Fifteen Things You Probably Do Not Know About Psychopaths
Psychopathy is a common and extremely destructive mental disorder that afflicts not only the psychopath, but whole communities, nations, and the world. We now have the tools to identify and mitigate psychopathy, if we can develop the will to do so.
1. Briefly – A psychopath is a person with a very nasty personality who builds a more attractive and very fake personality to cover his frauds, transgressions, and, sometimes, murders.
2. Rational – Psychopaths are quite rational. Psychopaths' minds work no better and no worse than yours, except that psychopaths have a big void where most people have a conscience and moral values.
3. Mental Disorders – The primary indicators for psychopathy are anti-social personality disorder and malignant narcissism personality disorder, plus tendencies toward criminal behaviors and an inability to establish mature sexual relationships.
4. Measurement – Formal measurement of psychopathy is performed by a trained professional using Dr. Robert Hare's Psychopathy Check List – Revised (PCL-R), consisting of twenty-one items such as pathological dishonesty, parasitic lifestyle, and irresponsibility.
5. Control – Psychopaths want to control you – physically, emotionally, sexually, financially, and politically.
6. Occurrence – Psychopaths are thought to be about one percent of the population. Dr. Hare has noted that the occurrence of corporate psychopaths ranges up to four percent of corporate executives;
7. Masks – There are few overt characteristics to distinguish a psychopath from the general population, within which the psychopath can easily blend.
8. Causes – Neurological defect or injury is often associated with psychopathy, though some cases have no known causative factors. Cases have been reported of identical twins, one psychopathic, the other not.
9. Flavors – By far, most psychopaths operate on a family and community level, destroying family relationships, committing crimes and misdemeanors, and rotating in and out of mental hospitals, jails, and prisons, and then back into the community.
10. Psychopath Enablers and Supporters – Family and local psychopath enablers are well-identified and can be researched on the internet.
11. Creativity – Creative psychopaths are often audacious and leave people surprised and off balance, as when Hitler invaded the Sudetenland or when Putin invaded Crimea. Corporate psychopaths are often credited with being creative even as their organizations suffer massive personnel turnover and financial loss.
12. Tough Reputation – Beyond the items on Dr. Hare's PCL-R, psychopaths cultivate a reputation for toughness, but that does not mean that they get good results. In reality, they are just very nasty personalities who abuse subordinates and may commit crimes. Rahm Emanuel (now failing as mayor of Chicago) and Rod Blagojevich (now in prison) fall in this category.
13. Recognizing Psychopathy – Many psychologists have different interpretations of conditions similar to psychopathy.
14. Failure – In practical terms, psychopaths always fail, and psychopathic failure creates misery for families, communities, and nations.
15. Ending Psychopathic Expression – Dr. Hare and associates are increasingly capable of identifying a psychopath at an early age. Many conditions are medically or legally sanctioned (eyeglasses may be required for a driver's license), and psychopathy should be in this category, with psychopaths limited in their opportunities to control others.
7. Masks – There are few overt characteristics to distinguish a psychopath from the general population, within which the psychopath can easily blend.
8. Causes – Neurological defect or injury is often associated with psychopathy, though some cases have no known causative factors. Cases have been reported of identical twins, one psychopathic, the other not.
9. Flavors – By far, most psychopaths operate on a family and community level, destroying family relationships, committing crimes and misdemeanors, and rotating in and out of mental hospitals, jails, and prisons, and then back into the community.
10. Psychopath Enablers and Supporters – Family and local psychopath enablers are well-identified and can be researched on the internet.
11. Creativity – Creative psychopaths are often audacious and leave people surprised and off balance, as when Hitler invaded the Sudetenland or when Putin invaded Crimea. Corporate psychopaths are often credited with being creative even as their organizations suffer massive personnel turnover and financial loss.
12. Tough Reputation – Beyond the items on Dr. Hare's PCL-R, psychopaths cultivate a reputation for toughness, but that does not mean that they get good results. In reality, they are just very nasty personalities who abuse subordinates and may commit crimes. Rahm Emanuel (now failing as mayor of Chicago) and Rod Blagojevich (now in prison) fall in this category.
13. Recognizing Psychopathy – Many psychologists have different interpretations of conditions similar to psychopathy.
14. Failure – In practical terms, psychopaths always fail, and psychopathic failure creates misery for families, communities, and nations.
15. Ending Psychopathic Expression – Dr. Hare and associates are increasingly capable of identifying a psychopath at an early age. Many conditions are medically or legally sanctioned (eyeglasses may be required for a driver's license), and psychopathy should be in this category, with psychopaths limited in their opportunities to control others.
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