The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey into the Dark Side of the Brain

· Sold by Penguin
4.4
34 reviews
Ebook
256
Pages
Eligible

About this ebook

“Compelling, essential reading for understanding the underpinnings of psychopathy.” — M. E. Thomas, author of Confessions of a Sociopath

For his first fifty-eight years, James Fallon was by all appearances a normal guy. A successful neuroscientist and professor, he’d been raised in a loving family, married his high school sweetheart, and had three kids and lots of friends. Then he learned a shocking truth that would not only disrupt his personal and professional life, but would lead him to question the very nature of his own identity.


While researching serial killers, he uncovered a pattern in their brain scans that helped explain their cold and violent behavior. Astonishingly, his own scan matched that pattern. And a few months later he learned that he was descended from a long line of murderers. Fallon set out to reconcile the truth about his own brain with everything he knew as a scientist about the mind, behavior, and personality.

Ratings and reviews

4.4
34 reviews
Letitia Tappa
January 22, 2014
I'm not sure what I think of this book. I spent time being upset that I paid this guy to read his book, which is about himself. (And psychopaths, to be fair). But it is an interesting reminder that other people know us better than we know ourselves, sometimes. And the research is interesting. I would call it a memoir of a functional psychopath.
10 people found this review helpful
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Kris Dennett
April 12, 2023
The book was incredible. James Fallon is really knowledgeable on all or most the subjects he's included in this book. It also helped me learn a lot about disorders and the human brain. I'm glad I found and read this book, I need more like it
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Jude Gonzales
December 23, 2014
Fascinating premise but it really doesn't go anywhere. There are better books on the subject.
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About the author

James Fallon is an award-winning neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine, where he has taught for thirty-five years. He lives in Irvine, CA.

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