At my book group this month we read a fascinating book called "The Psychopath Test" by Jon Ronson.
Have you ever met a psychopath or would you know one if you had? I wouldn't have known one before reading this book so here is a description of one:
"a person who behaves in an antisocial way and shows little or no guilt for antisocial acts and little capacity for forming emotional relationships with others."
Jon Ronson very skilfully led us past an array of people that may have been psychopaths but a definitive assessment was hard to come by except for one finding. Psychopaths all have damaged or dead amygdala!
The amygdala are almond-shaped masses of grey nerve cells located within the temporal lobes, one on each side within their anterior regions at the ends of the fornix. From the outside, they would be behind the upper eyelids and about two inches inward which, from the side view, places them about midway between the eye and the upper ear.
The amygdala receives information about problems and crises and then decides which brain areas should be activated to initiate the survival response. When the amygdala are overwhelmed by the severity or number of problems the organism may die. Also when the amygdala suffers injury in the embryonic stage, the adult may have a reduced or complete lack of emotional feelings and responses.
It makes you think!
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