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The Sociopath Next Door | 
 enlarge | Author: Martha Stout
Publisher: Broadway Books
Category: Book
List Price: £10.99
Buy New: £4.86
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Rating:  23 reviews
Sales Rank: 4842
Media: Paperback
Pages: 256
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.6
ISBN: 0767915828
Dewey Decimal Number: 616.8582
EAN: 9780767915823
ASIN: 0767915828
Publication Date: March 30, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: New book. WE USE PRIORITY AIRMAIL ONLY for books from the USA. UK & European delivery is 7-10 days. Over 2,000,000 books sold to Amazon customers
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| Customer Reviews: Read 18 more reviews...
 Enjoyable, but not for serious students. August 28, 2008
J.P (England)
The author presents several amusing case studies that read like a good drama. Which is actually a nice thing.
However, in typical American fashion, the approach is tailored for sensationalism. The atmosphere of the writing creates a sinister message that basically tells, "Evil people are everywhere! They're out to get us, and there's nothing we can do about it!"
The idea that Socios see themselves as victims and often beg for pity is repeated over and over again, which becomes quite annoying and insulting to the readers' intelligence.
A similar book, more academically focussed and written by a credible "Dr" who actually worked with criminals of the type is "Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us" by Robert Hare.
The difference between the two is obvious, with the latter aiming to discuss and inform rather than gossip.
 This MUST be in your "books to read" list June 5, 2008
bucksman (BUCKS, United Kingdom)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
The bad stuff
Martha certainly makes the point about 1 in 25, or 4% of the population are without conscience a few times. Over egging the pudding with it at the beginning of the book.
A touch subjective in certain areas, and some of the statements made could have done with more backup.
Other reviewers are right, in that Robert O'Hare's book covers the subject matter in certain areas much better.
I suppose all of us at some time have operated with a minimised conscience on a past occasion or 2. I had a few pangs of guilt on reading certain parts of the book, and I guess others will also.
It is quite complex in certain areas, but reading the paragraph again usually clears up any misunderstanding.
The good stuff
This book has placed a few people I have come into contact with in the past into their true context. Someone I currently know also fits snugly into the sociopath category. Every 3rd or 4th page, I was thinking "there he is again". Now I know what to watch for, and how to deal with it, which is to leave them well alone, and let them bother someone else.
In conjunction with O'Hare's book , 2 books that clear your mind in some areas, moves your thinking in others, and completely transforms and reverses a few of them. I agree with others, you have to read this book.
BEST READ FOR ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN ISOLATED AND MANIPULATED IN A RELATIONSHIP April 29, 2008
Mrs. L. W. Baxendale (Leeds. W. Yorks)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
Socoppaths 'home in' on good people. I would think that most people have had an experience of being totally blitzed by someone and been deeply hurt by these sweet smiling Svengali's. They could be your partner/ex partner, the mistress, your boss or even your lawyer or doctor. This book shows you the paterns used and the best way to rid yourself and protect yourself against these nasty people.
The book is easily read, with lots of examples. You'll never view people the same again (and think it's you that's going mad)
Mrs B
Opinionated and misleading December 5, 2007
Swedish reader (Sweden)
14 out of 18 found this review helpful
I find it a bit surprising to see this book receiving such high marks. I agree it's easy to read, but it's also shallow, opinionated, biased and even misleading.
Perhaps the reviews here on this book, are quite telling regarding how easy it is to convince someone. If one were tricked into believing in this book and even giving it the highest mark, I can only imagine how tricked one would get if one got into the hands of a real psychopath. Because one could assume that even the slightest suspicion against the author, could perhaps open ones eyes and think "Hey, is it really so?".
And, if basically everyone here writing a review claims to been involved with a sociopath, it may show that sociopaths are common around us, but it also may tell something about they way the book is being written.
The portraits in the book used to illustrate "sociopathic" personalities... Well, perhaps they say more about the author and her own experiences and views, than about the people being portraited. It seems that she has read a couple of books on the subject, and then starts accusing people of being sociopaths. Why write so much about the woman who in the morning spent quite a long time in front of the mirror (how does the author even know how much time she spent?), and why on earth does she even mention it? Perhaps the woman she portraited was just insecure, perhaps she had some other personality disorder. How does the author know how the woman felt after leaving the job? How does she know the woman left to another town to probaly continue causing disruption where she went? Perhaps from another perspective than the author's, the woman in question do have a conscience, do have the ability to feel empathy and sadness and so on. Or perhaps she really was a psychopath, but one certainly cannot tell from the portrait.
It is good to be on ones guard against some personality traits. It is good to understand that there are people who have psychpatchic (or "sociopathic") traits, and to know more about how they work, think and behave. It's good to have strategies against them. This may be the best use of the book.
I also agree with the author that our western society seem to sort of encourage, and/or look up to, sociopathic characteristics. (I cannot not comment much upon other cultures.) It appears as if our society in a way sort of provides the psychopaths with a set table.
I think the key point regarding how one experience the book may be what one is looking for. One can watch a movie based on real events and think "Oh, what a great movie! I had no idea that...". But if one finds out that the movie gave the wrong picture of the events and persons in it, one may feel a bit fooled or even annoyed. Or one may don't really care. In this case, me being quite well-read on the subject of psychopathy (or "sociopathy"), I really don't like the partly irresponsible and misleading way the author deals with the subject. I can only hope that people reading this book, also reads other books and articles about the subject.
This book seems to be based more on the authors imagination, than on facts and knowledge. After a promising start, the book mostly seems sensational and as a way of milking money out of an exciting and popular (tv series, etc.) subject.
I ordered this book some year(s) ago from abroad (I live in Sweden), after reading the first 5-6 pages online. Unfortunately, I regret buying it (and even more regretting at the same time ordering another book by the same author).
There are other much better texts to read on the subject, such as Robert Hare's "Without Counscience" or Cleckleys book "The mask of sanity", not to mention all the material online.
I also recommend taking a look at the american Amazon, to read the reviews there (especially the 1-2 marks), which I believe are mostly very accurate in their criticism.
An informative read November 25, 2007
M. Morris (East Sussex, Uk)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I found this book actually rather liberating as it is chilling. As fantastic as it is to try and imagine someone with out a conscience (it's not an easy concept to get your head around) it was also enlightening. I have turned myself inside out trying to fathom some individuals' behaviour before and the answer is actually very simple. They can behave like that quite easily because they don't care. No longer need I waste my valuable time trying to physco-anaylise people who are back stabbers and trouble makers and I can take steps to protect myself. I can heartily recommend this book.
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