Psychopathy is a personality disorder characterized by shallow emotional responses, lack of empathy, impulsivity, and an increased likelihood for antisocial behavior. Psychopaths are often manipulative, dishonest, narcissistic, unremorseful, non-empathetic, and exploitative. They are responsible for an inordinate proportion of crime committed and their conning, manipulative interpersonal style typically has a broad, destructive impact on the individuals’ life, work, and relationships. Psychopathy is a developmental disorder that manifests itself as a set of core personality traits which allow one to disregard the rights of others in pursuit of impulsive, self-serving goals.
It is important to note that psychopathy is not an official clinical diagnosis, but rather an informal term often used for a condition called antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) . ASPD describes a condition marked by patterns of manipulation tactics and violation of others. Some of the more common signs of ASPD include behavior that conflicts with social norms, disregarding or violating the rights of others, inability to distinguish between right and wrong, difficulty with showing remorse or empathy, tendency to lie often, manipulating and hurting others, recurring problems with the law, and general disregard toward safety and responsibility.
Research has suggested that the areas of the brain involved in emotion processing, empathizing, and decision making show reduced activity in people with psychopathic characteristics when they see other people in distress or try to learn consequences of their actions. However, it is still unclear whether these differences in the brain make someone into a psychopath, or if their behavior changes the brain.
