The word "psychopath" often conjures up images of villains in movies. Of course, Hollywood is not always accurate in portraying psychos, but there is one true fact that psychopaths are very terrifying.
They don't know what empathy is, which in turn means they have no guilt feelings and are also very impulsive. While they are often not as smart as Hannibal Lector, they are quite cunning, charming and manipulative.
Among the total population, they are only 1 percent, however, even such a small minority continues to terrify and inspire scientists to conduct more and more research in order to reveal new information about them.
10. Psychopaths don't know how to recognize fear
Most of us immediately understand that a person is scared just by looking at him, because the signs of fear are on the face: the pupils are dilated, the eyebrows are raised, and the mouth is open (in a fit of screaming or wanting to take air).
An ordinary person, seeing such a face, will think: "This person is scared or afraid", however, a psychopath will not understand anything like that, because he is not able to recognize fear. And this is not because he purposefully “does not see” it, but because he is not actually able to see it.
Promotional video:
Georgetown University researcher Abigail Marsh tested 36 children aged 7-10 for their reactions to facial expressions. The children's brain activity was recorded using magnetic resonance imaging, while Abigail showed them images of people with different emotions.
Some faces were neutral, others expressed displeasure, and still others displayed fear and horror. Most children easily distinguished neutral faces from frightened ones. However, those who scored highly for psychopathic tendencies simply could not understand what these "scary facial expressions" meant.
Such a reaction indicates a malfunction in the amygdala, the part of the brain that controls the response to fear. The outer layer of a psychopath's amygdala is much thinner than that of the average person, and much smaller than that of a healthy brain.
Due to this reduction in volume, this area of the brain is less active than it should be, so the psychopath cannot interpret such an emotion as fear.
Oddly enough, but, apparently, this rule does not apply to other emotions. Psychopaths understand other emotions in the same way as a normal person. But, among other things, they themselves also cannot express fear on their faces, even if they are afraid.
Since they have no idea how a person feels when they are afraid, they do not know how to respond to terror in any situation. This is how one murderer woman put it, after being tested like this: “I don’t know what this facial expression is called, but I know that it is similar to what a person looks like when I look at him.”
9. Psychos have a "special" relationship with dopamine
When notorious serial killer Ted Bundy was asked why he did such terrible things, he confessed, "I just loved killing, I wanted to kill." What makes people like Bundy kill?
Why do psychopaths like to manipulate people so much? This is due to dopamine, a brain neurotransmitter that activates the pleasure center in our brain. Dopamine is also responsible when we fall in love, take drugs, or eat chocolate.
However, in the case of psychopaths, the scale becomes incredible, because psychopaths are real dopamine addicts.
According to scientist Joshua Buckholtz of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, the psychopath's brain not only produces significantly higher amounts of dopamine, it overestimates its importance too much.
Thus, the researcher notes that the obsession of psychopaths to receive the next "dose" and pushes them to take this path, even at the expense of other people's lives.
Buckholz studied 30 people with psychopathic disabilities by giving them amphetamines to activate dopamine-producing neurons. These drugs were labeled so scientists could track how much dopamine was released in response to amphetamine.
As a result, it turned out that the brains of people who showed high antisocial impulsivity (the desire and desire to control other people), produced much more dopamine.
To double-check the findings, Bakholz gathered a group of 24 volunteers and asked them to play riddles. If the person answered correctly, then he received several dollars as a reward.
All subjects were tested before the game. The brains of the people who scored the highest score on the antisocial impulsivity score on the test produced much larger amounts of dopamine if they won.
8. Psychopaths have an empathy switch
It is a well-known fact that psychopaths fail to put themselves in the shoes of another. They see other people as chess pawns responsible for their pleasure.
The reason for this is very controversial. While some scientists say psychopaths are “just that way,” neurologists at the University of Groningen in Holland disagree.
In 2012, they tested psychopathic criminals using MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) technology and videos. In the videos, the disembodied hand either stroked the other hand lovingly, pushed it away, or hit it with a ruler.
As the researchers expected, the perpetrators were not "impressed." However, things took an interesting turn when scientists asked criminals to empathize with people on screen. This time, when the hand was hit, the psychopaths reacted.
