Top Ten Ways to Detect Sociopaths 10.) Surface Charm and Glibness Some people seem to have more charm than others. Pronounced charm is a red flag which indicates
sociopathy. Sociopaths do not feel the same love, empathy
and remorse that neurotypical people do. This isn’t pop psychology. MRIs show that sociopaths process life differently. Since sociopaths become conscienceless due
to a blend of childhood trauma and genetics, they realize fairly early on that they don’t
feel things as others do. They know that they are different. In order to cloak their strangeness and in
order to get what they want from others, they learn how to act in order to “pass” in
society. As they mimic “neurotypical” people, they
become adept at charming them. Their charm is centered on “mirroring”
those that they meet. In other words, they gather facts about others
and use these facts in order to appear to have the same interests and the same values. Also, sociopaths are known to have higher
levels of testosterone and an excess of this hormone tends to make them more sexually attractive
to other people. The downside of this is that sociopaths are
often hypersexual, which does not promote fidelity. Naturally, sociopaths don’t feel guilty
when they cheat. Glibness is also a dead giveaway. If you know someone who uses jokes, puns and
deflections in order to avoid serious discussions about real problems, beware. This is not unintentional and it’s a sign
that the sociopath wants to move the conversation away from difficult issues. In particular, if you find that a partner,
colleague or friend avoids answering direct questions, or hesitates before answering any
types of questions, you should definitely be wary. Celebrity Example – Ted Bundy’s modus
operandi was to win the sympathy of his intended victims by playing the victim himself. Sociopaths know that playing the victim is
a very effective way to achieve their goals! Known for his traditionally masculine features,
Bundy was very well-spoken and was able to trick women by appearing to be injured. He wore a fake cast (which he crafted himself
at home, from a stolen bag of Plaster of Paris), donned crutches and then posed as a victim. He would approach women and ask them to help
him move things over to his VW Bug. This infamous VW Bug was modified in order
to assist him with rape and murder. He had removed the passenger seat with a mind
to making it simpler to carry “cargo”. However, his victims usually didn’t see
the missing passenger seat until it was too late. With sociopaths, the evil often lurks just
out of sight, so it’s important to consider the fact that anyone whom you may meet may
be conscienceless. 9.) Egoism and Grandiosity
Sociopaths have swollen egos. Their lack of emotional depth and incapacity
for love are characteristics which they often view as secret weapons in the wars that they
wage against those whom they want to manipulate and/or ruin. This “edge” that they feel they have over
non-sociopaths (neurotypicals) feeds their sense of superiority. Therefore, the second primary indicator of
sociopathy is egoism/grandiosity. Signs of an ego which has narcissistic features
(sociopaths are also narcissistic) include bragging about their looks, vanity, bragging
about positive encounters with celebrities or other VIPs and bragging about sexual performance
and/or exploits. In terms of spotting grandiosity, look for
a sense of disdain for others! For example, the sociopath may make racist
statements regularly. As well, he or she may relate to individuals
or creatures which are notorious for doing significant damage to humanity or God, such
as war criminals, gangsters or the Devil. Many sociopaths may give you clues to who
they really are, even if they frame it as a joke. For example, someone who calls him or herself,
“evil” or “bad” is actually bragging about what’s inside. He or she wants this darkness recognised. Celebrity Example - Hermann Goring
The late Nazi figurehead, Hermann Goring, is commonly perceived as a sociopath, for
good reason. He had many features of this currently-incurable
personality disorder, including high sensation seeking, egocentricity and disdain for others. Like most sociopaths, he had nerves of steel
(he was a WWI fighter pilot), an icy and spooky “predator stare”, as well as a penchant
for compassion-free manipulation. Goring’s perception of occupying a higher
tier is evident in the following quote. The people are his puppets:
“Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being
attacked, and denounce the peace makers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country
to danger. It works the same in any country.” 8.) High Sensation Seeker
If you want a little excitement, you’ll find it with a sociopath. What you won’t find is love, respect and
reciprocity. Sociopaths live in a state of constant boredom,
as their inner lives are practically non-existent. Since any emotions that they do experience,
such as lust, anger, irritation, envy and fleeting happiness, are usually quite weak,
