I was recently reading a 2003 paper in the journal Nature called Forensic psychology: Violence viewed by psychopathic murderers which is both interesting and frustrating. Interesting because it demonstrates that, even amongst murderers, psychopathic murderers are different. Frustrating because the authors extrapolate their finding in a way that is ultimately misleading being so narrow as to completely miss the point.
I pick this particular study only because it is rather typical of scientific studies in the field: 1. it neglects to consider what the psychopath gets out of behaving the way he does, and 2. it let’s the psychopath off the hook.
The study
13 psychopathic murderers, 17 non-psychopathic murderers, 39 psychopathic other offenders and 52 non-psychopathic other offenders were given the Implicit Association Test (IAT) .
Briefly, uppercase words (for example, ‘UGLY’) are classified as being ‘pleasant’ or ‘unpleasant’, and lowercase words (for example, ‘kill’) are classified as ‘violent’ or ‘peaceful’, by pressing corresponding buttons. When the same response key is assigned for both the unpleasant and violent words (this is termed the congruent condition), most people find the task easy. But when pleasant and violent words share the same response key (the incongruent condition), most people find this confusing. The association between ‘pleasant—unpleasant’ and ‘violent—peaceful’ is indexed by means of the IAT effect (reaction time for the incongruent condition minus reaction time for the congruent condition).
Result
The psychopathic murderers showed a much lower IAT effect than the non-psychopathic murderers or the other psychopaths in the study.
The researchers’ conclusion
They conclude that there are two groups of psychopaths, one of which has an increased disposition towards extreme violence. So far so good. They also claim the following:
Our results indicate that the reduced violent-IAT effect seen in psychopathic murderers is likely to be due to their abnormal beliefs about violence, rather than to some other nonspecific effect such as poor impulse control and/or deficits in decision-making. Psychopathic murderers have diminished negative reactions to violence compared with non-psychopathic murderers and other offenders.
The fallacy
The great sociologist C. Wright Mills once said: “Every cobbler thinks leather is the only thing,” by which he meant ‘read what I write critically; I’m a sociologist and so I tend to have a sociological explanation for everything.’ Well, our researchers have done something similar. Because their test has found abnormal cognitive associations regarding violence among psychopathic murderers, they take it that this accounts for the psychopathic murderers’ predisposition to extreme violence. The authors’ speak of psychopaths having “deficient social beliefs” and “negative beliefs”, and it is these “abnormal beliefs about violence” (and not poor impulse control and/or deficits in decesion-making) that make them disposed towards extreme violence.
But this factor just happens to be what the researcher’s have been testing; just because they found it doesn’t mean that it is THE predisposing factor. Presumably if they had been testing, say, cholesterol-levels and found a difference they’d say that’s they key.
But it’s worse that that. Something in they way they phrase the matter concerns me. They say (with my reworkings in bold):
- “…due to their abnormal beliefs about violence”.
…due to their pleasure in violence (which is, of course accompanied by abnormal beliefs). - “Psychopathic murderers have diminished negative reactions to violence compared with non-psychopathic murderers and other offenders.”
They have increased positive reactions to violence.
In the British TV show Cracker, the main character, Dr. Fitzgerald is asked why he drinks and smokes so much. “Because I like it!”, he says defiantly. This precisely the point. Maybe Fitz could be shown to have abonormal beliefs about drinking and smoking (he’s a gambler too), but he’s insightful enough to know that it’s not the beliefs that cause the behaviour – he does them because he wants to.
Psychopaths enjoy doing evil; they do it not despite the pain it cause others but because that pain increases their enjoyment.
Leave pleasure out of the picture and we missed an awful lot. Or am I wrong?
banana – don’t think your remark was directed toward me, but i am going to use it. 😉
i will certainly be talking ot myself so i might as well make it humorous.
Oh yeah….gotta keep the humor!!!
Otherwise I get crazier…..YIKES!!!
