The Other Side of Normal: How Biology Is Providing the Clues to Unlock the Secrets of Normal and Abnormal Behavior

by Jordan Smoller

Overview

Psychiatry has ignored the normal. The focus on defining abnormal behavior has obscured what turns out to be a more fundamental question—how does the biology of the brain give rise to the mind, which in turn gives rise to everything we care about: thoughts, feelings, desires, and relationships?

In The Other Side of Normal, Harvard psychiatrist Jordan Smoller shows us that understanding what the mind was designed to do in the first place demystifies mental illness and builds a new foundation for defining psychiatric disorders—from autism to depression. Smoller argues there are no bright lines between normal and abnormal. Psychiatric disorders are variations of the same brain systems that evolved to help us solve the challenges of everyday life.

How do we become who we are? Smoller explains where our personalities come from, and how the temperaments we had as infants actually stay with us into adulthood. Why do we choose to date, love, and marry the people we do? Why do some of us form healthy relationships while others form unstable ones? Our relationships are shaped by the biology that drives two imperatives: maternal-child bonding and child-parent attachment.

Along the way, Smoller tackles an even greater question—what do we mean by "normal"?—as he explores the puzzles behind the epidemics of multiple personalities and koro, the shocking phobia that one's penis is shrinking. He also looks at the controversial history of psychiatric classification and the explosive debates over how much early experiences influence our minds and to what degree genetics affect our temperaments, personalities, and emotional lives. Throughout this examination, Smoller explores the hidden sides of such questions as: How are trust and love rooted in biology? How much does sexual attraction stem from biology rather than culture? And what can the scientific study of normal behavior tell us about what it means to be human?

Based on the author's groundbreaking research and personal experiences treating psychological disorders, The Other Side of Normal changes the way we think about the human condition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062101334
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	01/17/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	643
Sales rank:	818,798
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Jordan Smoller is associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

Chapter 1 "We're All Mad Here" 11

Chapter 2 How Genes Tune the Brain: The Biology of Temperament 44

Chapter 3 Blind Cats and Baby Einsteins: The Biology of Nurture 82

Chapter 4 Dogs, Poker, and Autism: The Biology of Mind Reading 137

Chapter 5 "Sole Mates": The Biology of Attachment and Trust 186

Chapter 6 The Brain of the Beholder: Beauty and Sexual Attraction 227

Chapter 7 Remembering to Forget 274

Chapter 8 The New Normal 324

Acknowledgments 338

Sources 341

Index 377

What People are Saying About This

Amy Chua

“Move over Oliver Sacks - I couldn’t put this fascinating book down! Path-breaking and witty, as entertaining as it is informative, The Other Side of Normal is filled with insights into why we behave as we do and how biology determines so much of our emotional makeup. A brilliant mind and dazzling writer, Smoller has written a book that will change the way you look at every day life.”

Editorial Reviews

The premise of this exciting book by Smoller, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, is as simple as it is provocative: “Rather than constructing disorders by labeling the extremes—the troubled mind and the broken brain—we must start with an understanding of the normal.” As he so well explains, normal isn’t a singular form of behavior or feeling but a range on a broader spectrum. Similarly, there is no single point at which normal becomes abnormal in all situations. Smoller says that understanding the evolutionary roots of human brain functioning and behavior is essential to defining “normal.” Clearly and articulately, tying evolutionary psychology, biological psychiatry, animal behavior, and related fields into a package of rare coherence, he integrates cutting-edge research with case studies of his own patients. By exploring the origins of emotions such as trust, fear, love, and empathy, he forces us to think about what it means to cross the line from normal to abnormal. And he does a remarkable job of ensuring that we revisit and improve both the concept of pathology and its treatment. 11 illus. Agent: Suzanne Gluck, William Morris Endeavor Entertainment. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Move over Oliver Sacks - I couldn’t put this fascinating book down! Path-breaking and witty, as entertaining as it is informative, The Other Side of Normal is filled with insights into why we behave as we do and how biology determines so much of our emotional makeup. A brilliant mind and dazzling writer, Smoller has written a book that will change the way you look at every day life.” — Amy Chua, Yale Law Professor and New York Times bestseller Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

“Exciting... provocative...Clearly and articulately, he ties evolutionary psychology, biological psychiatry, animal behavior, and related fields into a package of rare coherence.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Highly interesting and accessible study of brain science and behavior....This thoroughly documented work provides enough information to satisfy the science-savvy without leaving the rest of us behind....Readers will be fascinated.” — Library Journal

“An informative overview of research in neuroscience that provides a scientific foundation for understanding mental disorders.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Smoller redefines the biology of normal.” — Booklist

“Are we born crazy, or is crazy thrust upon us? Smoller investigates.” — Denver Post

From the Publisher

Move over Oliver Sacks - I couldn’t put this fascinating book down! Path-breaking and witty, as entertaining as it is informative, The Other Side of Normal is filled with insights into why we behave as we do and how biology determines so much of our emotional makeup. A brilliant mind and dazzling writer, Smoller has written a book that will change the way you look at every day life.

Amy Chua

Are we born crazy, or is crazy thrust upon us? Smoller investigates.

Denver Post

Smoller redefines the biology of normal.

Booklist

Smoller redefines the biology of normal.

Booklist

Smoller (psychiatry & epidemiology, Harvard Univ.) has written a highly interesting and accessible study of brain science and behavior. Couching his discussion in the familiar debate about nature vs. nurture, he makes the case that these forces work together in a complicated dance that determines human individuality. He frequently references the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the controversies there surrounding the definitions of normal vs. abnormal behavior. He seems to conclude that what is normal is most frequently defined in contrast to what is not normal. He ends his investigation of the normal by noting that abnormal behavior can be treated, the brain "rewired" with drug therapy. Smoller leaves unanswered the question of the ethical implications of manipulating the "abnormal" brain. VERDICT This thoroughly documented work provides enough information to satisfy the science-savvy without leaving the rest of us behind. Personal asides scattered throughout keep the tone from being textbook-dry. Readers interested in human behavior will be fascinated. [See Prepub Alert, 11/21/11.]—Margaret Cardwell, Memphis

Library Journal

Smoller (Psychiatry and Epidemiology/Harvard Univ.; co-author: Psychiatric Genetics, 2008) suggests that "[l]ike the purloined letter of Poe's tale, many of the most fundamental features of the normal mind have been hidden in plain sight." The author uses the 2010 announcement by the American Psychiatric Association of provisional plans to revise the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as an opportunity to revisit the hot-button issue of what constitutes mental disease. In his opinion, one of the shortcomings of the DSM is its creation of "categories from constellations of symptoms" without understanding how they connect to the "functional organization of the mind and brain." While Smoller recognizes that it is sometimes necessary to treat an illness such as delirium without understanding its basic cause, he believes that the process of diagnosis and treatment can be dramatically improved by recognizing syndromes as "perturbations of normal systems and mechanisms." He identifies spectrums of normal behavior, citing research showing that temperamental qualities in adults--for example, being easygoing or prone to anxiety--can be traced to early childhood. Although it is not possible yet to clarify the nurture/nature debate, a correlation has been found between variations of specific genes associated with temperament and neurotransmitters. Brain scans have also identified differences in the brains of highly reactive individuals as compared to low-reactive infants. Smoller notes that while ADHD and similar disorders are often problematic today, such behavior might have conferred a reproductive advantage in previous eras of human evolution. An informative overview of research in neuroscience that provides a scientific foundation for understanding mental disorders.

Kirkus Reviews