Based on the readings of the brain scanner, they actually felt someone else's pain. Experts have concluded that such people have an empathy "switch" in their brains.
While in normal situations it is set to the off position, they can turn it on when needed. This is why psychopaths sometimes seem to us to be benevolent and charming.
Scientists hope this finding means a rehabilitation opportunity for psychopathic criminals. If they could be taught to leave the switch in the on position, they could return to normal life.
On the other hand, if you really don't empathize - it's just their choice, then they are even scarier than you might imagine.
7. Criminal penalties for psychopaths are harsher
Concerned about whether psychopathy helps or harms criminals in sentencing, researchers at the University of Utah presented a trumped-up criminal case to a panel of 181 state judges.
They created a character named Jonathan Donahue, whose "life" was based on the real life of a famous criminal. The judges were told that Donahue had robbed a fast food restaurant. He did not repent of his crime, and even boasted while he was on the run.
He was tried for aggravated beating, and the judges had to pass their own sentence. Each judge was told that Donahue was a psychopath, but only half of them were told the biological characteristics of his mental disorder.
Before the judges passed their verdict, they were asked how many years the offender is usually sentenced for aggravated beating. The majority answered that it was about 9 years old.
However, they were tougher on the fictional criminal. Judges, who received no biological explanation for Donahue's disorder, sentenced him to 14 years. But even the explanation did not make his life much easier, because the other half of the judges sentenced him to 13 years.
Interestingly, it didn’t matter which side the explanation for his psychopathic disorder came from, whether it was defense (“Donahue is not responsible for his actions”) or accusation (“Donahue is a threat to society, so new crimes are not excluded”).
The judges simply learned from the information provided how psychopathy affects the brain. Perhaps they sympathized with the guy who was in a situation out of his control, but 13 years is, nevertheless, somewhat longer than 9.
6. Business is filled with psychopaths
In 2013, Kevin Dutton, an Oxford researcher, compiled a list of professions that attract the maximum number of psychopaths. It probably won't come as a surprise to find out that many psychopaths become police officers, lawyers, and doctors.
However, in the first place among the choice of psychos is the position of "CEO".
This is corroborated by a 2010 study by Paul Babiak, who surveyed 203 executives who attended specific training sessions. Babiak's testing was based on the psychopathic checklist of Robert Hare.
As a result, Paul came to a terrifying conclusion: 1 in 25 people surveyed was a full-fledged psychopath, which is four times higher than the percentage of psychos in the general population.
This is terrible news for the business world, but not for the reasons you might think. Psychopaths are actually terrible leaders and do not know how to get along with other people, climbing the career ladder due to their charm rather than professional qualities.
If they fail to manipulate their employees, they simply start using brute force or terror tactics.
5. Internet trolls are psychopaths
In a survey conducted by psychologists from several Canadian universities, web users were asked how much time they spend on the Internet, as well as whether they comment on anything on YouTube.
They were also asked to agree or disagree with the following statements: “I love trolling people on the forums or in the comments,” “I enjoy playing the villain in games and torturing other characters,” and so on.
The results were disappointing. The trolls showed results, which were later called the "dark quartet". This is the presence in a person of four unpleasant qualities in character - sadism, Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy.
People with such traits enjoy when they harm others, they love to deceive and do not repent for their antics. Researchers have even found a link between these traits and the amount of time trolls spend online, creating a vicious cycle of psychopathy.
4. Prosocial psychopath
Neurologist James Fallon has a very serious pedigree. He has family ties to seven alleged killers, including the infamous Lizzie Borden.
He was very interested in this "inconvenient" fact of his biography, so Fallon decided to collect PET scans (positron emission tomography) of the brain of his relatives and analyze the work of the orbital cortex, a part of the brain that influences ethical behavior and moral choice.
Most of his relatives tested positive, but scans of one brain showed no activity in the orbital cortex - his own.
Confident that there was a mistake, he did some DNA tests. The doctors "reassured" him, confirming that Fallon has more than just a psychopathic brain, all of his genetic markers speak of it.
Tests have shown that he possesses a specific gene variant known as the "warrior gene" as it is responsible for violent behavior.
Fallon describes himself as a “prosocial psychopath” because he acts according to socially acceptable norms. In fact, he even does a lot of good things. He donates to charity and helps people.