Sometimes I just don’t/can’t tolerate an idiot…..and I go into shut down mode…..OH, NO, not ME shutting down…..SHUTTING THEM DOWN!
It’s issue number 2579 on my list of to do’s…..
But for now….well…..it’s about preservation.
I would rather err on the side of caution than give and be burned….
And the give is even small things ….ANYTHING of myself to someone meanning harm or manipulation….whether spath or not…..
But…..we gotta laugh….and I sure do….EVERY DAY!!!
So….keep on laughen folks…..and keep a strong smile on those faces!!!
One Step,
I think Oxy also spread working on this over several days if I remember correctly.
So if you are going to try and get “through” all of this all in one days time that is alot to take on.
Because I would assume that alot of this will be triggering and difficult information that you will be sorting through.
And besides for taking on the job of sorting out the relevant information and organizing it, you might possibly have alot of emotional triggers that might also impair you from getting through this in a days time.
Anything that you can do while your working that can help to sooth you, or reduce anxiety might be beneficial.
Comfort foods (you know what I recommend here, lol) during your breaks, some music, whatever works for you.
When I was working on the recent school meeting, I was very anxious in the begining. I had to go through lots of stuff that was triggering, especially when I got my sons medical (counseling & Dx) records and read through them. I know now why I thought his counselor to be a @.......@#$#%$%. Yet the psychiatrist that he had only two visits with during the same time frame seemed to nail my son to a T. (as far as an underage Dx can be)
This information in black and white seemed far more upsetting, seeing it in written form, v/s what I already knew about this counselor. That my son had manipulated him with so many lies.
Reading through these records almost side tracked me enough emotionally where I couldn’t further do the task at hand.
ALL I needed for the school meeting was the diagnoses, not the individual “sessions” comments that I was reading. But not having had these records previously, and reading through them almost did me in for the day.
So I guess what I am saying is prepare yourself for both the best and the worst in dealing with this.
And try and stay focused, and when you can’t focus any longer….Do as Oxy suggested and take a break. Even if you have to leave the house and take a walk.
One of the things that helped me as I muddled through this was having the thought process that I could not have any high expectations of the outcome. Just like Oxy…..I was going to do what I could do, but that was all I could do.
Witsend, I agree that staying focused is imperative! Taking a break is a very good suggestion, too – I know that I tend to get so wrapped up in something that I neglect myself.
And, try not to let the psychspeak become overwhelming! If someone says something or uses a term that you’re not familiar with, ask them to explain the terminology! Each profession has its own verbage, from law to psychiatry, and some of the terminology is profession-specific in that only members of their professional community know the lingo.
Having high expectations is something that I’ve had to overcome many, many times. In the past, it was always, “Okay, maybe THIS time, someone’s going to take this seriously and fix the situation!” Well, I was setting myself up for disappointment, and I’m beginning to address that issue, FINALLY!
As a complete aside……..OxD and EB, you guys were hilarious last night. I got the “vibe” with regard to the troll the INSTANT I saw the member ID name. Then, the posts were too telling. Potted plants……..ROTFLMAOTMNR!!!
i felt sick watching that action last night. also meant i couldn’t come here for support.
BUT i support the choices made to fight….and i know that i’ll be supported if i ever lose my mind and do the same.
if my ppath ever shows up y’all may need to duck – the flamethrower might rage into action.
mostly i like to bore them to death. that satisfies me in all ways.
witty – i am planning a day long putting together of info. it has to be done. it’s okay, and it will be alright.
i am willing to take some imbalance, and do lots of work to regain balance, so that i can move this forward.
xx one step
p.s. it’s just a process – there is no expectation of what it will do – it’s doing my part – and then it’s done and the AG has some documentation. And i can move on to the next phase.
