Psychopaths
By Senna Rogoyski
Highlights
Psychopaths are a group of people who lack the ability to empathize with others and to believe in morals
There are three main traits to being a psychopath
What being a Psychopath means
Studies have shown that not only does 1 in every 100 people meet the criteria to be considered a psychopath, however, most psychopaths are extremely skilled as blending in as “normal” in populations making them difficult to catch. This being said, it's important to understand what a psychopath is as they can be anyone around you. A psychopath is rather a condition which categorizes a group of people who lack a conscience and the ability to empathize with others. They often are considered insensitive, unemotional, and morally depraved making them highly manipulative. With their different sets of skills, all psychopaths have been discovered to have these 3 main traits:
Machiavellianism: Psychopaths with this trait are manipulative, sly, and extremely cunning. Although many people love the idea of power and money, this trait of psychopaths places a much higher priority on these ideas, taking more extreme efforts to get them. This being said, they easily ignore morals rules by lying and gaslighting others with no guilt for personal achievement. However, for some psychopaths, going against moral rules and mentally hurting people becomes an addiction and a habit as they struggle to stop themselves. As these are the most harmful type, this type of psychopaths ends up being hardest to find as they are often liked by many and considered charming.
Lack of Conscience : As psychopaths with this trait lack social emotions such as guilt, empathy, and remorse, they tend to have a low impulse control. Rather than committing actions that intend to be manipulative, they simply commit it as they believe in acting first and thinking later.
Narcissism : People with this trait tend to be extremely vain and self centered. They tend to project their worries and flaws onto others in order to see themselves as higher leveled. However, because of how self absorbed they tend to be, they can be extremely dangerous when they are insulted or made fun of in any way. It’s hard for them to socialize and create friendships as they always look for power and authority when being with someone.
Causes
Studies and research has shown that most psychopaths develop the way they do from their childhood issues. As they either have been through emotional deprivation, abuse, rejection from those around them, and even lack of attention, these all increase the risk of developing psychopathic traits.
However, it’s also been theorized that psychopathic traits can also stem from genetics, adverse parenting, and maternal prenatal risks.
Treatment
The opinions of whether there are helpful treatments for psychopaths still clash. Some believed that nothing can be done to treat them. However, others believe that some treatments can help reduce their hostile and dangerous traits. For example, a common treatment found to be effective in only some cases was cognitive behavioral therapy which helps people understand and change destructive thoughts that negatively affect their behavior. However, CBT has not yet been proven to be an official treatment for psychopaths.
References
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-social-thinker/201801/3-key-characteristics-psychopathy
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-psychopath-5025217?scrlybrkr=c6a3c1d2