The term ‘psychopath’ was first coined in the late 1800s, and comes from the Greek psykhe and pathos, which mean ‘sick mind’ or ‘suffering soul.’
In those days, psychopathy was considered to be a sort of moral insanity, but of course, nowadays, we know better.
However, are we right to think of psychopaths as lone killers, devoid of humanity, preying on the vulnerable, who find it hard to mix with society? The truth is that you could have one as a friend, boss or even a partner. Psychopaths live among us and manage to blend into society, but you can spot them if you look hard enough.
First, you have to change the way you think about people and how we operate as human beings. It is normal to believe that everyone else on the planet is like us, in that, they think like us, feel the same emotions like us, and understand pain and loss as we do. It is important to understand that for a few percentages of the population, this is not true. These are people that do not have empathy or remorse, cannot feel emotion, whose only goal is to take advantage of others.
These are the psychopaths, and as with any mental disorder, there are characteristics that define it. The most common way of detecting whether a person is a psychopath is by using The Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R), which is a diagnostic tool, set to determine if someone is on the psychopathy spectrum.
To score the test, participants read a series of statements that describe certain traits and rate them accordingly.
0 = does not apply, 1 = applies somewhat, 2 = definitely applies.
The highest score anyone can achieve is 40. In the US, if someone rates over 30 in the test, they are considered to be psychopathic, but in the UK, it is only over 25.
The Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) categorizes these traits into four factors: interpersonal, emotional, lifestyle and antisocial.
The most common trait of a psychopath is their pathological lying. This is so that they can cover up their behaviour and get their own way.
Psychopaths use glibness and superficial charm to get you hooked in the first place. Once they have you under their spell, you are more likely to be willing to help them.
You’ll find many psychopaths in positions of great power and authority, this is due to their enormous sense of self-worth.
It is their manipulative behaviour that probably got them into these positions in the first place.
The most emotional characteristic is a complete lack of remorse or guilt. This could explain why psychopathic killers get away with their crimes as they simply do not care.
Some psychopaths may feel shallow emotions, in that they might feel sorry that their victim is dead because it no longer holds any pleasure for them.
More often a psychopath will be callous and show a distinct lack of empathy towards their victims. Failure to accept responsibility for their own acts is another common trait for a psychopath.
You can also see psychopathic traits in the lifestyles of psychopaths. A common trait is a parasitic way they will feed off other people to sustain their lifestyle.
Psychopaths also have a need for stimulation which might lead them to behave with impulsivity and acting in an irresponsible way. Typically, a psychopath will have no realistic, long-term goals, instead preferring to live in the moment.
Despite many psychopaths holding down impressive jobs, they do not have good social skills. They find it hard to control their behaviour in public which could lead to a revoking of their parole.
Psychopaths are known to be particularly versatile in many areas of different crimes. This makes it difficult to catch them.
Even if you have the Hare Psychopathy Checklist in your arsenal, diagnosing someone in your life who you think is a psychopath is a very serious step. It has implications either way, whether you are right or wrong. It is better to leave any diagnosing to the professionals who are trained to spot the subtle signs of psychopathy, something that non-professionals might easily miss.
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That they are a lot more intelligent than Democratic supporters, since the Democrats and Progressive members of Congress tick off all twenty of the boxes and probably some to be created yet. Great examples of Democratic psychopaths past and present are Hillary Clinton, Barrack Obama, Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Maxine Waters, Adam Shiff and the remaining majority of Congressional Democrats.
I also don't remember Republicans rioting and destroying property while Obama was in office. Threatening and harassing the families and children of those that oppose them. That seems to be a trait of the psychopathic Liberals and Democratic left.
Your reply shows that you are an idiot.
I agree. "Gramps" is utterly out of touch with reality. By his standards, all the Minutemen were psychopaths.
Gramps You are absolutely Right 😉
The others that disagree are already fooled. They were supporters of the evil O'bama that lied, does bad drugs along ,had over 1000 words of the Records, sided with Iran, and gave them Billions of Our Dollars in CASH, and let's see most likely helped the evil Cartels, then with evil Hillary and Bushes lieing about 9/11 which by the way was done with Electro- Magnectic Energy Weaponry, selling Arms to his cousins in the Middle -East ....Did they just forget all of that or was it selective memory. Or Fake News.... LoL..... LoL....or maybe their evil themselves and think all they did was just okay....?
