Review: Missed Opportunities but Useful
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 20, 2014
Sociopath: Enter The Mind of a Sociopath! by Clarence T. Rivers"Sociopath" is a concise, informative yet average book on sociopathy. Writer Clarence T. Rivers main goal is to help the public have a better understanding of sociopathy as manifested in an individual. This useful 54-page book includes the following seven chapters: 1. Sociopath Defined, 2. Sociopathy and ASPD, 3. How is ASPD diagnosed?, 4. The Goal of a Sociopath, 5. Does a sociopath have any weakness?, 6. Dealing with a Sociopath, and 7. Is there hope for a sociopath?Positives:1. Concise, well-written book.2. An interesting topic, sociopathy.3. Solid format. The book flows nicely from one chapter to the next.4. Good job of defining sociopathy. "Is defined as a syndrome that makes a person incapable of emotionally conditioning his or her social experiences."5. Does a great job of identifying key traits of sociopaths. "Sociopaths will never apologize for the things they do wrong. They will never admit to any faults. That is because in their minds, they lack such awareness. They feel no guilt and they have no conscience to bother them."6. Provides symptoms and causes of Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD).7. Identifies goals of sociopaths. "A sociopath gets easily bored. Excitement and stimulation is what he craves."8. Identifies weaknesses of sociopaths. "There are basically two things that sociopaths fear. One is the fear of losing control, and the other is the fear of being exposed."9. Provides helpful advice on how to deal with a sociopath. "It is important to understand that a sociopath does not think there is anything wrong with him. Treatment for sociopaths, especially for adults, is more often than not, useless. In fact, treatment may make them even worse than they already are."10. The different types of sociopaths.11. Is there hope for a sociopath? Find out.12. At 54 pages and a lot of spacing this book can read in a breeze.Negatives:1. No notes, no links and no formal bibliography.2. No visual material provided. No tables, charts, graphs, etc.3. Missed opportunities. A list of well-known sociopaths would have added value and would have been of interest to the public. List of movies with sociopathic characters.4. Straightforward to a fault. The author provides facts and observations but does not engage the reader.5. Is sociopathy common around the world? How do other cultures deal with it?6. What is the scientific consensus behind sociopathy? What does neuroscience have to say about? Any particular reason why they are predominately male?In summary, this short book reads like a good essay.  The book follows a logical rhythm and it's quite helpful. My criticism of the book is not what's in it but what was left out. Mr. Rivers missed some opportunities to engage with the reader. There are no lists of well-known sociopaths, no anecdotes, and no stories. A good helpful book but could have been much better, get Kindle Unlimited and read it for free.Further suggestions: "The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry" by Jon Ronson, "The Sociopath Next Door" by Martha Stout Ph.D., "Psychopath Free: Recovering from Emotionally Abusive Relationships With Narcissists, Sociopaths, & Other Toxic People" by Peace, "The Psychopath Exposed: Understanding and Dealing with an Emotional Predator" by Jonas Warstad, "The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey into the Dark Side of the Brain" by James Fallon, and "Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work" by Paul Babiak and Robert D. Hare.