Psychopaths

And The Stigma Attached To Them

Presented by
Jennifer Park
DOB: 5/29/1999
Arnold O. Beckman High School

November 10, 2016

 Table of Contents

Abstract2

Introduction..3

What Is a Psychopath....4, 5

The Problem......6-9

Conclusion..10

Works Cited......11, 12

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Abstract

Because psychopaths are so different from normal people, others rely on stereotypes to

figure out how to act toward them. This often leads to unneeded prejudice and discrimination.

Understanding that not all psychopaths are bad can dramatically help people to overcome this

stigma. Through this, equality on how people view mental and physical illness can be achieved.

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Introduction

As someone who has taken multiple classes on psychology and is planning to major in

the subject, I have always enjoyed watching shows such as Criminal Minds and Hannibal

because they explore the inner workings of the mind of people who have differently wired

brains. Out of the multitudes of different personality and mental disorders that these shows

covered, the psychopaths of these shows always grabbed my attention. The characters of the

shows who were deemed psychopaths were often portrayed as cunning and sadistic, and their

scenes were always capable of shooting goosebumps up my arms.

I then took my interest and curiosity of psychopaths to the Internet. After perusing

through a plethora of articles, I was surprised by what I read. While the media causes people to

believe that psychopaths are all violent, many of them are pro-social psychopaths. These

people have difficulty feeling true empathy for others, but they still keep their behavior roughly

within socially-acceptable bounds (Stromberg). I also found that there exists a large stigma that

is attached to people with mental illnesses, including psychopathy. This stigma causes deep-

rooted prejudice against people who are clinically deemed to be possess psychopathic

characteristics.

This paper will explain what psychopathy really is and will explore and debunk

stereotypes about psychopaths.

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What Is a Psychopath?

The high number of people who are considered psychopaths in the world cannot go

unnoticed; about 1 in every 100 people are psychopaths. This suggests that in their lives, many

people have encountered at least one person with psychopathic tendencies.

"Psychopath" is not an actual diagnosis because it is not listed in the Diagnostic and

Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). However, the closest medical term for

psychopathy is antisocial personality disorder.

Common traits of psychopaths include a lack of empathy, frequent manipulation and

deception, and impulsivity.1 This lack of empathy can be seen in Figure 1, which shows a

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scan comparison of a normal brain and a psychopaths

brain. The psychopath's brain shows low levels of activity in areas of the temporal and frontal

lobes which are known to be linked to self-control, morality, and empathy (Stromberg).

Additionally, when exposed to stimuli that usually create emotional response in the normal brain,

the psychopaths brain does not show the same response.

Figure 1: This PET scan image shows a lack of activity in the prefrontal cortex in the

psychopaths brain, compared to the normal brain.

1 This is the main difference between psychopaths and sociopaths. While many people incorrectly interchange psychopaths and
sociopaths, they have slight differences. Sociopaths act without thinking of the consequence of their actions, being more hot-
headed. On the other hand, psychopaths are calculating and manipulative. They create elaborate and strategic plans to get what
they want while still appearing friendly and charming to others (Robinson).

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 These differences can even change basic body functions in psychopaths. For example,

when people watch a scary movie, their sympathetic nervous system starts to act up. In the

sympathetic nervous systems fight-or-flight response, their heart beats faster, pupils dilate, and

their adrenal gland secretes epinephrine and norepinephrine. However, a psychopath would

remain calm when watching the same movie.

The key thing idea to understand about psychopaths is that while psychopaths are

naturally wired differently, these differences do not automatically make them bad people.

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The Problem

In todays media movies, books, or TV shows there are many characters that are

psychopaths. Whether it be from Doctor Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs,

Norman Bates in Psycho, or Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, psychopaths are often

portrayed as blood-thirsty and cunning murderers (See Figure 2). Due to these harsh media

portrayals, most people perceive that all psychopaths are bad. This, in turn, creates social

distancing that draws lines between psychopaths with the rest of the population and prevents

psychopaths from being understood.

Figure 2: Doctor Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs is only one example of the

medias portrayal of psychopaths. These characters are often vicious and perform disturbing

actions.

Psychopathic traits include charm, lack of conscience, focus, less empathy, and charisma.

According to Oxford University research psychologist Dr. Kevin Dutton, these characteristics

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can be beneficial and allow you to be successful in your profession if used at the right amount

(Sauvebois).

An example of a successful psychopath can be seen in the case of University of

California, Irvine Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior Dr. James Fallon (See Figure 3).

In October of 2005, Fallon found out of his condition while sifting through thousands of PET

scans, including those of his own family. He identified his psychopathic nature in his

competitiveness, assertiveness, and aggressiveness; however, [he] never killed anybody, or

raped anyone. . Because his behavior remains relatively within socially-acceptable boundaries,

he labeled himself as a "pro-social psychopath.". He believes this to be the result of a caring and

nurturing childhood, as well as an allele for a serotonin transporter protein that allows the

prefrontal cortex to be affected significantly by environmental influences (Stromberg).

