[ExI] Implications of Sociopath Testing

[Stathis Papaioannou]

2008/8/24 Olga Bourlin <fauxever at sprynet.com>:

>> 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.
>
> I agree with you.  I thought "narcissist" was the going term for those
> individuals ...

The DSM-IV groups a number of personality disorders under "cluster B":
antisocial, borderline, narcissistic and histrionic. Often a clear
diagnosis cannot be made, even using the prescriptive DSM (which
changes the criteria with each new version), and sometimes we end up
saying something like, "she has borderline and narcissistic
personality traits". There is a lot of controversy regarding
personality disorders in psychiatry and some clinicians or services
will dismiss someone as being "not mentally ill" on the grounds that
they have a personality disorder, or "Axis II" diagnosis in the DSM,
rather than an "Axis I" diagnosis such as schizophrenia or depression;
the practical difference being that the latter is treatable with drugs
while the former is not.

Getting back to sociopaths, the fundamental problem seems to be that
they don't care about other peoples' feelings and have no internalised
moral sense (narcissists do care about other peoples' feelings insofar
as they have a high opinion of themselves and want others to admire
them). An additional problem is that they behave recklessly and
impulsively, which results in them ending up in prison and makes it
into the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. But we can imagine a
quasi-sociopath who was rational and calculating, preferring to use
legal methods to get his way, and only breaking the law when certain
he could get away with it.


-- 
Stathis Papaioannou