‘Psychopaths are very deceptive and self-absorbed, with no consideration or empathy for other people. They have a very twisted mind’ - Winifred, 38, on her experience with meeting a psychopath.
We are all aware of the term ‘psychopath’, but what does the word actually mean? According to Channel 4 news, a psychopath is ‘someone with a distinct cluster of personality traits including ruthlessness, fearlessness, narcissism, charm, charisma, impulsivity, persuasiveness, manipulation and a lack of conscience’. This is due to being substantially or totally devoid of human feelings, having no sympathy, no guilt, no remorse, no conscience, and no sense of humour towards other people.
Doctors tend to describe people without psychopathy as hot headed and those with psychopathy as cold hearted due to very specific abnormalities in the structure of the brain underpinning psychopathic behaviour, such as being unable to empathise with the distress of other people. As a result, criminals with psychopathic tendencies are unable to benefit from rehabilitation centres or therapy like hot headed criminals due to not having the ability to feel empathy or remorse towards those they may have hurt from their actions and behaviour.
You may think that the behaviour traits of a psychopath are all negative but some can actually be beneficial, for instance in the courtroom as a lawyer. This is because psychopaths can use manipulation to persuade a jury by preying on their emotional weaknesses, and are able to tear the witness stand apart without feeling guilt or sympathy towards them, which can aid in the lawyer winning the case. Successful psychopaths are the ones that can harness their psychopathic traits in a way that would benefit them in their career and make them better at what they do.
On the other hand, there are several negative traits that come with being a psychopath such as rationalization for their immoral behaviour and the ability to fake their emotions, but all the traits have different levels of dangerousness. For example, a psychopath could be a pathological liar, which is considered as one of the less dangerous traits depending on the situation. This means that they always resort to telling lies regardless of the situation as if it is a daily routine. It becomes a habit. Usually it is hard for the person involved to see that they are a pathological liar but it can easily ruin a relationship or hurt the people surrounding it.
If a psychopath's traits are at their maximum level, they are considered to be a dysfunctional psychopath, which is the most dangerous type with most of them being serial killers, axe murderers or homicidal maniacs.
Despite this, psychopaths cannot control their feelings or the way they think, and it is important to remember that not all criminals are psychopaths, just like not all psychopaths are criminals. For most criminals, it depends on their life or beliefs rather than their psychopathy.
By Stephanie Olujinmi- Raji, Newstead Wood Grammar School for Girls.
