Paul Babiak, PH.D. Robert. D. Hare, PH.D.
Psychopathy is a spectrum disorder, diagnosed using the Hare Psychopathy Checklist – to be classed a psychopath a score of at least 30 is required – meaning that people can score on the checklist without being a psychopath – that’s why their tactics and behaviors can be instructive when considering abusive behaviors in the workplace.
“Psychopaths are relatively lacking in conscience and in the ability to experience empathy, guilt, or loyalty to anyone but themselves. About 1 percent of the population, and about 15 percent of incarcerated offenders, meet the research criteria for psychopathy described in this book.”
A common reaction to both books is to wonder, “Am I a Psychopath?” and, “Over his career, Hare has received hundreds of emails and letters from people who claim to be psychopaths”
Remember only about 1% of the population are the real deal and often people naturally sense something about them is not quite right, something is missing.
When considering whether or not psychopathy is a mental disorder, Hare argues, “My view is that psychopathic individuals have an intellectual understanding of the rules of society and the conventional meanings of right and wrong, and know enough about what they are doing to be accountable for their actions. Like Iago in Shakespeare’s Othello, they choose which rules to follow or to ignore based on their own self-interest, a calculating appraisal of the circumstances, and a lack of concern for the feelings or welfare of others. But, they do not ignore or break every moral or legal code, nor do they make everyone they encounter a victim. There is little doubt that many psychopathic features are associated, in theoretically relevant ways, with a variety of brain structures and functions that differ from those of the majority of other individuals…This does not necessarily mean that they suffer from a neurological deficit or dysfunction. Indeed, psychopaths might claim that because they are not encumbered by emotional baggage, they are more rational than are most people. As a psychopathic offender in one our research projects put it, “The psychiatrist said that my problem is I think more with my head than my heart.” He did not see that as a problem and went on to say that he was ‘a cat in a world of mice.’”
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