Factor1: Aggressive narcissism
1. Glibness / superficial charm
2. Grandiose sense of self-worth
3. Pathological lying
4. Cunning / manipulative
5. Lack of remorse or guilt
6. Shallow
7. Callous / lack of empathy
8. Failure to accept responsibility for own actions
* a b Semple, David (2005).
The Oxford Handbook of Psychiatry.
USA: Oxford University Press, pp. 448–449.
ISBN 0198527837.
The Oxford Handbook of Psychiatry.
USA: Oxford University Press, pp. 448–449.
ISBN 0198527837.
        The telltale signs of the psychopath are often overlooked until it is too late; until a body is found floating face-down in a river, or stuffed into an oil drum awash in lime, or even in bits and pieces, scattered amongst the fauna and flora of some backwoods area. And yet, if the psychopath is not a trembling recluse and, instead, a very open and recognizable member of society (e.g. Edward Gein and, more charmingly, Theodore "Ted" Bundy), he tends to be a person of great respect and likability. This is because, outwardly, the psychopath exerts traits that others find desirable. They are charming; they compliment you, they say little things to build up your self esteem. They are ambitious go-getters who take great strides to accomplish their goals. They make you feel good about yourself. Often times, they take great care of their personal appearance and are meticulous about how they present themselves in public. They are well-groomed, they are confident, they are pleasant to be around. People gravitate towards the Type A psychopath, feeding off of his radiant energy like pigs at the trough. They want those compliments for themselves, they want the praise, the notability gained from being "friends" with such a charming, popular and charismatic person.
Ironic, no?
        The downside of the psychopath's personal pride is how it is projected; it is easy to see how he might purposely distance himself from those he finds unattractive. He wishes to be liked, and will only associate with those whom can almost guarantee a solid social standing as a "good" member of society. However, the ego can be the Type A sociopath's downfall. He will sometimes take credit for good deeds he has not done. He will also see little to no difference between "positive" and "negative" attention; the psychopath will sometimes "confess" to misdeeds he has not committed, simply for the attention garnished from being the guilty party. Such was the case of Henry Lee Lucas, a serial killer convicted of 11 murders but confessor of over three thousand murders. While one might assume the number to be obviously false and outlandish (and quite possibly rightfully so), Lucas obviously enjoyed the notoriety gained from such ludicrous claims. After all, he had gained fame from eleven murders. Imagine the fame from murdering more than three thousand. Lucas was quite possibly the product of not only a damaging and horrific childhood (a violent, abusive, neglectful and deranged mother and a drunkard father) as well as brain damage or deformities present since birth. On the other hand, Ted Bundy grew up in a (by society's standards) "normal" middle-class family. He made good grades in school, he had loving parents... and yet he became a prolific serial killer. This lends to the theory that psychopath killers are the result of not simply nature or not simply nurture, but a combination of the two.
        Professor Robert Hare of of the University of British Columbia estimates that one out of every one hundred people is a psychopath. And interesting, if not alarming, number indeed. If you somehow, in some manner, are able to find yourself in a situation where one hundred people are gathered at once, one among you may be a psychopath. It may even be yourself. It also lends to the idea that one's social status may determine the level of violence in which the psychopath can/will engage in order to get what he wants.
Quote:
"White collar psychopaths will defraud people of their life savings, then quite happily go to the Mediterranean, have a villa and never give it a thought."
Prof. Robert Hare
        Clearly, not all psychopaths are wandering the streets or hiding in middle-class families. The wide spectrum of those committing grand theft and only confessing their "regret" and pouring out their "apologies" only when they are facing twenty years in jail (don't we all know the stories from the papers by now?) just might be psychopaths. They may not be killers. They may not be the lunatics our parents warn us about that stalk the shadows, waiting for their chance to strike. But the uncaring, unfeeling, and seemingly emotionally aloof among us just might be nonviolent psychopaths.
Quote:
"People might say he or she is charismatic, high profile or 'gets things done'. We have a whole series of euphemisms for the individual who may be self centred, grandiose, lacking in empathy and does not give a damn about everybody else."
Prof. Robert Hare
        The psychopath comes in more guises than the high-priced business suit or the tattered rags of the vagabond. Michael Bear Carson and Suzan Carson were, in fact, hippies. Hippies! Participants in the American counter-culture of the early 1980s. In their delusion, they believed that the people they murdered were "witches." Charles Manson was jailed for his instructions to murder high-profile actors, of which included the pregnant Sharon Tate, Steven Parent, Wojciech Frykowski, Jay Sebring, and Abigail Folger on August 9, 1969. Although Manson had never laid a finger on any of the victims (he wasn't even at the scene), it was by his direction that the followers of his free-wheeling hippie cult murdered their victims. The normally peace-loving hippies had become callous murderers who sang en route to the courthouse during their trials, smiles on their faces and arms linked at the elbows. The Manson "Family" had teenagers and young adults, all seemingly innocent, sweet-faced and attractive people who one would never think could commit such heinous acts.
And yet. It happened.
As it happened so many times before.
As it will happen so many more times in the future.
The next time you are among a group of friends and one seems particularly detached, unable to show sympathy or empathy of any kind, one who cannot seem to fathom what it means to feel... consider that perhaps that friend is the one out of the one hundred.
Thus ends today's discussion.
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