It is considered very common to have at least some degree of psychopathic tendencies, if not the condition totally, itself. In this article, I will be talking about high functioning psychopath and their ways. Keep reading till the end to find out more information on the same!
Who Are Considered Psychopaths?
Psychopathy is mainly characterized by the persistent antisocial type of behavior, egoistical traits, lack of empathy, and antisocial behavior.
The Psychopathic Personality Traits Scale ranges from a score of 0 to 20, higher scores indicate higher levels of psychopathic traits.
The common types of high functioning psychopath are –
1. Primary Psychopath
Primary psychopaths lack emotion, are manipulative, heartless, avoid danger, and show little to no fear or anxiety. What’s the most frightful aspect out of all? They don’t feel regret or guilt. They have a very strong correlation with narcissistic and antisocial personality disorders.
2. Secondary Psychopath
Although secondary psychopaths are more prone to engage in criminal activities, you can still expect to encounter them in your work field because of their emotional instability. They act in haste and are impetuous, emotional, worried, antagonistic, and destructive of themselves. However, they lack organization and tend to make riskier choices, unlike the main psychopath.
3. Charismatic Psychopath
Aside from possessing charm, these high functioning psychopath are also known to be pathological liars. They have the ability to talk people out of anything.
4. Distempered Psychopath
They are lured to risky sports and activities because they have limited tolerance for boredom and a strong need for excitement.
“Hotheads” are a subgroup of psychopaths who are typically male, aggressive, violent, and prone to irrational outbursts.
5. Impulsive Psychopath
Egocentricity, breaking the rules, deceiving others for selfish gain, and being unable to commit to long-term goals—are all traits of egocentrically impulsive psychopaths.
They tend to excuse their aggressive behavior and place the blame for their own difficulties or failures because they are narcissistic and perceive the world as hostile and themselves as helpless victims of circumstance. It has been demonstrated that borderline personality disorder and egocentrically impulsive psychopathy are strongly associated.
How To Spot A High Functioning Psychopath? All You Need To Know!
It is highly likely that you have come across a high functioning psychopath in your life – and not known about it. In this section of the article, I will be talking about the characteristics of a psychopathic person.
Here are a few traits of a psychopathic person:
1. Psychopaths Tend To Get Bored Easily
A psychopath is known to be always aroused as compared to other people. A psychopath’s mind works in a way that they need to be doing thrilling things all the time – in order to feel normal. They are most likely the ones in the group who will suggest fun- activities!
2. They Lie All The Time
Pathological liars are known to lie constantly and sometimes even without any need. On the other hand, a psychopath’s lies are more goal-directed. They use manipulation and conning for their own gain. They use this lying streak for different purposes – controlling/manipulating their romantic partner, getting a promotion at work, or even building a relationship.
3. They Think Everyone Is Inferior To Them
Psychopaths are known to consider themselves better than everybody else, which is why they are often not concerned about the impacts of their actions. They could appear as dominant and over-confident but it could also be masked around the people the psychopath believes are beneficial to their success.
4. Most Psychopaths Were Problematic In Their Childhood
Psychopathy is a personality disorder and personality is largely “unchanging” in nature. The traits need to be observed in childhood. A study that was published in the British Journal of Psychiatry found that conduct and hyperactivity disorders were very strong predictors of this type of behavior in adulthood. Some instances would be, coming into contact with law enforcement at a young age or even getting kicked out of school at a very young age.
Facts About High Functioning Psychopath
There are a lot of things that you might not know about psychopaths. Apart from a lack of behavioral controls and apt emotional responses, there’s a lot more to these people! Here are a few facts about Psychopaths:
1. The Hare’s Psychopathic Checklist
In a study conducted in the year 2010, about 203 promising executives enrolled in management training programs, that were subject to Hare’s psychopathy checklist. When the results were out, it was found that 1 in every 25 of the executives was considered a full-blown psychopath. This essentially indicates that, among executives, there are four times more psychopaths than found in the general population.
2. They Have No Fear – Literally!
Psychopaths generally find it very challenging to both experience and show fear themselves, hence have much difficulty in responding to horror as is generally displayed by non-psychopathic human beings.
When a psychologist was studying a murderer (a woman) who had psychopathic tendencies. The woman was shown a picture of a person with a frightened expression, to which she replied that she didn’t quite recall what that expression is called but that is the exact expression that her victims made right before she stabbed them.
3. They “Choose” Not To Feel
A study conducted in 2012 showed that, as opposite to the popular belief that psychopaths have no form of empathy, they do in fact have kind of like a “switch”. They are able to feel someone else’s pain and can also come off as kind and friendly. However, they do have the ability to use it whenever and wherever they please. They like to keep it switched “off” most of the time and turn it” on”, only when it is known to benefit them.
4. Halo Effect
They perform somewhat of a calculated move – where to gain people’s trust, they exercise what is known as the “Halo Effect” on people. The general public usually assumes that when people are generally more pretty/handsome, they are much more wholesome/kinder. Hence, by grooming themselves, the psychopaths attempt at embodying these traits which they might otherwise have trouble expressing.
5. More Psychopaths In The West?
Western culture is known to host more psychopaths as compared to the region of Eastern Asia. The reasoning for this is mainly because, the West is known to reward psychopathic behavior more, which makes it more likely to spread the genes. Additionally, people with psychopathic directions could be more in the Western region due to very less emphasis on “tradition” in their society and even looser classes.
To Wrap It Up!
That was all for information regarding high functioning psychopath. Thank you for reading up till here. I hope you found the information useful. Let me know in the comments your thoughts on the same.
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