In a recent Huffington Post article, Dr. Daniel Amen suggests men who are chronic cheaters may actually have brain damage, causing them to make impulsive, bad decisions. He says he's scanned brains of male sex addicts and found problems in their pre-frontal cortexes, the brain section responsible for impulse control and decision making. Dr. Amen believes cheaters can be helped through medicine, meditation and other techniques that change their brains. Guys -- do you think this is a plausible condition we should be treating? Or just another convenient excuse for cheating?
Chic Geek says:
"Sorry, honey. I have brain damage. That's why I slept with your sister. And also that prostitute in Vegas. And my trainer that weekend you were away at your uncle's funeral. And your sister again last week. Brain damage!"
Mystery Man says:
A malfunctioning impulse control, boredom handler and forethought part of the brain may cause cheating. Who'd have thought it?
Could it really be that simple? Back in 2008, someone else came to the precise opposite conclusion: that cheating causes brain damage (http://www.drpetra.co.uk/blog/having-an-affair-causes-brain-damage/).
For me, it sounds like an excuse, and a one as lame and self serving as the old "guys are naturally polygamous" at that. I did like the line "His brain showed very low activity in his prefrontal cortex" though. Dude obviously just wasn't using his head.
Reformed Player says:
For some guys, it may well be true: the brain is only dimly understood and if a guy makes consistently impulsive, bad decisions, he could have brain damage. If his only impulsive decision is nailing your sister, then he's just a jerk hiding behind medical research.
Girls' BFF says:
I've got to say that I applaud the good Dr. Amen (what a pun of a name) for his attempts to let us menfolks off the hook when we do naughty things. Cheating isn't our fault anymore, it's the brain damage. If I ever take the affair plunge, I'm TOTALLY running with that argument. Though I think in order for it to be effective I need to have a history of cheating. No time like the present, eh? I'm joking. This is nuts. While its probably true that some men suffer from an extreme lack of impluse control, some men just suck. They're reckless dbags who care less about the fallout of their actions but more about getting some action. THAT's why the terrorists keep winning.
Gal Pal says:
This actually makes a great deal of sense to me. Perhaps it's because, when I was a teenager, my mother would constantly (and infuriatingly) remind me that young adults make bad decisions because their prefrontal cortexes aren't developed. It's not such a leap to believe that cheating men have brains similar to those of teenage boys. But the question is - will they do anything about it? It's not like these dudes are lining up for brain implants or even admitting their cheating problems. Although medicine and meditation may help, as Dr. Amen suggests, the men first have to acknowledge that they may, indeed, be insane in the membrane.
Wise-Ass says:
There is still much we don't know about how the brain works, so I believe such a condition could be possible. Not that long ago, we thought that things like alcoholism and depression were nothing more than indicators of moral bankruptcy; now we know that these and other conditions are illnesses with basis in brain physiology and genetic predisposition. If drug and alcohol addiction can be linked to brain chemistry, why not sex addiction? On the other hand, the skeptic in me knows that many, many men cheat, and they can't possibly all be brain-damaged. Therefore, even if this condition is proven to exist, narcissism and selfishness will continue to be the most prominent cause of infidelity. None of these causes excuses cheating.
Funny Guy says:
I say, seeking political power or running a corporation is in itself an indicator of brain damage. People who maniacally hunt, and climb and devote themselves to positions like these usually have a screw lose; or at least the kind of cerebral screw set-up that enable them to do screwed up things: fire 10,000 workers at once, level a city with bombs or tweet a pic of their married c*ck to a fellow citizen.
I'm going with it's plausible but only if you see a patern of reckless poorly thought out decisions in all aspects of their life, or atleast that cheating is literally the main focus of their life. This is not the man who keeps a secret mistress for 20 years, this is the sex addict who can't keep it in his pants ever and it has diminished his quality of life. I think a lot more men are going to use it as an excuse then those who truly have this sort of damage.
totally agree ! It has to be a "real" addiction, not just once or twice, but it might end as an excuse to even more cheating...
It’s just plain McCrazy, that’s all. People are always looking for an excuse to explain away their lack or judgment or poor behavior. Believe it or not, there will always be grant money to research that behavior. Just grow up people…, you’re not in high school anymore.
I thought it was thinking with their you-know-whats and not their brains.
Apparently that head has brain damage, lol.