Hi Oxy and Buttons
I didn’t mean God is fooled by false remorse … God knows the inner workings of our hearts after all including all the dark bits. I was just considering absolution at confession from the POV of the psychopath. He would definitely be able to fool the priest and there are several factors that come into that:
1) He would not disclose the true nature of his sins. I think we can all attest to the psychopath’s tendencies to shift blame from himself and minimise anything he does admit to. So rather than being honest and saying “I abused my partner psychologically for years” he is likely to say “I was rude to my partner this morning because I am stressed at work and got annoyed that she was demanding things of me”
2) The psychopath doesn’t have any level of self awareness or insight so will be unable to identify the growth opportunities presented by the concept of sinning and repentance.
3) The psychopath will always blame others and in this way will be likely to blame another person as being the root cause of the problem that caused the sin he is confessing rather than admitting he has provoked the person for months and injected a final dose of provokation to make the person snap
4) The psychopath is an excellent actor – we’ve all seen the fake remorse and troubled expressions. I was certainly fooled by them and I thought I knew him well over a period of years. A priest would be seeing a psychopath intermittantly so will be judging the remorse only on the presentation and ‘story’ he gets at the time.
5) The psychopath only cares about the NOW – not tomorrow and certainly not the life ever after. If the priest says he is absolved then he will take this as gospel truth and may even quote this to others (mine did this on several occasions after going to confession and doing the routine of remorse – he would say “God forgives me so why can’t you?” and “I’ve confessed to that and been absolved so you need to forget it now and stop bringing it up.”
The psychopath presents a convincing picture to priests of an upstanding, morally righteous, growing and learning man who is willing to take correction in the name of spiritual growth. I still believe that this ability to ‘pull one over’ a priest is a delight to the psychopath – certainly in my case it was. The priest was seen as being morally purer than the rest of the population and more difficult but not impossible to corrupt. I guess it’s the rush of danger for them that makes them feel alive – doing things that the rest of the community would never allow themselves to do. And lying to a priest in the house of God was certainly a major coup for my ex. It was almost like he got confirmation from the church that he was a ‘good man’ and it was used against me to make me feel like a bad woman for complaining about the abuses that were happening at home. I was meant to accept those as he was ‘learning and growing’ (except he wasn’t).
I know I probably haven’t done a great job of explaining my thoughts on this topic, but it’s something I’ve been considering for the last few days – I know there is more to it than I have identified. The archetype of being a ‘good Christian wife’ was promoted to me by both him and the church and was a major factor in my entrapment for such a prolonged period of time.
I guess I just see arrogance and stupidity in this situation – he believed he was absolved whether his confession was sincere or not and rather than taking the sacrament seriously as a tool for the spiritual life after death, he used it almost like a character reference in the here and now.
I’ll be interested to hear thoughts about religion, faith and psychopaths from those who had experiences in this kind of situation.
Polly, I honestly understand what you’re conveying about this. The ex spath used biblical references, wedding vows, and the rest, as well.
My personal opinion about organized religion is that it’s man’s interpretation of a good message: do things right, do things fair, don’t judge, and don’t inflict intentional harm. What spaths do with religion is heinous on all levels.
From our earliest scratchings on a cave wall to present day, what is intended to be “good moral and spiritual codes,” are perverted, warped, and twisted as methods of control and abuse. Yes, I’ve been to religious establishments where there seems to be a good vibe, but my past experiences have tainted my view of organized religion. In fact, I lost my own faith here a while back, and I’m just beginning to touch the fingertips of the Great Creator, again, and it’s mystical, magical, and 100% good.
The “rules” of certain religions are specifically and intentionally male-minded without regard for emotional safety or healthy relationships. This is precisely what the ex spath incorporated as a method of control over everything from financial to sexual matters. “God says that a Good Wife OBEYS her husband…” and blah-dee-blah. Well, that’s horseshit. I believe that my role as a human being is to reach for my best potential in service to my fellow man. If this glorifies God/Jehovah/Bhudda/First Woman/whomever…, then that’s a great thing. My role as a human being is NOT to allow myself to be victimized or objectified, NOR to allow others without a voice to suffer the same thing.