Fallon is not the lone exception. Successful psychopaths are seen all over. According to

an Australian study that was consisted of 261 CEOs in the United States found that 21 percent of

them had clinically significant levels of psychopathic traits (Pearlman). An author of The

Wisdom of Psychopaths: What Saints, Spies, and Serial Killers Can Teach Us About Success

Dutton listed surgeons, journalists, lawyers, chefs, and police officers among some of the top

professions that attract psychopaths (Clay). These particular psychopaths have the capacity to

save countless lives.

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 Figure 3: James Fallon gives a TED Talk about how nature and nurture wires the brains of

psychopaths.

Despite the presence of these pro-social psychopaths in society, many people remain

influenced by the portrayal of psychopaths in movies and books. As a result, there is a large

stigma attached to being a psychopath. These stereotypes drive normal people away from

psychopaths due to fearfear of violent and vicious actions that the human being is capable of

without a conscience. Although this fear is understandable due to characters such as Dr.

Hannibal Lecter, it creates misconceptions and misunderstandings; many people believe all

psychopaths to be controlling creatures that have an insatiable thirst to hurt others. They do not

give equality toward the physically ill and the mentally ill.

Along with these negative portrayals, many people hold negative attitudes and

stereotypes against psychopaths and people with mental illness. From a young age, children learn

from adults that it is acceptable to describe others as weird or crazy. Those that are placed in

this category are shunned and avoided. This mindset is carried on to adulthood, and the social

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distancing that results from this mindset stops psychopaths from being able to receive the

nurturing and caring environment that they need to be pro-social.

This stigma pushes psychopaths deeper into the shadows. Instead of opening up lines of

communication and understanding between psychopaths and non-psychopaths, this stigma only

causes psychopaths to learn how to wear their masks better. As a result, there is no improvement

and no effort to understand.

Not only does the stigma negatively affect psychopaths on a personal level, but also on a

broader scale; psychopaths are criminalized to a greater extent. 15 to 20 percent of the prison

population is made up of psychopaths, and psychopaths are 10 times more likely to be placed in

prison rather than in psychiatric facilities (Friedman). This is a clear violation of human rights.

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Conclusion

Psychopaths are not inherently evil. Although they have a far greater chance of becoming

evil than normal people, there are many psychopaths who are "pro-social" and are able to

perform good deeds. By utilizing some of their positive psychopathic traits for the better good of

society, psychopaths that have professional occupations can help others. The danger comes when

these psychopaths grow up in negative environments from a young age.

In todays society defined by the use of media and technology, many peoples opinions

are shaped by external forces. Even before people have the chance to form their initial opinions

and thoughts on a subject through their own experiences, they are already somewhat cemented

through the way that these subjects are portrayed in the media. Because of this, the negative

portrayals of psychopaths in movies and TV shows cause an increase in harmful stereotypes

toward not only them but also people with other mental disabilities. These detrimental

stereotypes hurt the mental illness community as a whole and spark fear in others.

Additionally, because of the fact that psychopaths and other people with mental

disabilities behave differently from people without these mental disabilities, they are often

victims of negative stereotypes that ultimately draw people away from them. However, these

stereotypes do not define these individuals. It is important to see the person, rather than the

illness. The stigma of mental illness, not excluding psychopathy, leads to unnecessary

discrimination and negative feelings. It is imperative to overcome the stigma to be more

supportive of the mental illness community.

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Works Cited

Clay, Kelly. "The Top 10 Jobs That Attract Psychopaths." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 5 Jan. 2013.

Web. 24 Nov. 2016.

Friedman, Michael, Ph.D. "The Stigma of Mental Illness Is Making Us Sicker." Psychology

Today. Sussex Publishers, LLC, 13 May 2014. Web. 24 Nov. 2016.

Guy, Fiona. "The Mind of a Psychopath: The Psychopathic Killer." Crime Traveller. N.p., 24

Oct. 2016. Web. 12 Nov. 2016.

Kiehl, Kent A. The Psychopath Whisperer: The Science of Those Without Conscience. N.p.:

Oneworld Publications, 2015. Print.

Kramer, Sarah. "5 Things Everyone Gets Wrong about Psychopaths - and Why You Might Be

One." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 01 Aug. 2016. Web. 9 Nov. 2016.

MacDonald, Cheyenne. "Is YOUR Boss a Psychopath? Study Finds up to One in Five CEOs

Have High Levels of Psychopathic Traits." Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers, 14 Sept.

2016. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Pearlman, Jonathan. "1 in 5 CEOs Are Psychopaths, Study Finds." The Telegraph. Telegraph

Media Group, 13 Sept. 2016. Web. 24 Nov. 2016.

"Psychopathy Vs. Antisocial Personality Disorder." Elements Behavioral Health. N.p., 15 Sept.

2014. Web. 12 Nov. 2016.

Robinson, Kara Mayer. "What's the Difference Between a Sociopath and a Psychopath?"

WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2016.

Sauvebois, Marion. "Not All Psychopaths Are Bad- Oxford Psychologist Tells Swindon

Literature Festival." Swindon Advertiser. N.p., 8 May 2016. Web. 24 Nov. 2016.

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Stromberg, Joseph. "The Neuroscientist Who Discovered He Was a Psychopath." Smithsonian

Magazine. Smithsonian, 22 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2016.

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