The Social Animal summary

We all like to think that we’re in control of our behavior. Unfortunately, research shows that’s not really the case. Rather, even the smallest factors can have a massive influence in surprising ways.

It turns out that even hearing a few words can set off a whole string of associations, altering our behavior. For instance, one study had people read a series of words vaguely associated with being elderly: “bingo,” “Florida,” and “ancient.” Then, when the test subjects left the room, researchers observed that they walked more slowly than when they came in.

Have you ever heard the saying, “Justice is what the judge ate for breakfast?” Well, it turns out there’s empirical proof.

In general, people view things differently depending on whether they’re hungry or full. However, judges are supposed to surpass average humans when it comes to reasoning skills; we like to think that their decisions are always rational and objective, even though ours aren’t.

What’s the basis of our morality? Is it conscious thought or moral intuition? Philosophers have debated this question for hundreds of years.

And according to one view, moral judgment is based on deliberate reasoning. This is called moral rationalism and its proponents claim that we make moral decisions logically by applying universal principles to a given situation.

So, which view is right: moral rationalism or intuitionism? Well, while it’s difficult to say whether sound reasoning leads to moral behavior, it’s clear that emotions and intuition play a major role in moral decision making.

Take psychopaths. Although most people experience an intense visceral response when they see a child being beaten – their blood pressure surges and their palms get sweaty – psychopaths keep their cool.

Mr. Spock’s seemingly infinite capacity for rational thinking might seem desirable. After all, if you didn’t feel so many distracting emotions, you’d be a superb decision maker, right?

Actually, no. As it happens, people without emotions typically don’t make super-rational choices. Instead, they either make foolish choices or none at all.

As humans, we’re born to connect with each other. In fact, in many ways, we couldn’t even exist without each other.

Of course this is true on a survival level, but it also applies to matters of self-identity. After all, as children, our personalities emerge from the relationship we have with our parents.

Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, once compared the mind to an iceberg. We can only glimpse a tenth of what’s happening in the brain – that’s the conscious mind or the iceberg’s tip – while the rest of it’s immersed in water, hidden from sight.

But just because it’s hidden from sight doesn’t make it irrelevant. In fact, the unconscious mind can handle enormous amounts of data – way more than our conscious mind – and we rely on all this information to make quick decisions and perform complex tasks.

Our society values intelligence and most of us probably think that being smart can have a huge impact on our future success in life. And on average, people with high IQs do much better in school and similar environments. But does exceptional brainpower lead to exceptional achievements in other areas as well?

Well, the first thing to understand is that having a high IQ doesn’t mean you’ll have a happy and successful personal life. Because clearly, when it comes to relationships, other abilities – like empathy, willpower, agreeability – trump abstract smarts.

If intelligence isn’t a good measure of future success, which traits can determine whether a child does well later in life?

Sensitivity is an important factor in this respect. And from birth, some children are more sensitive than others. This was established in a study of how 500 children responded to novel stimuli. Researchers found that 20 percent of all newborns startle more easily than others: That is, when confronted with unfamiliar stimuli, their heart rates shot up and they started to cry vigorously.