10 Subtle Signs of a Psychopath

hey everyone and welcome to top tank  today we're going to learn about   10 subtle signs of a psychopath now  let's begin number one social domination   how do psychopaths interact with the world do they  communicate the same way you do a 2019 review from   the journal of psycholinguistic research asked the  same questions to find an answer they compiled 34   different studies on psychopathic communication  but what did they find just think about an average   conversation most conversations are friendly and  casual two friends chatting over coffee co-workers   poking fun at their boss strangers exchanging  bits of small talk but some conversations are   more competitive in business settings for example  you may wrestle for power and status if you say   too much your opponent gets the better of you so  you choose your words very carefully a psychopath   views every conversation as a competition  they crave social dominance they need the   power in every relationship they make so like  a business transaction they lay traps withhold   information and manipulate other people social  interactions are in the mind of a psychopath   a hierarchy of power and status and the psychopath  wants to be on top so how can you recognize this   hunger for power in another person when talking  to a psychopath you may feel like you're on the   back foot they may one-up you at every turn they  may catch every mistake you make or point out   every tiny contradiction if you mess up they'll  let you know because your mistakes give them power   number two mass generalizations to a  psychopath everyone is their enemy so   they're always searching for reasons to criticize  their community their country or the entire world   all right let's say you see someone throw an  empty can on the ground how would you react you   may think to yourself this person littered  so they must be careless and disrespectful   you like most people judge individuals for their  actions but a psychopath can generalize anything   this comes from the same 2019 review  psychopaths are prone to over-generalization   especially if it's something negative instead  of judging a singular person they criticize   larger groups and communities if one  person litters for example they don't   blame the individual they assume the  whole city is careless and disrespectful   listen for these huge generalizations  pay attention to radical assumptions and   narrow-minded opinions because psychopaths  assume the world is full of terrible people   number three persuasive disfluencies do  psychopaths talk differently than most people this   comes from a 2016 study in the journal of criminal  justice and behavior in this study researchers   interviewed a handful of psychopaths looking at  these interviews researchers look for patterns in   phrasing and word choice so what did they find are  there differences in the way a psychopath speaks   researchers noticed a spike in language  disfluencies disfluencies are breaks or   disruptions in your speech some people stutter  other people use filler words like um or like   disfluencies usually signify stress or anxiety  the average person for example uses more filler   words when they're nervous their mind races their  heart rate skyrockets so they struggle to express   themselves clearly oh but a psychopath does things  differently during interviews psychopaths used a   specific kind of disfluency they didn't stutter  they didn't fill their speech with likes and dumbs   in fact researchers found very few stress-related  words in their speech instead a psychopath will   use phrases like you know or to be honest these  are still disfluencies but these disfluencies   serve a different purpose they don't fill space  or buy time they're a subtle form of persuasion   psychopaths may use these phrases to manipulate  their listeners and gain power in the conversation   number four personal pronouns our 2016 study  uncovered another important sign of psychopathy   during their interviews most participants talked  about multiple people they discussed their family   and their friends they talked about people  from work they told stories about others and   referenced them by name psychopaths on the other  hand mentioned only themselves they made very few   references to other people they rarely brought  up family or friends and they showed barely any   emotional attachment to others the most compelling  piece of evidence is their use of pronouns   researchers counted exactly how many pronouns  each interviewee used and which ones were used the   most often it turns out psychopaths talked about  themselves way more than most people they used so   many personal pronouns that researchers call this  subtle sign a reliable predictor of psychopathy   so the next time you're having a conversation pay  attention to the pronouns how often do people say   i and me there's nothing wrong with talking  about yourself but a psychopath won't talk   about anything else number five temporary  tools how do psychopaths treat their loved   ones in our 2019 review researchers explored  how psychopaths view the people in their life   just think about this why do you make friends with  other people maybe you enjoy their company you may   gather energy from the enthusiasm of others you  may want to share your passions with people who   understand you there are many reasons to make  friends but psychopaths only have one they bond   with others because they need something from them  it may be a small favor it could be a connection   or a social boon there's always something to  gain if you have nothing to offer a psychopath   they'll abandon the relationship because  they view friends and family as tools   as soon as you're not useful a psychopath will  throw you away number six inappropriate emotions   do you know someone who laughs at sad stories  someone who cries when they're supposed to   be smiling psychopaths rarely express their  emotions they prefer to be emotionally detached   many psychopaths discuss difficult topics without  showing an ounce of emotion their emotional   detachment is also a sign of psychopathy but  what happens when they do show their emotions all   right let's say your friend tells you a sad story  from their childhood you're on the verge of tears   but they're not crying at all in fact they're  laughing we call this an inappropriate emotion   when a psychopath has a reaction their outward  emotions may contradict their inward experiences   in other words they may laugh when they want to  cry number 7 biological needs everyone has social   and emotional needs you long for companionship you  crave physical affection you feel frustrated when   someone ignores you because you want to be heard  these are all valid needs that people feel on a   regular basis but a psychopath avoids their social  or emotional needs many psychopaths pretend those   needs don't exist they talk only about their basic  evolutionary needs they need food they need water   they need money they view the world through  concrete desires not social or emotional problems   so why do they think like this because psychopaths  want to appear strong at all times they want   people to see them as fearless and sturdy to a  psychopath expressing your emotions is dangerous   it's a sign of weakness that's why psychopaths  avoid their emotions as often as they can number   eight strategic avoidance do you know someone  who leaves out important parts of their stories   psychopaths use this trick to bait people in it  gives them power in the conversation by leaving   out details they're holding all the cards they  have something you want to hear and they decide   when you hear it in the mind of a psychopath  this is one way to achieve social dominance   let's say something important happened on the news  you didn't hear about it so you ask your friend   but they dance around the issue leaving out the  most important details you keep asking for more   but they keep stringing you along this person is  playing with you they know what you want but they   don't want to give it to you it's a subtle form  of manipulation and it's common among psychopaths   number nine self-contradictions have you ever  heard someone contradict themselves psychopaths   will contradict their own opinions they disprove  and go back on their own arguments seconds   after making them for example a psychopath  might say money can never buy you happiness   then a couple of minutes later they're obsessing  about how much money they make many psychopaths   don't realize they're contradicting themselves  because their opinions are impulsive and temporary   psychopaths have no problem with lying so  they say whatever strikes them in the moment   not what they really believe unfortunately  it's difficult to call them out if you say   something a psychopath may get defensive  immediately they'll turn the argument on   its head and they'll aim all their frustration at  you so keep an eye out for major contradictions   see how many times their opinions flop back  and forth it may happen more than you realize   number 10 emotional landslides psychopaths bottle  up their emotions they stuff their feelings down   for months or years at a time they ignore  their problems they run away from conflicts   and they tune out anyone who tells them to  change eventually those bottled up emotions   have to escape and when they do the outcome can  be catastrophic let's call this an emotional   landslide an emotional landslide may be triggered  by something small and insignificant but that   little moment releases a cascade of powerful  feelings a psychopath may get unreasonably angry   they'll insult you yell at you or get physical  with you they may spiral into a slump of despair   crying for hours on end these landslides can be  frightening uncomfortable and dangerous if someone   you know experiences emotional landslides  they might be a psychopath hey thank you   for watching top think and be sure to subscribe  because more incredible content is on the way

Channel: TopThink

Views: 912,736

Keywords: signs of a psychopath, signs you’re dealing with a psychopath, psychopath signs, psychopath test

Id: k4QENwQO8EI

Length: 10min 45sec (645 seconds)

Published: Sat Nov 14 2020