting fact from the book:
"Connecting with others involved both cold (rational) cognition, where one person understands what others might be thinking and what an appropriate response might be, and hot (emotional) cognition, where one can experience empathy with another's feelings and attitudes."
"These brain circuits mature at different times during development, and although there are major maturational events that take place in the terrible twos, puberty, late adolescence, the twenties, and the mid-thirties, some are not completely integrated until one is in the sixties, which appears to be the typical average peak time of human insight, cognition, and understanding in many realms of life."
One interesting fact from the book:
"Connecting with others involved both cold (rational) cognition, where one person understands what others might be thinking and what an appropriate response might be, and hot (emotional) cognition, where one can experience empathy with another's feelings and attitudes."
"These brain circuits mature at different times during development, and although there are major maturational events that take place in the terrible twos, puberty, late adolescence, the twenties, and the mid-thirties, some are not completely integrated until one is in the sixties, which appears to be the typical average peak time of human insight, cognition, and understanding in many realms of life."
I find it funny how many people were put off by the author's narcissism. He's a psychopath: of course he's narcissistic. Comes with the territory. Fascinating look into his world.