What really is a psychopath?

Sometimes it happens that certain terms of academic or scientific origin are used colloquially and their original meaning ends up getting lost, confusing the common people about what is really meant when talking about any of they.

In a sense, this has happened with the characterization of a person as a "psychopath", which has sometimes been used interchangeably with terms such as "psychotic" or "insane". But psychopathy has a real and specific meaning. I will try to explain that in this article.

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What is psychopathy really about?

Sometimes the psychopath has been defined as that individual incapable of feeling empathy. However, a psychopath can empathize in the sense that he can understand if another person is happy, scared or angry; that is, you can read the emotions or feelings of the other.

Many times, the psychopath can use this information to manipulate or take advantage of others, but not empathize in the sense of feeling what the other feels: he will not be sad to see that another person is suffering.

One of the main differences between a psychopath and an ordinary person is that while the latter can feel compassion, guilt or regret when understanding how her actions can affect the lives of others, at first this will bring him without watch out: the psychopath sees others as an object, as a means to an end.

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Are all psychopaths criminals?

One conclusion that can be logically drawn after understanding the psychopathic nature is that there must be some direct link between this personality type and criminality. Well, this link is real. But That doesn't mean all psychopaths are criminals., nor that all criminals are psychopaths (even violent ones).

First of all, a psychopath can be a highly functional individual, who understands that committing crimes can increase their chances of suffering negative consequences, in relation to live a legal or at least peaceful life. In fact, this is the case for most psychopaths: they are estimated to be around 1% of the population.

These subjects will simply be people that surely one does not want to have as a boss or as a partner, but who often do not present great problems for society.

On the other hand, many violent criminals may exhibit antisocial or violent behavior without necessarily being psychopathic, since violence has many causes, and those who carry out violent criminal acts do not always have the same psychological profile. While these behaviors are not excusable, they do not necessarily imply that the person engaging in them is completely lacking in compassion or meaningful bonds with others.

There is, however, a type of criminal where psychopaths are overrepresented: serial killers.

A serial killer is a person who, following a certain characteristic modus operandi, pursuing a certain type of victim target (people of a certain sex, occupation, age and/or ethnicity, for example), is dedicated to calming their instincts assassins.

A multiple murderer is not the same as a serial killer. If a criminal kills one person in cold blood to rob him, and two others in a bar fight, this does not make him a serial killer. Serial killers are mostly psychopaths (although there have also been cases in which the perpetrator had a psychotic profile).

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Is there a cure for psychopathy?

At the moment there is no known "cure" for this type of disorder. The fact that there are organic differences with the rest of the people is a fact to take into account: using a brain scanner we can notice that there is less connection between the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (area of ​​the brain responsible for feelings such as guilt or empathy) with the amygdala (responsible for fear or anxiety).

This is one of the reasons why it is considered virtually impossible to get this kind of people function in the same way as other human beings: they are biologically incapable of do it. In addition to this, research shows that psychopathy is innate, although cultural aspects may define, in part, how this disorder manifests itself. In any case, as was said before, not all psychopaths are criminals, let alone violent criminals.

In the case of the latter (serial killers or not), hope for an effective treatment for this condition rests on scientific advances: it is possible that at some point some type of drug can be administered to these types of people that reduce their most problematic impulses and allow them to live in a peaceful way in society.

This model of treatment may make one recall the plot of A Clockwork Orange, where Alex, the protagonist (a dangerous criminal), is part of a violence aversion therapy, administering certain types of drugs that make him feel pain every time these impulses appear.

In any case, it remains to be seen what, if any, pharmacological (or other) treatment appears in the next few years to treat this disorder.