I found this site by trying to figure out what this 36.5 yr female and her gang are that have been stalking, harassing and intruding on my phone, the last PC I had, and going in my Attic thru the Access daily, including nights, especially early AM, for a year an a half now at This house, then harming me
and my dog withh Laser Weaponry, electromagnetic energy., Mail theft frauds, home invasions, , and Slandering rumors . All because I reported her years ago....and later her gang from robbing me of my Inheritance, Wages, Bank accounts, $389K , Heirlooms, Valuables, Lifetime Family Photos, Idenity, IDs, Mail, my Goods, Real Properties, Personal Papers,, Passports, Intrusios basically everythng. And boasting of it , telling me to turn them in , then prove it. Next she Tried stealing all the evidence. Tried Killing me several times, boasted she paid people to kill me with my money. Then did the same to my oldest friend an fiancee, which she was successful...
Police told me to report it to Postal Inspectors , I did they did nothing, because I'm a Christian. I reported it to FBI, they did nothing. I considered this as Domestic Terrorism....
Any suggestions??
LEE...ARE YOU OKAY??!?!?!
You better get some Real gangster's to help you. Like people did along time ago, when they didn't want to turn to cop's, because law enforcement's hands are tied , so to speak.
You see this is why the rest of the world just shakes their heads at America when we read paranoid delusional conspiracy mentality coming from people like you. No one and i mean no one out side the US has your victim oppression hateful psychosis. Try and live a happy life and maybe even help someone less fortunate than yourself and try make the world a better place instead of causing conflict and paranoid hatred with every word. Go back over what you read and read it out aloud - in.public even...
Similar thing happened to me (theats, invasion of privacy, manipulating laws by subverting law officers, death threats, attempts on my life, etc.) The two people responsible are dead. I am actually sad about their deaths.
Did I kill them? No! One died of alcoholism the other died from an untreated condition worsened by meth use. Did I manipulate them in any way? Yes. Though not through lying or force. Through subverting the people they were using. Unveiling their past. Mirroring their manipulation to them. Encouraging their self-destruction passively. I was not verbally dishonest but upon reflection I was less than open.
Am I a psychopath? Yes, according to Hare and several other tests. I have worked hard at compensating for my lack of guilt, remorse and self-centeredness for 30+ years. The only solution, partial at best, has been developing principals I will not violate.
I am still working on being a caring individual.
I beleive people with this "disorder" can be an asset to others and sociaty in general.
I hope this helps refocus the discussion away from political issues. Thanks
Roger,bviousl
YOU need psychotherapy. You"re obsessing about politics at 3:00 in the morning? Obviously a deranged democrat! Perhaps the people around you need to answer these questions on your behalf!
Roger, it is 3am, mom says to put your computer away and go to sleep.
Devious , Deceptive , Dangerous ...
How do you suppose our ancestors -- the immigrants that came over to make a new life in this country, if THEY were lazy, good-for-nothing bums, leaches, uneducated without any marketable skills, that came here expecting a handout, everything to be handed to them on a plate without having to work for it? Do you suppose this country would be the world power that it is today with that kind of mindset?
How would our country be also, in the early days of development and growth, if the women had any man they wanted, at any time or place they wanted, and failed to use any type of discretion or selective process (like waiting for marriage) and killed the unborn child because THEY failed to accept responsibility. And since life originates in their bodies, to make sure birth control is used to prevent any unwanted pregnancy. None of us would be here right now. We would have been sliced up, our spines broken becasue whores, loose women who are the dregs of society, can't control themselves and would rather murder human beings and human life rather than protect life from occurring in the first place or being more selective in whom they sleep with.
What a country this would be -- with these type of low-class, ghetto-like, poorly educated, people, who are like hemorrhoids on the rectal orifice of society.
Merrill
Wow. I mean wow. What a self-righteous, oppressive and disgusting statement. I hope women are smart enough not to sleep with you so you can't pass those un-Christ like opinions on. Wow.