This semester I taught both Forensic Psychology and Abnormal Psychology at the University of Bridgeport. The students there are an ethnically diverse group and I think are fairly representative of America’s young adult population. In both classes we discussed those individuals who have a “a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others.” I wrote antisocial personality disorder, sociopathy and psychopathy on the blackboard before we began our discussion. I then asked the students if they had heard of these terms and if they could tell me the definitions.
Only a small percentage had heard the term antisocial personality disorder, nearly everyone had heard the word sociopath, about a third had heard the word psychopath.
The next question to the students was, “What do all these terms mean?” Someone asked if antisocial personality referred to a person that didn’t like to be around others. Someone else said that psychopaths are “out of touch with reality, psychotic.” Most who heard the word sociopath associated it with criminality.
The students were shocked to discover that all three terms basically refer to the same disorder.
That same week, I spoke with an internet search expert. He told me that the term antisocial personality disorder is searched through Google about 5,000 times per day. The term psychopath is searched 60,000 times per day and the term sociopath is searched 110,000 times per day. These numbers are consistent with my survey of university students. My findings indicate that the American Psychiatric Association has done the public a great disservice with their boggled naming of the disorder.
An interesting historical fact is that this disorder used to be called “moral insanity.” Insanity is a legal term that indicates that due to mental defect a person is not responsible for his/her actions. Although many people believe that the morally insane have a mental (brain)defect there is considerable resistance to saying this absolves them of responsibility for their criminal acts.
This week we discussed the case of John W. Hinckley, Jr. the man who shot President Reagan and Mr. Brady, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to a mental hospital. A psychiatrist for the prosecution, Dietz testified that Hinckley viewed his actions on March 30 as successful. “It worked,” Hinckley told Dietz in an interview. “You know, actually, I accomplished everything I was going for there. Actually, I should feel good because I accomplished everything on a grand scale….I didn’t get any big thrill out of killing–I mean shooting–him. I did it for her sake….The movie isn’t over yet.” In short, Deitz saw Hinckley as a sociopath who was grandiose and trying to impress Jody Foster with his actions, though I believe he actually diagnosed him with borderline personality.
I reflected to the class that it seems that individuals like Hinckley and Dahmer (the serial killer) should be considered special cases of sociopathy and not lumped with the rest. There are sociopaths who are so grandiose and obsessed with power that they seem to lose touch with reality. Not that they are schizophrenic and have delusions or hallucinations, but their interpretations of the world cannot be construed as “normal.”
This is actually where the term “borderline” came from, as is used today to refer to “borderline personality.” The borderline is some point between neurotic and psychotic-borderline psychotic actually. So perhaps we could consider psychopaths those sociopaths who are so afflicted that their thinking and behavior indicate they have lost their grip on reality. Some psychiatrists do think of psychopaths as the worst sociopaths.
Should those with moral insanity who commit crimes be treated differently than others? Should John Hinckley be released now that he has been judged not psychotic? These are questions for another week.
See also:
https://lovefraud.com/blog/2006/07/30/confusion-about-sociopaths-pyschopaths-and-antisocials/
If you have a personal example of a sociopath’s “loose grip on reality” please share it with us in a comment.
i second that!!!!!
I have a friend who was a VP for Student affairs at a very nice college. One of her co-workers, also a VP got drunk one night (this guy is a scum bag) at a conference and went into this “I wannna f*# you baby” bit and had to be literally dragged off her body by other VPS and take to his room.
A year later, he becomes the NEW PRESIDENT of that college and within a week she is FIRED. Not even in person, he sent her a letter and told her to be off campus by 5:00p.m. She was my boss (I was director of student health at that college, though I was “rented” from the local hospital who paid my salary) at the college. All of my peers (who were under her direction) treated her like she was a dog. My son and I took my truck and trailer and moved her out of her office and no one even did anything for her, or said anything. They peeped out of their offices but no one said a word. She was humiliated and frustrated and totally crushed to be treated in such a manner. He actually paid out her contract which had another year to go, and she immediately found another and better job, but none-the-less, it was a crushing blow to her.
This man is such a jerk, and if he isn’t a psychopath, he is close.
Bill Clinton did OOZE charisma and he was so slick if you and I and he were talking and let’s say you were rabidly anti-abortion, and I was rabidly pro-choice, even though we heard the same words, you would go away thinking “He believes just like I do” and I would go away having heard the same words, believing he believed just like I did. He WAS/IS SLICK.
I also belive that Hillary is just as bad as he is, though not nearly so slick. I am aware of several business deals that if he had not been governor at the time they engaged in them would have landed her in a federal prison in my opinion. AGAIN, just MY OPINION. So you know, any woman, also in my opinon, who would stay with such a jerk there has to be something amiss in her moral compass as well.
They don’t, in my opinion, have a “marriage” so much as a “partnership” in politics. Unfortunately, I don’t think they are much worse than the rest of the career politicians. My opinon on politics is that unless you sell your soul to the devil, there’s not much way you will advance in the profession. Just my little thoughts and they are worth what they cost you. Just my freely given opinon. LOL I’m a “Jeffersonian” in politics, and Jefferson as a man, had a lot of faults and so on, but his politics at least were honest and not self serving. I’m not so sure about any president since then.
hey oxy….i do believe that…..will be interesting to see how she fits into the obama scheme of things
I told you Oxy, I’dl vote for you! It would be you and Maxine on the ballot. Can’t have Maxine for prez, she’d have to be your sidekick (LOL).
Peace.
Hey Oxy! Speaking of Maxine … is the cartoonist that draws her a friend of yours? Or, at least knows you?
No, he doesn’t know me, but from an article I read about him, there are lots of women who think Maxine was modeled on them, but I KNOW SHE MUST HAVE BEEN MODELED ON ME! LOL
I wanna be just like her when I grow up! She’s my hero! I’m a crabby old biddy and proud of it! LOL My way or the highway! Golden rule: “He who has the gold makes the rules.” LOL My house, my rules. Respect’em or hit the road.
Hi, just wanted to point out that Psychopathy and Antisocial PD are not the same disorder.
There is an increasing consensus that ASPD points to the behavioral aspect of criminality (impulsivity/aggression) but without necessarily suffering from Psychopathy (i.e. unemotionality). For example, a “sensitive criminal” is not the norm… but it could happen. A sensitive (highly emotional) person prone to bouts of impulsivity/rage could end up with a diagnosis of ASPD.
A Psychopath, on the other hand, may or may not ever engage in criminality, but he will invariably be callous-unemotional and lack empathy. There is no such thing as an emotional psychopath.
For Dr. Hare’s detailed explanation:
http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/display/article/10168/54831
I just finished reading Without Conscience, the Robert Hare book. This is probably the best book I can imagine on the topic. I think everyone on this site should read it. My jaw dropped when he talked about the types of victims psychopaths are attracted to.
“A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME…..”
For what it is worth, the “fight” over “what to call them” or if we should give different names to the various shades of the TOXIC personality/behavior/emotions of a personality-disordered person or not, is all, to me, a moot point.
This confusion about what is what, and which is dangerous (they are all dangerous in one form or another) is I think keeping them from being recognized as dangerous by the general public and the “powers that be.” The Politically Correct crap that “there is good in everyone” is also another point that has kept the violent ones from being incarcerated at the rate they should be.
I agree with you, Star, it should be required readng for everyone, and maybe it would prevent a few people from becoming victims in the first place.
Survay
Scale 1.——————-10. 10 worst 1=best
Rate your Psyco/Socio/Narsis/opd/ddp/doooodo :)~ LOVE JJ