The Sociopath Next Door | Martha Stout | Now I see the light as to why two family members and one...

The Sociopath Next Door | Martha Stout | Reasonably helpful

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The Sociopath Next...

	The Sociopath Next Door Martha Stout Broadway, 2006 - 256 pages average customer review:based on 222 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Now I see the light as to why two family members and one ex girlfriend were so heartless !

Amazing and powerful book.

This book is all the more gripping, if you have, like myself, had a sociopath right smack in your own family. I now see how one of my 14 cousins who now about 60 years old and has never held a steady job, (the rest of my cousins are good, non sociopathic people, I might add) and who happens to be a Class A swindler, is also a hard core sociopath.

I now have some insight as to why one of my ex girlfriends whom I met on the Personals (I no longer do them, I might add) whom I was involved with in an on again /off again relationship for 4 years had been married and divorced 4 times, and how naive I had been to believe her constant stream of lies and deceptions.

Needless to say, thanks to Dr. Martha Stout, I have had the equivalent of 20 visits to one of America's best psychologists (and for a price of less than 15 dollars..!), and I have, at her urging (and she might have well as talked to me personally) cut all sociopaths such as these people out of my life. And I have achieved a great sense of empowerment and liberation.

As a (sin and repent) Christian, I do pray for these people, and other like them, but, thanks to Dr. Stout, I realize that since there is basically no way I can change them and their sociopathic ways, then the only viable thing for me to do is to cut them off.

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Reasonably helpful

The most helpful aspect of this book was the author's description of how a sociopath takes advantage of "normal" empathetic responses in others.

I did read some of the one star reviews, and see some of their points. Just because there's evidence, statistically, that 1 in 25 people is a sociopath does not mean that 24 out of 25 are Good People and 1 in 25 is Evil. I think most of us have our good and bad sides. I hesitate to demonize anyone lest I be denying something that can be hurtful to others in my own behavior.

Having said that, I still give the book five stars. I'd agree there's a spectrum, where the majority of people, while self-interested and flawed, nevertheless strive to live by the Golden Rule much of the time, while a minority of others believe the Golden Rule is for fools. I'm less worried about the "ordinary" sociopaths Stout describes than I am those who may hold public office, sit on boards of corporations, or order subordinates to commit genocide.

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Next best book to "People of the Lie" by Scott Peck

As a psychotherapist, I try to keep abreast of all the books that talk about people who create havoc in the lives of others which prompt them to enter therapy.

I have always known that those who seek therapy are simply trying to undo the problems certain troubled people in their lives are causing for them internally, in their relationships, families, and/or work environment.

This book gives a name and a language for what happens in a similar way to Scott Peck's book, "People of the Lie". I highly recommend both.

People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil

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1 in 25 ordinary Americans secretly has no conscience and can do anything at all without feeling guilty.

"Who is the devil YOU know?" asks author Martha Stout on the cover of her latest release, The Sociopath Next Door. Stout makes the case the 1 in 25 Americans are sociopathic, a rate that far exceeds that of anorexia, colon cancer, or schizophrenia. Given that antisocial personalities are so prevalent, why isn't there more dialog about them in the popular culture? Stout's book aims to change that, by describing the origins and facets of conscience, exploring antisocial personalities, and providing coping strategies for those of us who are affected by a sociopath in our lives.

As a psychologist, Martha Stout has seen lives destroyed by sociopaths next door (a mother, ex-boyfriend, sibling, father, friend, co-worker). Her composite case histories highlight the general types of sociopaths, and the means to which they use their lack of conscience to attain personal satisfaction and even economic and career success. She teaches the reader how to identify a sociopath: excessive charm, anger when unable to manipulate, habitual lying, lack of remorse, continuous need for affirmation from others, and an excessively high opinion of oneself.

Statistics tell us that we're likely going to run into a sociopath or two in the course of our lives, so I suppose that means The Sociopath Next Door is required reading for all of us. Pick this one up so you are well-equipped to deal with these personality types that aim to obliterate you for their own needs. Includes an index and extensive bibliographic notes.

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