How Do You Treat A Psychopath?
So, how do you treat a psychopath? Very, very carefully! No, psychopaths have only been ‘treated’ when caught in a criminal endeavour. Then the treatment has consisted simply of punishment. Of course, it’s no more ‘treatment’ than the rest of the prison population receives.
Psychopathy is considered a personality disorder and because of this, it’s virtually impossible to treat. In any case, psychopaths are probably very happy indeed with the way they are. Indeed, evidence has been found that their brains work quite differently from other people’s in some respects.
At the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College, London, a very interesting bit of research was carried out when scientists took six psychopaths and nine normal people and showed them pictures of faces. These faces displayed various emotions.
First, they showed them photos of happy, smiling people. Increased activity was observed in the brains of both groups in the areas involved with recognizing facial expressions. However, in the psychopathic group, the increase was smaller.
Then the groups were shown photos of fearful faces, people obviously terrified of something. By the way, both the smiling faces and the fearful faces were compared to neutral faces, hence the researchers were able to gauge the increased or decreased brain activity.
When the fearful faces were shown to the normal people, as compared to the neutral faces, their brain activity increased, whereas the psychopaths showed considerably less activation.
Psychopaths are much less concerned with the emotions of others, except as a way of manipulating them. However, if their plans are thwarted, they can become decidedly emotional. It is, really, all about ’self.’
I hate to say this, but we can all behave psychopathically on occasion, especially when the circumstances are extreme enough. Whole cultures, even, can become psychopathic, at least more so than others.
When a society encourages individuality and material gain, together with organized violence as was seen in Ancient Rome in gladiatorial combat, then psychopathy can descend upon the nation like a disease.
Human hurt and suffering, they feel, are there purely for their entertainment and when human life is held so cheaply, then who can wonder that the individual who’s a member of that culture takes on at least some of those psychopathic tendencies?
Even so, the great majority of people would still be capable of genuine empathy and consideration towards others.
In fact, the vast majority of people today really do care about others, and are genuinely shocked and upset when disasters strike their fellow man.
But the psychopath continues to tread his lonely, cold and dispassionate path
I do hope you’ve found this series on psychopaths both useful and instructive. There’s so much more that you’ll find useful on my Website. I’m Mike Bond, and I specialize in mental illness, having been subject to it for a lot of my life. No, I’m not a psychopath! Simply click on http://www.wealthyoldman.com and don’t forget your free downloads