they flicker into their consciousness and then dissipate as quickly as they come. For this reason, they find that boredom is
their biggest challenge in life. Anger is usually the most powerful emotion
that a sociopath feels. He or she may even like to be angry, as it’s
better to feel something than to feel so little. If someone in your life seems to create drama
and chaos on purpose, at frequent intervals, he or she may be a sociopath who is trying
to access sensation via arguments. Sensation-seeking may happen in an array of
ways, from juggling multiple romantic relationships to reckless driving (speeding, drunk driving)
to drug abuse and alcoholism. The truth is that many sociopaths abuse drugs
and booze on a regular basis. Sociopaths may also seek out deviant adventures
in riskier locales, such as the Third World. Since they find any fear that they do experience
to be pleasurable, they enjoy putting themselves at risk. Without risk, they experience a sense of emptiness
which is depressing and unpleasant! Celebrity Example – Charles Manson turned
to petty crimes for survival and in order to seek out the sensations that sociopaths
crave. Like Bundy and Goring, Manson also had the
intense stare that sociopaths utilize in order to gain power over others and he used his
predatory stare and charisma in order to turn his cult of weak-minded followers into brainwashed
groupies. The excitement of manipulation is definitely
the sociopath’s highest form of sensation. In fact, many derive intense physical pleasure
from duping and conning those around them. 7.) Frequent and Compulsive Lying
We all have to lie to some extent in order to function in society. However, most of us make a point of being
honest, as it’s a better way to live. Our consciences prompt us to avoid lying when
we can. Those who lie a lot, even when it’s not
strictly necessary, are far more likely to be sociopaths. In fact, most people who begin to suspect
that people in their life are more evil than anticipated (i.e. sociopaths) do so because
they’ve uncovered lies, whether they are large or small. Once you get to know them a bit better, sociopaths
often seem shady and dishonourable. Imagine your own capacity for wreaking havoc,
were you able to lie to someone’s face without a single moral qualm! Since they are unencumbered by guilt, sociopaths
lie constantly, to everyone in their lives. Everyone gets a different version of the sociopath
which is customised just for them. Everyone sees a different mask. One mask may be donned for a group, while
another may be worn for a lover or ex-lover. It’s all about reputation management and
manipulation. Celebrity Example - Charles Ponzi
Many sociopaths don’t turn to violence in order to get their needs met. One example is alleged sociopath, Charles
Ponzi, whose life of lies was all about tricking rich people into investing in sham corporations. The “Ponzi Scheme” is a famous method
of defrauding investors and it was named in “honour” of this white-collar criminal. Ponzi faced the fate that sociopaths dread
most, after death itself. He languished in a prison cell for fourteen
years. However, it’s safe to say that he enjoyed
the lying and trickery immensely before his misdeeds came to light. 6.) No Guilt or Sense of Responsibility
Many people really struggle to wrap their heads around the fact that one in twenty-five
people are sociopathic and do not feel guilt. Those with consciences find this difficult
to comprehend. Likewise, the sociopath finds the inner emotional
worlds of neurotypicals to be baffling. A sociopath cannot feel your pain unless he
or she makes a conscience effort to do so, and this doesn’t happen too often. This guiltlessness is accompanied by lack
of shame and zero sense of responsibility and it’s one of the primary reasons why
most sociopaths seem extremely immature. They seem frozen in adolescence and they lack
the emotional tools to learn from experience. They may claim to want to do better in the
future and be very believable when they do so. However, they just can’t learn and their
impulsiveness and desire to win at the game of life always leads them to repeat the same
mistakes. A sociopath will follow the same patterns
in a way that is truly perplexing. Anyone else would learn from experience. Celebrity Example - John Gacy seemed like
a stand-up guy as he blended into his Des Plaines, Illinois community. However, he was really the stuff of nightmares. Utterly without guilt, Gacy serially killed
32 young males during the 1970s. When we wasn’t busy murdering without a
shred of remorse, he spent some of his time dressed as a clown, performing at the birthday
parties of local children. 5.) Shallow Emotions
By now, you’re getting the general idea. These people look like you or I, but aren’t
the same inside. They are not good people and they’re the
reason why so many men and women are scarred from toxic relationships. Sociopaths do shocking things and their horrible
