The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through The Madness Industry
The Psychopath Test; A Journey Through The Madness Industry - Jon Ronson Picador - 2011
For anyone familiar with this blog -or if you've just read one of my other Ronson reviews and decided to look to see if I had reviewed another- then you are in luck because I decided to read 'The Psychopath Test' after finishing 'So You've Been Publicly Shamed.' What can I say? When I like a writing style, I have to follow up. ( A little something I've picked up from studying for my degree)
This book takes a look at psychopathy, from its diagnosis -the history of said diagnosis included- to what happens to psychopaths within the system. It also takes a peek at mental illness diagnostics and how the mentally ill are portrayed in the media, resulting in the question, are we all mad to some extent?
At the beginning of the book, the writer admits to buying the DSM, which is a manual for diagnosing mental illnesses and has each one of them listed, so obviously it's a huge monstrosity of a book. As an ex-psychology student, I was immediately on high alert, as I was aware that this is a method of diagnoses usually used by Americans, and not those in the UK and certain parts of Europe. Because of this reasoning, I immediately thought that the ending conclusion of this book could not be absolute, but it didn't deter me from enjoying it all the same.
The book also touched upon Scientology. In my opinion, it didn't besmirch, nor glorify, the religion. But the author merely stated simply what his experiences with the church had been, which had turned out to be the introduction of a Broadmoor resident who had been diagnosed with psychopathy. Later in the book he also meets with others he believes to be psychopaths, such as Toto Constant and Albert Dunlap.
But on his journey, he also meets the creator of the Psychopath Test itself, Bob Hare. It is during this time that Ronson questions if those in power, within corporations and the government, are, in fact, psychopaths too. Which leads to the question that perhaps psychopathy may be needed within society in order for it to function properly.
Also, his entry into Broadmoor, one of the most infamous psychiatric institutions in the UK, due to its high profiled patients, such as the Yorkshire Ripper and Charles Bronson (the criminal not the actor), creates another question for the reader. Is it possible to fall victim to an unfalsifiable diagnosis?
Here, the author finds research in order to answer this question, which again as an old psychology student I can identify as being the Rosenham study. This study showed the incarceration of 'mentally sound' people being kept in mental hospitals, diagnosed with illnesses they did not have, while those in need of help were turned away. While this study is highly unethical today, it showed how the 'Madness Industry' can, indeed, make mistakes, or be used as a method of control upon society, as argued earlier in the book by the Scientologists.
Also, this book covers other unconventional forms of mental health treatments, criminal profiling, and miscarriages of justice.
I highly recommend this to people with an interest in, or are studying, psychology, criminology or sociology. But I also recommend it for people who are just looking for an interesting and thought-provoking read.
The writing is clear and concise, not too formal that you cannot understand a word being written and not too informal that you doubt if Ronson is qualified enough for the task of writing about psychopathy. I love how at certain times in the book, you can feel his excitement at learning new things and how he might even -according to some- over research at certain moments within the book. I loved how conversational the language got. And I loved the personal anecdotes shared. It's how I imagine a pub conversation in the posh side of London to go.
Near the end, I felt it dragged a bit, and because of that, I feel the need to bring down the rating, but overall it was one of the best books I have read in a while, and has convinced me to look for more books by Jon Ronson.
Overall Score: 4/5
Thank you for reading, we hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to share or comment!
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~Joanne
At the beginning of the book, the writer admits to buying the DSM, which is a manual for diagnosing mental illnesses and has each one of them listed, so obviously it's a huge monstrosity of a book. As an ex-psychology student, I was immediately on high alert, as I was aware that this is a method of diagnoses usually used by Americans, and not those in the UK and certain parts of Europe. Because of this reasoning, I immediately thought that the ending conclusion of this book could not be absolute, but it didn't deter me from enjoying it all the same.
The book also touched upon Scientology. In my opinion, it didn't besmirch, nor glorify, the religion. But the author merely stated simply what his experiences with the church had been, which had turned out to be the introduction of a Broadmoor resident who had been diagnosed with psychopathy. Later in the book he also meets with others he believes to be psychopaths, such as Toto Constant and Albert Dunlap.
But on his journey, he also meets the creator of the Psychopath Test itself, Bob Hare. It is during this time that Ronson questions if those in power, within corporations and the government, are, in fact, psychopaths too. Which leads to the question that perhaps psychopathy may be needed within society in order for it to function properly.
Also, his entry into Broadmoor, one of the most infamous psychiatric institutions in the UK, due to its high profiled patients, such as the Yorkshire Ripper and Charles Bronson (the criminal not the actor), creates another question for the reader. Is it possible to fall victim to an unfalsifiable diagnosis?
Here, the author finds research in order to answer this question, which again as an old psychology student I can identify as being the Rosenham study. This study showed the incarceration of 'mentally sound' people being kept in mental hospitals, diagnosed with illnesses they did not have, while those in need of help were turned away. While this study is highly unethical today, it showed how the 'Madness Industry' can, indeed, make mistakes, or be used as a method of control upon society, as argued earlier in the book by the Scientologists.
Also, this book covers other unconventional forms of mental health treatments, criminal profiling, and miscarriages of justice.
I highly recommend this to people with an interest in, or are studying, psychology, criminology or sociology. But I also recommend it for people who are just looking for an interesting and thought-provoking read.
The writing is clear and concise, not too formal that you cannot understand a word being written and not too informal that you doubt if Ronson is qualified enough for the task of writing about psychopathy. I love how at certain times in the book, you can feel his excitement at learning new things and how he might even -according to some- over research at certain moments within the book. I loved how conversational the language got. And I loved the personal anecdotes shared. It's how I imagine a pub conversation in the posh side of London to go.
Near the end, I felt it dragged a bit, and because of that, I feel the need to bring down the rating, but overall it was one of the best books I have read in a while, and has convinced me to look for more books by Jon Ronson.
Overall Score: 4/5
Thank you for reading, we hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to share or comment!
~Joanne