I do not believe that God intends for people to suffer at the hands of others. “How can God allow this to happen?” Well, God has given mankind the choice of Free Will. We choose how we are going to act. God doesn’t strike anyone down, either – stuff just happens, that’s all. Tragic stuff, to be sure, but stuff, nevertheless.
But, a spath will use religion, spirituality, sexuality, trendy new aged thinking, and the Man in the Moon to satisfy their craving for control and sadism. Religion is one of the most powerful tools in their arsenal because it touches the deepest core of an empathetic human being. Heinous? Indeed.
So, now I’ve gone on a long, drawn-out rant…….LMAO!!! It’s a gorgeous night after a glorious day. I’m in a very good space, today.
This article is so true! I have tried to explain this exact idea about my ex to friends. Interestingly the one who “gets it ” best is the most wonderful Christian. She understands the perversity of someone controlled by evil; the selfishness and unrelenting need for more corruption because of the hole in their soul. To hear her soft voice, she sounds like the essence of naivete but she is a warrior and is respected by the leaders of our community. She has led an upright life and God has rewarded her with a wonderful family and home; but is humble and kind. I love her so much!.
Polly, I think the church is an excellent fishing ground and stage for the manipulations of these monsters. It is full of gullible do gooders …and I was one. Only the really astute Bible scholar and follower ( like my friends described above) can understand that Satan masqerades as an angel of light. What better place than at church?
Of course those of who have crossed paths with them got the lesson first hand but read Psalm 5,10…David knew these types. We are warned of them in Romans 1:28-32. I can read these passages now and nod along.
Being duped as a Christian was called “grace abuse” by another friend of mine. This is a pitfall of being a “baby” Christian. I was one, thinking that forgiveness from me led to repentence by him.. How arrogant of me! I forgive for my own welfare …and as the evil person , he LIKES doing wrong. It is a choice he makes And my choice is that I do not allow more unrepentant, malicious evil in my life!
Read the contradiction in Proverbs 26 : 4 and 5 ….it is just one of the many Biblical truths that cannot be understood until you are aware of the nature of a “fool”…the biblical term for a sp. I thank God for bringing women into my life who have prayed and pointed me constantly to the truth of Gods word; not just for comfort but for battle with my ex and all the other corrupt souls we will meet.
Dear Buttons and Flower,
If you read the words of JESUS about how He warns us to look at the ACTS of a person rather than just listen to the words they say, you will see that there are a great many scriptures in which we are warned that there will be WOLVES IN SHEEPS CLOTHING that will infiltrate the “flock” to prey on them.
Just because someone claims to be religious, good, or a Christian or whatever religion they claim doesn’t meann that they are actually any of that.
Jesus tells us to watch for the FRUIT of a tree to see if the tree is good or bad. ACTIONS speak louder than words.
Also, other people telling us how we should believe the scriptures is I think a risky thing. I think we should read them for ourselves, and discuss them maybe with others, but in the end we must make our own choices about what is right, what is good, and what is just.
Just like I think we can discuss things with each other here on LF and ask for and get advice or give advice, but in the end, EACH OF US is responsible for their own choices, and behavior.
Just like we used to tell our parents or teachers, “But all the other kids are doing it!” and the response we got was, “Well, if they were all jumping off a cliff would you do it too?” LOL
I think mankind as a while has a spiritual component that is just part of our nature. I think to ignore that component leaves a hollow feeling inside me. But each of us must decide what fills that void (if any) within themselves. My egg donor tried to impart her “god” to me, but it never felt right, now the God I “see” for myself, feels right…and I am no longer living in fear of the angry god she claims to worship. Funny though, how her god never has forgiven me for the lie I told her when I was 15, and somehow it offsets the lie she tells me now. Never did figure that one out. LOL