acts, from leading double lives to emptying other’s savings accounts to sabotaging others
in the workplace, may be readily apparent or may not be discovered for years. While many sociopaths probably would like
to feel what the rest of us feel, instead of knowing that they are on the outside, looking
in, most are quite happy to be sociopaths. For this reason, you shouldn’t pity them. Celebrity Example – Diane Downs tried to
kill all of her own children and succeeded in killing one and paralyzing another. This former postal worker and current member
of the prison population did it so that she could spend time with a new lover who didn’t
particularly want to be around children. As impulsive and deceitful as any other sociopath,
Diane Downs planned craftily, but missed things in her haste to complete her mission. She was convicted and her own daughter testified
against her. Ann Rule`s non-fiction book, Small Sacrifices,
tells the story of this shallow sociopath. To kill your children in order to keep a lover
isn`t love! The love which Diane felt for this man wasn`t
authentic love, either! It was infatuation and infatuation is about
as deep as a sociopath`s love ever goes. With sociopaths, love is mostly about lust,
fleeting infatuation and possessing and controlling another. While they can’t love, you are free to love
someone else. 4.) Empathy-free
Empathy is feeling someone`s pain. It`s really simple for the empathetic to define. For example, when we heard about the horrible
attack by terrorists on the Bataclan nightclub, while the rock band, Eagles of Death Metal,
were on the stage, we empathetic beings banded together and felt the pain of the victims. Since sociopaths rarely put themselves into
anyone’s shoes, they don’t experience this sense of humanity and oneness. It is basically missing. While recent studies have shown that sociopaths
are able to turn empathy on and off, it’s mostly in the “Off” setting. Consider everyday con artists, who are all
too happy to trick others into giving them things under false pretences. They don’t emotionally understand how other
people feel, due to being effectively “empathy-free”. Therefore, they are able to make false promises
to others without feeling the pain of those that they deceive. 3.) Trivial Sexual Life
The issue of sex and sociopathy is an interesting one. If you’re dating, one thing to watch for
is someone who stares at the opposite sex a lot while you’re out and about. If a person seems to be on the prowl, even
when with a partner, that is narcissistic behaviour. Where there is smoke, there is typically fire. Sociopaths stare. It’s called the Predator Stare. It’s about inappropriate eye contact. Sociopaths don’t have deep emotions, so
they may use sex in order to kill boredom. This lack of depth, coupled with higher-than-average
levels of testosterone (and vaulting egos!), means that sociopaths are often hopelessly
addicted to sex. Since these types typically want higher and
higher levels of sensation, they may become sexual deviants. This means cheating, using prostitutes, sleeping
with people who are under the age of consent, sex tourism and so on. Most sociopaths are promiscuous. In fact, promiscuity is one of the factors
that psychiatrists look for when diagnosing this condition. 2.) Conduct Problems Prior to Age 15
Sociopathy starts young. It manifests in one way or another before
the age of fifteen. Teens may be diagnosed with Conduct Disorder. Others may have no formal diagnosis, but may
have trouble following rules at school and home and show general disrespect for the truth,
as well as parents, siblings and authority figures. Quite often, but not always, a juvenile delinquent
is a budding sociopath. Some young sociopaths hurt animals and don’t
understand why it’s wrong until they are told. Others are violent with people. All will be rule-breakers and most will experiment
with alcohol and drugs, as well as sexual contact, long before their non-sociopath peers. It’s rare to find an adult sociopath who
wasn’t a problem teen in some respect. 1.) Sadism and Mind Games
People with empathy don’t usually enjoy hurting others. The sociopath does enjoy it. Even those who he or she legitimately enjoys
spending time with will be subject to sadism and mind games. If you know someone who seems to enjoy hurting
you, as a cat would toy with a mouse, and you find the mind games monotonous, it may
be time to cut your losses with this person. A good person is going to protect you from
pain, confusion and frustration, rather than piling it on.
Oh god this video is going to spawn a bunch of armchair psychologists. "oh he hesitated when answering a question it must mean he's a socialpath!"
This video could also be deceiving by associating serial killers with psychopaths. This guy says there are very few psychopathic killers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bysVPcKQfeY&t=99s (title: Would you vote for a psychopath?) but I'm not sure what he's basing that on, he could be biased.