The fact that our society could be the reason why people become sociopaths is really something to think about. Some people believe that having an antisocial personality disorder comes from within a person but it’s definitely possible that society could be the reason why people are unable to conform to what we consider a normal person to be. It’s also very likely that society can contribute to why a person takes on antisocial tendencies.
Sociopaths developing due to society is not an issue to take lightly. Those with this disorder show visible symptoms of physical aggression, inability to hold a job, inability to sustain relationships, and lack of regret for actions. But I think the most dangerous symptom of sociopaths is that they disregard the physical and sexual health of others. You wouldn’t realize that a sociopath is a sociopath oftentimes because they mask their negative traits with the superficial characteristic of charm.
Studies show that 35-50% of these dangerous traits that sociopath contain derive from genetics. This shows us that over half of their development into a sociopath comes from environment. Our American society is an environment which breeds many more sociopaths than other cultures do. East Asian countries have a .03-.14% prevalence of antisocial personality disorder while our Western culture has around a 4% prevalence of this disorder. I’d say that’s a pretty disturbing difference. I think the problem lies in the fact that American society values independence too highly. If we were raised as a group focused society, there wouldn’t be very many personality issues among us because we would all feel much more connected to each other and focus less on ourselves.
East Asian countries also have very different social expectations than we do. Our society is more tolerant of those who show narcissism and tend to be manipulative. East Asian countries are far less likely to tolerate those who act in that way. As long as we make it okay for people to act like that, we’ll make it okay for people to turn into sociopaths.
So does American culture breed sociopaths? That’s something to think about.
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Yeah wow, that is a disturbing difference. While I’ve learned in psych that Western Cultures are more independent minded, do you think that makes a difference? Or could it be the fast-paced, high technology, and the constant pressure that are put on us to succeed all the time? I guess it’s all kind of related. Thanks for sharing!
This is such a cool post! I am a Criminal Minds addict, and am taking a Criminology course this semester, so this is right up my alley. I had no idea about the genetics behind it and I think that your comparison between East Asian countries and the US is pretty disturbing. I think that you may be onto something with the idea that our societal expectations and tolerances may play a role in the development of potential sociopaths.
I found the topic of this post rather interesting. I do not have any particular knowledge of the upbringing, origins, genetics, etc., of sociopaths. However, I have heard one particular position that I found intriguing. The behaviors of sociopaths and mass killers were not observed for much of history, admittedly probably due in part to a lack of documentation. But with the arrival of some semblance of psychology in the 1800’s, better study came about.
The position I read was one that held that it was the industrial revolution that coincided with the rise of such people. The horrid conditions among the lower members of industrial society, the working urban poor, were supposed to have had something to do with it. According to this theory, Jack the Ripper is supposed to be the first modern serial killer.