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In addition to theorique's comment, there is a huge literature on the neuroscience of sociopathy going back 10+ years, showing some significant activation diffe
by CognitiveLens 13y ago
In addition to theorique's comment, there is a huge literature on the neuroscience of sociopathy going back 10+ years, showing some significant activation differences particularly around social/emotional processing areas in the brain.
It has been extensively studied in part because it's such an insidious personality disorder that many high-functioning people have to varying degrees, and the depth of psychological research on the topic very quickly shows how wrong mjfl's comments are. There is definitely a flippant, pop-psych use of the word 'sociopath', but it doesn't really shed much light on the actual phenomenon.
- lutusp 13y agoThat may all be true, but people won't stop using "sociopath" in any way they please until its cause is uncovered and objective diagnostic criteria are established. Remember that the DSM simply lists symptoms, not causes, which allows great latitude for interpretation -- and misinterpretation. The cause of that condition we informally call "sociopathy" won't be uncovered by psychiatry or psychology. For that, we need neuroscience. And to date neuroscience isn't ready to shoulder the load. > There is definitely a flippant, pop-psych use of the word 'sociopath', but it doesn't really shed much light on the actual phenomenon. The absence of science in psychiatry and psychology should prevent anyone from seriously arguing that any imaginable use of the word "sociopath" is morally or ethically wrong. This may change in the future, but at the moment, such terms have no objective definition.