Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships
by Daniel Goleman
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Book Summary Information
Author: Daniel GolemanEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-07-31
ISBN: 055338449X
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: Bantam
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780553384499
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships
Book Review: Book Review By David Allan Reeves Author of "Running Away From Me"
Summary: 5 Stars
I just finished reading Social Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. In a chapter about prisons, he scientifically expresses what I've witnessed over the last ten years, namely that prisons cultivate criminal instincts instead of "correcting" them. Our prisons, as they are today, should be called "corruptions" rather than "corrections." The cure is worse than the disease, or rather in this case, the cure exacerbates the disease.
Biologically speaking, survival in prison demands that the part of the brain called the amygdala be set for "paranoid hyper-vigilance." The amygdala triggers the fight, flight or freeze response. Fear forces the amygdala to override the areas of the brain which are responsible for rational thought. A key to inhibiting these primitive responses is a group of neurons in the OFC (orbitofrontal cortex) that can curb impulses from the amygdala. The circuitry running from the amygdala to the OFC can be strengthened or weakened through conditioning. During imprisonment, we have a choice to mold this crucial brain circuitry for self-control. It's like molding a statue. In the early stages, you have a chance to get the pose just right, but once the arm or some other body part is in position, it quickly becomes too late to correct it.
Most prisoners never get a chance to correct the habits and circumstances that keep them out of prison's revolving doors. As Goleman says, "Prisons are colleges for crime, strengthening an inmate's predilection and skill sets for criminality. Younger prisoners...typically become mentored by more seasoned inmates, so that on their release they are...endowed with greater skills as criminals." I've witnessed this happen time and time again over the last ten years. Prisons are supposed to be a tool to protect society, but the opposite is happening. We put law breakers in prison to punish them and make them suffer, but then release them as more sophisticated and violent criminals to do ever greater damage to society.
We can view criminals as being socially sick, an illness marked by lack of empathy for others and lack of emotional intelligence and impulse control. For various reasons they've violated the rights of others and the rules of society for their own selfish motives. This sickness is what needs to be "corrected." Punishment and suffering do nothing to achieve this objective. It only makes it worse.
Goleman makes a few recommendations. He says prisons need to be reinvented to offer a remedial neural education using programs which strengthen the circuits of the social brain for empathy and for regulating emotional impulses. These programs have been used in schools to reduce fighting by 69 percent, bullying by 75 percent and harassment by 67 percent.
Another component of a better justice system would be the use of "restorative justice." Criminals should have to face the emotional aftermath of their crimes and make amends to the victims. Victim impact sessions are already practiced in some states but not in the federal system. I had several victims in my string of robberies and I never had to face even one of them. I have no idea what I did to them. I don't know if they suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, if they had to quit their jobs, or of any way that my crimes may have negatively impacted their lives. I can only assume that I hurt them more than I'll ever know. But facing them and listening to them would have went a long way in helping me atone for my crimes and heal my social sickness, so that I can become a better functioning human being. But instead, I was thrown into a violent prison, a hell where everyone fights for respect and violence wins prestige, where the physically powerful prevail and fear rules all.
Everything I've done to improve myself in prison, I've had to do on my own with little or no help from a soulless, robotic, prison bureaucracy. Even this book, Social Intelligence, had to be borrowed from another inmate, even though the information inside is invaluable to someone wanting to recover from a life of addiction and crime. If I didn't make a daily, conscious effort to repair my broken life, I would fall fast into a pit of bitterness, apathy and self-defeat as the vast majority of my fellow inmates have, only to be released back to the streets worse than before.
Running Away From Me
Summary of Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships
Emotional Intelligence was an international phenomenon, appearing on the New York Times bestseller list for over a year and selling more than five million copies worldwide. Now, once again, Daniel Goleman has written a groundbreaking synthesis of the latest findings in biology and brain science, revealing that we are ?wired to connect? and the surprisingly deep impact of our relationships on every aspect of our lives.Far more than we are consciously aware, our daily encounters with parents, spouses, bosses, and even strangers shape our brains and affect cells throughout our bodies?down to the level of our genes?for good or ill. In Social Intelligence, Daniel Goleman explores an emerging new science with startling implications for our interpersonal world. Its most fundamental discovery: we are designed for sociability, constantly engaged in a ?neural ballet? that connects us brain to brain with those around us.
Our reactions to others, and theirs to us, have a far-reaching biological impact, sending out cascades of hormones that regulate everything from our hearts to our immune systems, making good relationships act like vitamins?and bad relationships like poisons. We can ?catch? other people?s emotions the way we catch a cold, and the consequences of isolation or relentless social stress can be life-shortening. Goleman explains the surprising accuracy of first impressions, the basis of charisma and emotional power, the complexity of sexual attraction, and how we detect lies. He describes the ?dark side? of social intelligence, from narcissism to Machiavellianism and psychopathy. He also reveals our astonishing capacity for ?mindsight,? as well as the tragedy of those, like autistic children, whose mindsight is impaired.
Is there a way to raise our children to be happy? What is the basis of a nourishing marriage? How can business leaders and teachers inspire the best in those they lead and teach? How can groups divided by prejudice and hatred come to live together in peace?
The answers to these questions may not be as elusive as we once thought. And Goleman delivers his most heartening news with powerful conviction: we humans have a built-in bias toward empathy, cooperation, and altruism?provided we develop the social intelligence to nurture these capacities in ourselves and others.
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