When I was married to James Montgomery, who I believe is a psychopath, we once attended a local trade show together. We ran into a woman whom I didn’t know at all and James barely knew. After about one minute of conversation, James started offering to help her with some project that she was working on.
“What did you do that for?” I asked James after we continued on our way.
“What?”
“Offer to help that woman. You hardly know her.”
“Do you know who she’s married to?” James asked. It was a man that he believed could possibly be useful to his plans.
Psychopaths are always on the lookout for people they might be able to manipulate. A study published last year by Canadian researchers seems to indicate they have an enhanced ability to spot and remember potential targets.
The study was called A pawn by any other name? Social information processing as a function of psychopathic traits. It was conducted by Kevin Wilson and Sabrina Demetrioff, of Dalhousie University, and Stephen Porter of the University of British Columbia-Okanagan.
The study
The researchers created a series of fictional characters using photographs of men and women with expressions conveying that they were happy or sad. They assigned biographical traits to the characters indicating that some were successful and some were not, along with other details such as “likes skydiving.”
Forty-four male undergraduate students participated in the study. They were first given a personality test to determine their level of psychopathic traits. Then they were shown the photos and biographical information about the fictional characters. Afterwards, they were asked to recall the characters.
The researchers anticipated that the study participants with high psychopathic traits would best remember useful or vulnerable individuals—the happy, successful male was probably most useful, and the unhappy, unsuccessful female was probably most vulnerable.
The results
Study results indicated that they were partially correct. “Participants with high levels of psychopathic traits demonstrated enhanced recognition for the unhappy, unsuccessful female character; arguably the most vulnerable individual presented in our study,” they wrote. “In fact, the high-psychopathy participants demonstrated near-perfect recognition for this character.”
The researchers called this “predatory memory.”
“Psychopathic traits, even in the absence of overt criminality, are associated with a cognitive style that is predatory in nature,” the researchers concluded. “In extreme cases, this may allow individuals with clinically diagnosable levels of psychopathy to spot vulnerable individuals for future exploitation.”
Remember—the study subjects were not criminals in jail, they were college students. The conclusion we can draw is that people with psychopathic traits are out in the world, spotting potential victims and filing the information away for future use. It’s frightening.
thanks you guys.
thanks Donna.
Meg
They compartmentalize so much in their lives it really isn’t surprising that they would do this with people and group of people. With these types of parasitic people if the person has no use and/or value to them these people in a way don’t even exist to them. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sick. I also see this in a black and white way of thinking. What really brings this to a new low is how they will treat their own children in this “value system”. If a child doesn’t do as they are told or disappoint them; they will just forget that child and then give more attention to the child that performs for them. If one even read the books written about Scott Peterson’s family you would see this happen to Scott’s half-brother. Both parent forgot about the half-brother and if I remember correctly threw him out and disowned him but they worshipped their golden boy Scott. Scott knew better then disappoints his parents knowing they would do the same as they did to his half-brother. Scott loved his parent because Scott feared his parents.
Usedabused said “I’m wanting to email and “let him have it” but I realize that it will only engage, and, more importantly, every day that he does not hear from me shows him that I know what he is about.”
Of all the posts on this thread, this really hit home. So many days I miss the S, the person I thought was my best friend- but the one who devalued and discarded me on whim because he was bored and found someone else to pursue.
But I know NC is best for me, And I will remember what usedabused said- EVERY DAY HE DOES NOT HEAR FROM ME SHOWS HIM I KNOW WHAT HE IS ABOUT- that is so great- may become my new mantra!!
I agree..it hit me too!! I actually posted it on my wall!! : )
Hey thanks! Did not see it as profound, just my way of dealing with NC.
No contact is our only weapon, the closest thing to revenge we will get. My X even tempted me six months after I kicked him to the curb by bringing me his new address, I guess hoping I would stalk him or something like that. It really deflate’s their ego when we have taken back our power and they dont have ‘power over us’ anymore. That was what it was all about, power to manipulate me like a puppet, he knew he had that ‘magic’ thing over me, it made him feel powerful and in control. No contact is hard for us, but it is our ultimate salvation. I am sure they forget about us real quick when they know they have lost that magic thing they do to us. But no contact on my part was taking back me…13 months and not counting anymore….
Hospice – I persued mine also and he showed no interest in me until he was homeless and in need. I would of helped him regardless. I just wish he had not played the love act with me, but he knew he could so he did and I fell for it, but was never convinced it was real, but continued to fall deeper and deeper into that horrible magical fog. But I can see cleary now.Really I can. I survived.
Akitameg – Read that book rat now~~!!!!
I did not like my last one one iota for six months! Then slowly, consistently and very surely he got me to feel sympathy and empathy for what his other ex’s had done to him. Next thing i was living with him and his sick dysfunctional vampire adult children, next thing I was the scapegoat, used, abused, devalued and hated by all. On top of that he was an alcoholic and defrauded the dental board (he was a dentist) out of over one hundred thousand dollars in insurance (for his “stress” ) and has been committing tax fraud his whole life. His a supreme con man, fraud, psychopath, sociopath narcissist, even with his alcoholism. Everyone enables him.
I pray that one day ( I have no faith that this will happen), he will be found out and punished severely in every way possible.
He has ruined my life and that of my son.
There is no justice in this world and I have lost complete faith in God, the justice system and basic humanity. My blood runs with hatred for what I have been through over and over again.
P.S. He has a new victim, I feel sorry for her and its easy for me to have no contact. The only thing I would want contact for is to kill him. And I am not going to prison for a waste of space like him.