Hey there! Hello and welcome to yet another one of my blogs! Sociopaths, psychopaths, and narcissists are some of the terms which have always fascinated me. I’ve read a lot about psychopaths, narcissists, their personalities and traits. Although the term “Sociopaths” is new to me. I saw some YouTube videos about these personality disorders a while ago, and thought of writing a blog on it! Cause when I learn something new, I love sharing it with y’all :)
What is a Psychopath?
Merriam-Webster defines a psychopath as "a person having an egocentric and antisocial personality marked by a lack of remorse for one's actions, an absence of empathy for others, and often criminal tendencies."
Many psychopathy characteristics overlap with symptoms of antisocial personality disorder, a broader mental health condition used to describe people who chronically act out and break rules. But only a small number of individuals with antisocial personality disorder are considered to be a psychopath.
Common Psychopath traits
Psychopathic traits commonly include:
Antisocial behaviour
Narcissism
Superficial charm
Impulsivity
Callous, unemotional traits
Lack of guilt
Lack of empathy
Inability to distinguish between right and wrong
Lack of empathy and remorse
Manipulating and/or hurting others
Disregard for safety and responsibility
Behaviour that conflicts with social norms
Please see that not that these traits do not 100% ensure that a person is a psychopath! These are some of the traits commonly associated with psychopaths but they don’t guarantee anything. Heck, even Psychopathy itself not a diagnosis but a set of traits. The criteria for psychopathy include psychological symptoms and certain specific behaviors.
You may ask, when did psychopath stop being a diagnosis?
The German tradition was finally broken in 1980 with the publication of the DSM-III, which for the first time defined psychopathy as the persistent violation of social norms, and which dropped the affective traits altogether, though it retained the label antisocial personality disorder.
Some famous psychopaths through the course of history -
Ted Bundy
Jeffrey Dahmer
Richard Ramirez
John Wayne Gacy
Charles Manson
Y’all recognise these names? 🙃
Alright, moving on to our next term, Sociopaths
Who is a sociopath?
The term sociopath refers to someone living with Antisocial Personality Disorder ASPD — as does the term psychopath.
The most recent edition of the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM-5), which mental health professionals use to diagnose mental health conditions, defines ASPD as a consistent disregard for rules and social norms and repeated violation of other people’s rights.
People with the condition might seem charming and charismatic at first, at least on the surface, but they generally find it difficult to understand other people’s feelings.
They often:
break rules or laws
behave aggressively or impulsively
feel little guilt for harm they cause others
use manipulation, deceit, and controlling behaviour
Sociopath’s can be dangerous; they're hungry for power, and they feel little to no guilt or remorse. But they're not inherently evil, and some are highly productive members of society.
How do I know if I’m a Sociopath?
Do you like breaking rules, lack empathy, tend to show no remorse, and appear to enjoy manipulating other people? I may have some bad news for you 💀
Again, please don’t take any of this as an actual diagnosis/test. If you think there’s something genuinely wrong with you, please go see a psychiatrist who will be able to study your behaviour and diagnose you better than an Internet article will.
And now for the last one, Narcissists
Narcissistic personality qualities include thinking very highly of oneself, needing admiration, believing others are inferior and lacking empathy for others. Okay I think these are the ones who are less dangerous than sociopaths and psychopaths, and can be found much more commonly.
Here are 10 more narcissistic qualities I found online
Monopoly on Conversation.
Flaunting Rules or Social Conventions.
Fixation with Appearance.
Unreasonable Expectations.
Disregard for Other People.
Praise, Praise and More Praise.
It's Everyone Else's Fault.
They Fear Abandonment.
I’m DEAD sure y’all must be knowing at least 1 person who checks all these boxes 🙃 Narcissists are so dang annoying.
Now, what EXACTLY makes them different? Cause they all seem pretty similar, don’t they? Not taking accountability, not having empathy, disregarding others etc.
The main difference between the narcissist and the sociopath or psychopath is that the narcissist may experience or learn to experience some remorse and eventually some empathy for actions that hurt others and his maltreatment is verbal not physically aggressive or violent. When narcissists do a bad thing, they feel some degree of shame and guilt. Their shame is more of a public emotion focused on the judgement of others, rather than regretting their wrongdoings. A psychopath, on the other hand, doesn't feel remorse when they do something bad; they simply don't care who gets hurt. Sociopaths are more dangerous than narcissists. People with antisocial personality disorder are more likely to be engaged in an abusive or controlling relationship. They're also more likely to be involved in illegal activities or financial fraud schemes.
That was it for this week, my loves. I hope you all got to learn something new! And hey please be careful and look out for signs and traits mentioned in this article 🙌🏻 STAY SAFE!
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