You have probably run into a sociopath before, and you may not have noticed it either.

This is because sociopaths blend into the general population. Some people purposely encounter
sociopaths. They do this in order to gain a better understanding on how the mind works. You
would likely study sociopaths as well, if you were to major in evolutionary or experimental
psychology. In experimental psychology, these psychologists are concerned with the scientific
investigation of basic psychological processes such as memory, learning skills, and cognition.
Their job is to produce useful data supported by evidence, collected through experimental
procedures. In evolutionary psychology scientist and theorist attempt to explain psychological
traits, such as memory and learning skills, as forms of adaptations produced by natural
selections. These scientist provide genetic and ancestral data and observations for other academic
communities. Although both explore similar topics such as sociopaths through the means of
psychology, each collects their findings through different strategies. Depending on which
academic community you join, your research will be conducted with the appropriate disciplines
from each community.1 Evolutionary psychology is more focused on personal observation and
fieldwork, while experimental psychology focuses more on numerical data and observations.
In experimental psychology you will learn to contribute to research journals such as Journal of
Clinical Psychology. Here the authors pursue to determine whether sociopathic patients earn a
significantly higher performance IQ than verbal IQ. Their intro states how this information can
be purposeful to other academic communities The norms presented here can be used to compare
our sample with groups of individuals with various types of medical and personality illnesses.
This means that medical fields and other psychological fields can benefit from the information
that you will learn to present. Although this journal may be of use to several academic
communities, it is not targeted for a general audience or anyone outside the psychological
1 The Concept of Discourse Community John Swales

discourse community.2 This implies that there is a lot of terminology and analytical data that
some of us in different communities may not understand. For example when describing the test
subjects they use words such as psychoneurosis which is an advanced word for your average
reader. For the general audience these terms do not influence the vocabulary of their everyday
classes. In experimental psychology words like these will become an everyday part of your
community. The authors do not define these words because this experimental information is
intended for psychologist who can benefit from it. In an experimental psychology course you
will learnt to associate yourself with people like your audience. Your audience will be academic
communities such as medical and neuro psychologists who will focus on the topic with a
numerical perspective.
In evolutionary psychology most findings are presented through academic novels. For example
the monograph the Antisocial Personalities by Lykken. Like him, you are expected to use an
evolutionary perspective to explain what environmental, social, and genetic aspects affect the
topic (sociopaths). For example he defines advanced terms that only someone who is studying
psychology would understand To be diagnosed with APD [antisocial personality disorder], an
individual must show (a) a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of rights of other
occurring since age 15 year. Here he gives the definition of a sociopath listing the criteria with
letters (a-d). This means that when writing in evolutionary psychology, you must acknowledge
that some of your readers do not understand the definition of psychological terms. In addition to
defining terms he also explains what evolutionary psychology is in a paragraph conveniently
titled What Is Evolutionary Psychology? followed by the definition. Making it easily
accessible to find the definition is done, so that readers who are not part of this academic
community can partake and understand the content. In evolutionary psych you must educate your
2 Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources Karen Rosenberg

readers since they are not part of your academic community, but instead part belong to many
other communities. This means that you must learn how to deliver your rhetoric to a larger
audience.3
In any experimental procedure the data and observations you record need to be presented
unbiased, otherwise your experiment is considered flawed4. Since the journal experiment is not
biased, their information can be successfully used and interpreted for other research. If you do
judge your test subject, it can ruin the way data was determined and collected. For example their
subjects are all criminals charged with a form of sexual offense. It is crucial to describe these
people, but only with what is necessary for the experiment 112 males... from 14 years to 64
years(old), then goes on to list the offenses they were found guilty of (21Ss) rape (29Ss)
sodomy. Here they simply list the facts. This shows that each test subject was treated equally
during the experiment. You also should not list the names of the subjects as these identities are
unnecessary and unethical if given. These rules are few of the norms you must learn to follow.
They are heavily engraved in psychological experimentation.
In Lykkes monograph he also list his subjects, but with names and identities. Since he is not
within the bounds of experimental psychology this is acceptable. The idea of being personal is
useful in evolutionary psychology as it only emphasizes the effects of social impacts. I was
approached in my role as a psychotherapist by a young couple Craig, who was the main source
of the problem; when he wasn't acting cold and aloof toward Sally he was downright mean and
angry. It is a clear insight of his personal observations. Understanding the descriptive
characteristic of his patients can help us better understand traits and characteristics of a
sociopath. This is also later helps the audience notice the patterns between patients. Like in his
3 Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis Laura BolinCarroll
4 Introduction to Primary Research: Observations, Surveys, and Interviews Dana Lynn Driscoll

book the key item that helps develop your theories is personal observation. Personal observation
is an effective research method in evolutionary psychology. You must focus on human behavior
outside of a experimental setting in order to gain useful data.
When it comes to forming conclusions in experimental psychology you must rely heavily
on your data. In the journal, mathematical applications were used, but with the exception of
primarily presenting the results collected ranging in age from 14 years to 64 years, mean 32.4
years. Sixty per cent were between the ages of 20-39. You must present all your findings so
when other communities investigate through the numerical data they have the ability to prove or
disprove the mathematical conclusion. These numbers are also used to form an analysis Thus, a
second conclusion from the initial finding is that specific sex offense seems to be independent of
intellectual level. You must use words like Thus to imply that this conclusion is backed up by
data gathered in the unbiased experimental procedure. You must refer directly to specific data
The results shown in Table 1 allow us to answer the main question of this study. It is clear that,
as a group, the 112 sociopaths earned a statistically significant higher performance IQ than
verbal IQ. These strategies deliver your results as concrete and suitable for the community.
In evolutionary psychology you are allowed to form conclusions based on personal
observations and ideas. Lykken has a section titled Preventing Sociopathy then further
elaborates with sub-paragraphs titled Parental Guidance and Alternative Rearing
Environments. This is done because he is attempting to solve the sociopathic problem with
evolutionary understanding and an anthropological understanding. Your conclusions may be
partially factual and opinionated professionally, because your primary form of results was done
through personal and environmental observation.

Although both of these academics contribute to the field of psychology they are found in
different social environments. Lykkens book can be found in a library or an anthropology
course. The journal may be found referenced in other monographs and interpreted differently in
each. Both influence results based on the academic approaches. These academics rely on each
other. As experimental psychology produces more numerical data, so will more scientists (like
evolutionary psychologist) produce more theories. Theories help analyze data, but also create
more factors to experiment on.

Works Cited

1. Wiens, Arthur N., Joseph D. Matarazzo, and Kenneth D. Gaver. "Performance And Verbal
Iq In A Group Of Sociopaths." Journal Of Clinical Psychology 15.2 (1959): 191-193.
Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
2. Lykken, David Thoreson. The antisocial personalities /Hillsdale, N.J. : Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates, 1995.
3. Swales, John. The Concepts of Discourse Community. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
4. Rosenberg, Karen. "Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources." Writing
Spaces: Readings on Writing. By Charles Lowe and Pavel Zemliansky. Vol. 2. West
Lafayette, IN: Parlor, 2010. N. pag. Print.
5. Carroll, Laura Bolin. "Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis."
Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. By Charles Lowe and Pavel Zemliansky. Vol. 1.
West Lafayette, IN: Parlor, 2010. 74. Print.
6. Driscoll, Dana Lynn. "Introduction to Primary Research: Observations, Surveys, and
Interviews." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. By Charles Lowe and Pavel
Zemliansky. Vol. 2. West Lafayette, IN: Parlor, 2010. N. pag. Print.