James admits that he enjoys being able to help the world with something, and not just being a "good guy." However, he does not hide that he likes to manipulate and does not tolerate competitors. Fallon won't even let his grandchildren win simple games.
He also has problems with empathy for other people. The man admits that he empathizes with his granddaughter in the same way as a random person on the street.
Thanks to loving parents, Fallon grew up in a safe, stable environment surrounded by people who cared for him. Fallon believes that his formative years played an extremely important role in helping him become a scientist rather than just another criminal.
3. Psychopaths have a bad sense of smell
In September 2013, researchers Jason Castro and Chakra Chennubholta decided to classify all the odors available to the human nose.
They found that we are able to detect 10 groups of odors, including fruity, chemical, rotten and popcorn. Most people have no problem recognizing the "pungent" scent of blue cheese or the "woody" scent of freshly cut grass.
However, things are very different when it comes to psychopaths. As mentioned above, the level of functioning of the orbital cortex in psychopaths is lower. This affects not only their ability to make long-term plans and keep their impulses in check, but also their ability to detect odors.
This was confirmed by scientists at Macquarie University in Sydney, who studied 79 psychopaths (not criminals) for their reaction to smells. Participants were asked to identify 16 aromas, among which were the smell of coffee, orange and leather.
As scientists suspected, psychopaths had problems identifying what they were sniffing. In fact, the more psychopathic characteristics were expressed in a person, the more difficult this test was given to him.
In addition to providing a unique insight into the mysteries of the brain, the findings can play an important role in diagnosis. Psychopaths are known to be cunning and often deliberately give inaccurate answers during psychiatric examinations, but they cannot fake the scent test.
2. Presidents have a lot in common with psychopaths
Psychologists at Emory University decided to analyze American presidents, from Washington to Bush, to determine which of them was the "ultimate psychopath."
In their work, they used the book "Personality, Character and Leadership in the White House." The experts paid particular attention to how the presidents behaved during crisis situations, how they cooperated with the Congress and other foreign leaders.
They also paid attention to the dark side by analyzing cases of abuse of power and extramarital affairs.
None of the presidents fit the distinct characteristics of psychopaths. A very small number "carried" the psychopathic trait known as "fearless dominance", especially when compared to the general population.
“Fearless domination” is the absence of fear and unwillingness to retreat in a dangerous situation, as well as the ability to charm people, which is a very important political tool.
As a result of the study, scientists have established that Theodore Roosevelt was the president with the highest rates of fearless dominance. This man possessed a psychopathic characteristic of disregard for danger.
The top three also included John F. Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt, while the top ten included Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
It is certainly dangerous if the president has something in common with a psychopath, but fearless domination can be a very useful trait for a leader. Presidents of its "carriers" were less worried, calmly maintained the necessary level of control in controversial situations, and also remained confident in difficult times.
1. Psychopaths use recognizable speech patterns
While psychopaths can seem witty, Cornell University researchers have found that psychos often follow the same speech patterns. A team of experts led by Jeffrey Hancock interviewed 52 murderers, 14 of whom were psychopaths.
They asked criminals to talk about their atrocities, while using a special computer program that assessed the variability of their speech.
After analyzing the information received, the researchers found several features in psychopathic speech. For example, because psychopaths are so distant from what they have done, they describe their actions much more often using the past tense compared to common criminals.
They much more often than ordinary criminals used stumbling words, such as "uh", "hm-hm", etc. They built most of their sentences in the form of cause-and-effect judgments, using subordinate conjunctions "because", "so that."
Perhaps most revealing is the fact that while most inmates talk about their families and religious beliefs, psychopathic criminals are more concerned with immediate needs such as food, drink and money.
In 2012, scientists at the Online Privacy Foundation and the University of the Atlantic in Florida decided to apply research from experts at Cornell University to the world of social media.
By offering a free iPad to members, the researchers convinced 2,927 Twitter users to let them analyze all of their posts. Scientists have read more than three million messages, which traced the presence of a person "dark triad" (the same characteristics as in the "dark quartet", with the exception of sadism).
The experts also asked the participants to agree or disagree with the following statements: “payback should be quick and nasty”, “I like to laugh at the loser,” “most people are losers,” etc. The researchers concluded that psychopaths can also be identified by the words and phrases they use in speech.