Most psychopaths know they are psychopaths. However, their self-awareness levels vary depending on the individual and their specific experiences, traits, and brain structure. High-functioning psychopaths may be fully aware of their condition and perceive exactly how they differ from the general populace.
Normal emotional processing is likely to be most important in generating an appreciation of these distinctions and in guiding actions (Huebner et al., 2008). Psychopaths know what is right or wrong, but simply don't care.
Myth 2: Psychopathy is synonymous with psychosis.
Psychopaths may know what they are doing, and that what they are doing is technically bad, but they may not feel the same about it as non-psychopaths, because of their diminished capacity for empathy.
Thanks to Hollywood, we tend to think of psychopaths as knife-wielding criminals, but science shows some high-functioning psychopaths can actually be hard to spot. So hard, in fact, that some psychopaths don't know they meet the definition for the condition.
Research suggests that 1 percent of the population meets the criteria for psychopathy. That may not sound like a lot, but it means that 1 in every 100 people you know is a psychopath. That could include your neighbor, your co-worker, your friend, or maybe even your favorite blogger.
Yes, research shows there are “good” psychopaths. Many people in positively heroic professions have strong psychopathic traits.
Although both biological and environmental factors play a role in the development of psychopathy and sociopathy, it is generally agreed that psychopathy is chiefly a genetic or inherited condition, notably related to the underdevelopment of parts of the brain responsible for emotional regulation and impulse control.
“Sociopath” is an unofficial term to describe a person who has antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), whereas psychopathy describes a set of personality traits. However, ASPD and psychopathy can overlap. ASPD and psychopathy share some similar traits, including aggression and a lack of remorse.
The most recent version of the DSM has a disorder in it called “antisocial personality disorder,” which is sometimes confused with psychopathy.
Most people mellow out with age, but in the case of psychopaths and those suffering from similar antisocial personality disorders such as sociopaths, bad behavior tends to get worse, according to new research from New Zealand's University of Otago.
Unlike sadists, psychopaths don't harm the harmless simply because they get pleasure from it (though they may). Psychopaths want things. If harming others helps them get what they want, so be it. They can act this way because they are less likely to feel pity or remorse or fear.
Ramani Durvasula, a licensed clinical psychologist and professor of psychology, says to take a peek at their relationships. “Psychopaths don't have any really close friends or family members that they have good relationships with,” she says, “but they have lots of acquaintances and 'connections.
Psychopaths think they're superior
Psychopaths consider themselves better than the people around them, which might help account for why they aren't concerned by the negative impacts of their actions.
Psychopaths do experience regret, particularly when their bad decisions affect them directly — yet they don't use that experience to inform their future choices, according to a new study published the week of Nov. 28 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Neuroscientists trace this lack of empathy in part to a deficit in the amygdala, a part of the subcortex which processes emotional stimuli. The other deficit occurs in a part of the cerebral cortex involved in decision-making that would utilize this emotional information.
Instead, psychopathy is characterised by an extreme lack of empathy. Psychopaths may also be manipulative, charming and exploitative, and behave in an impulsive and risky manner. They may lack conscience or guilt, and refuse to accept responsibility for their actions.
While psychopaths show a specific lack in emotions, such as anxiety, fear and sadness, they can feel other emotions, such as happiness, joy, surprise and disgust, in a similar way as most of us would.
Key traits
Some of the red flags that someone is a psychopath include a lack of empathy, a charming personality to fool others, disorganisation, a tendency to blame others, a lack of fear, and being cold-hearted. “Making a clinical diagnosis of psychopathy is rather hard, actually,” Erikson said.
That said, psychopaths do appreciate their relationships in their own way. They do suffer pain, feel loneliness, have desires and feel sadness if they do not receive affection.
Overall, the team found no evidence that psychopaths were more intelligent than people who don't have psychopathic traits. In fact, the relationship went the other way. The psychopaths, on average, scored significantly lower on intelligence tests.
Although sociopathy and psychopathy cannot be diagnosed until someone is 18, one of the hallmarks of both conditions is that they usually begin in childhood or early adolescence. Usually, the symptoms appear before the age of 15, and sometimes they are present early in childhood.
Psychopathic personality traits are transmitted from father-to-offspring due to genetic reasons.
Clinical observations at ASH have suggested 4 possible subtypes of psychopathy: narcissistic, borderline, sadistic, and antisocial.