The Society for the Scientific Study of Psychopathy says "a constellation of traits” defines the psychopath. The Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) measures 20 personality traits and behaviors to determine a person's level of psychopathy. But some common ideas about psychopaths are wrong, says Dean A. Haycock, author of Murderous Minds: Exploring the Criminal Psychopathic Brain: Neurological Imaging and the Manifestation of Evil. He suggests six common misconceptions about psychopaths, the first being that all psychopaths are insane. Because psychopaths know the difference between right and wrong, legally, they are not insane. The other five misconceptions are that all mass …
Are Your Cell Phone Communications Safe?
By Brad Robinson, Private Investigator We are often asked by our clients who are in the midst of a messy divorce, a contentious child custody battle or a serious stalker situation, "Can he/she be intercepting my cellphone communications?" In almost all cases, the short answer is, "Yes." Cell phone “spyware” Today, it's not just those 3-letter spy agencies who may be listening in to our most private exchanges. Surprisingly sophisticated and inexpensive cellphone "spyware" can be found and purchased online by anyone. The better versions enable an unauthorized eavesdropper to remotely capture copies of your call log, address book, text messages, photos and more (bank account PIN, anyone?). I …
Guilt, shame and committing crime
A recent study in the journal Psychological Science suggests that the degree to which inmates express guilt or shame may indicate how likely they are to re-offend. The researchers, June Tangney, Jeffrey Stuewig and Andres Martinez of George Mason University, associated guilt with experiences of tension, remorse and regret. They defined shame as painful feelings directed towards the self. But the researchers also said that when some people experience shame, they become defensive, deny responsibility and blame others. The study showed that inmates who felt shame, but were also defensive and blamed others, were more likely to go back to crime than those who felt guilt. Here's more …
LETTER TO LOVEFRAUD: He loves, he proposes, he gets money, he abandons
Editor's Note: This Letter to Lovefraud was submitted by a reader from Italy whom we'll call "Alessia." It all started a year and a half ago when I went through a huge crisis with my life that led me to make a decision to simply leave everything and go out of my country (Italy) on a long luxury vacation of four months. Knowing my destination from a past visit, and based on past decision to make this destination my second home, part of my plan was to buy a house on the beach in this four-month period. Arriving to my destination I didn't waste a second. I made a contact to real estate agency and asked to view some houses. Searching for real estate They sent me a 70+ year old real estate …
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An interview with a Psychopath
Editor's Note: WARNING! The beginning of the video may be difficult to watch, but the end explains a psychopath's view on getting what he wants. This is a clip from a video created and narrated by Dr. Anna Salter entitled Truth, Lies and Sex Offenders that looks at the deceptive nature of sex offenders. In this video, Salter interviews a psychopath whose description of his manipulating and lying behavior puts him in the category of a power and control rapist. "I made this film in the hope that the next victim won't report, six or seven times as Gerold's victim did, and still not be believed," says Salter. "We have no hope of detecting and stopping this kind of sadistic behavior if we d …
A sociopath asks, ‘Why should we change?’
Editor's note: Lovefraud recently received this email in response to a previous article written by a self-proclaimed sociopath. I've read the article titled A sociopath claims, ”˜We are the uniquely gifted,' and most of replies to it. First of all I'd like to make clear that the author of that letter is narcisisstic and quite delusional as he thinks himself some kind of superhuman. But apart from that, most of the things he said are true. Wouldn't you use the so called 'gift' of manipulation if it ensured you got what you wanted if the goal was otherwise unattainable? After all, it is you who let us manipulate you. From replies you can clearly see that people are afraid and that's th …
All sociopaths lie
Hiten Patel, of Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, led a double life. He worked at the Federal Aviation Administration Technical Center, which required a security clearance. He had a wife, the result of an arranged marriage in his native India. But for the past three weeks, Patel has been on trial, charged with sexually assaulting, or attempting to sexually assault, seven women in Atlantic City during the summer of 2012. Some of the women were working as prostitutes. During the trial, Patel admitted that he was addicted to prostitutes, but he denied assaulting the women. Here's some of the news coverage: Accused rapist tells jury he's paid 200 prostitutes for sex, not rape, on …
The Atlantic writes sparsely about psychopaths and rehabilitation
The Atlantic Magazine was founded in 1857 by luminaries such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The publication was known for literary and cultural commentary. Today the magazine and its website, TheAtlantic.com, are primarily aimed at "thought leaders." So when I saw that TheAtlantic.com published a piece entitled, Can Psychopaths Be Rehabilitated?, I was pleased to see this topic be addressed by a well-respected publication. I anticipate it would present a thorough and thoughtful discussion of the issue. I was disappointed. What the author, Carla Norton, wrote was accurate, but she barely scratched the surface of this topic. She spends half of the short article …
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Brad Robinson: Is Your Home Bugged? Ten Warning Signs Of Covert Eavesdropping
By Brad Robinson, Private Investigator People who are in a relationship with a sociopath, or who recently escaped from such a relationship, often get the feeling that their ex is watching them, listening to them, spying on them. This might be your imagination getting the best of you, but often these suspicions are correct. With the increasing online prevalence of readily available, inexpensive listening devices, spycams, phone taps, etc., and YouTube instructional videos on how to secretly install them, this is a growing threat to anyone who values their privacy. There are warning signs. Warning signs Here are a few that may be of use: People seem to know too much regarding your pri …
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Mary Ann Glynn, LCSW: The modus operandi of disordered partners
By Mary Ann Glynn, LCSW, located in Bernardsville, New Jersey [I will use masculine pronouns for the destructive partner for the sake of simplicity, though destructive partners are often female.] There are a number of modus operandi a narcissistic or socio / psychopathic partner employs in a destructive relationship, as a response to your needs, complaints, or issues in the relationship. One is that you are kept off balance. You may be feeling desperate and alone a lot in the relationship because your partner has become more distant, disengaged, angry, and rejecting (sexually and/or emotionally). Perhaps he has even become abusive. But, if you complain too much or bring up suspicious …
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