[ExI] Implications of Sociopath Testing

[Stefano Vaj]

On 8/21/08, Stathis Papaioannou <stathisp at gmail.com> wrote:
>If you think about it, sociopathy isn't even
> particularly unacceptable in many situations. In a business
> transaction, each party knows that the other party is only out to get
> what they can for themselves, and each party knows that the other
> party is only behaving honestly because they judge that they have more
> to gain that way. Sociopaths simply take this strategy and apply it to
> every aspect of their lives, and if they start off with any brains,
> quickly work out that violent crime doesn't pay well. In fact,
> intelligent sociopaths are more likely to become successful
> businessmen and politicians, because they don't let sentimentality get
> in the way of career-advancing decisions.

I am quite perplexed.

I have always considered the term "sociopaths" as referred to
individuals who are dysfunctional in their inability to conform to the
social norms of their community - sometimes perhaps with good cause,
but this is another story.

Definitely not as referred to individuals that simply behave as ideal
utility maximisers in the sense of classic economic theory.

Stefano Vaj