6 ms·

And there are these people: > I have killed animals (as a child). Whenever there was a stray animal in my alleyway (cats or dogs usually) I would pick it up an

And there are these people: > I have killed animals (as a child). Whenever there was a stray animal in my alleyway (cats or dogs usually) I would pick it up and leave it in my trashcan by the side of the house until it got dark. Whenever my parents were asleep, I'd sneak out and take the animal out of the can to torture it. Sometimes I kicked it to death and other times I would suffocate it. This was my main source of entertainment since I didn't have many other things to do. from [1]. Run if you see people like this, their moral compass is not aligned. Sociopathy is very likely a spectrum disorder like autism. - - - > Sociopaths have the neural map of a neurotypical person in an fMRI machine, they are not lacking in, nor do they have differences in the brain that are apparent as psychopaths do, they have the grey matter necessary to experience what empathy is. Here is the massive difference from neurotypical responses, from sociopathic ones. > When the sociopathy is formed, the person experiencing whatever the causative agent is tends to shut off their access to the emotions like affection, desire for attention, empathy, anything that would make them outwardly dependent and turn insularly. While the pathways are still there, they are no longer used. > In that regard they probably had a heavier pruning to the bonding section of the brain. That guy here [2] theorizes about the causes and neurological aspects of sociopathy. And I would like to clarify that my own self-diagnosis and your reference to "The Psychopath Code" is not a reliable source of information for a diagnosis. There is however a standardized test for psychopathy (do it at [3]) for self-reports. Some of my business friends score very high on this test. [1]: https://www.reddit.com/r/casualiama/comments/2bk2ra/i_was_recently_diagnosed_as_a_sociopath_ama/ https://www.reddit.com/r/casualiama/comments/2bk2ra/i_was_re... [2]: https://www.quora.com/Is-sociopathy-a-spectrum-disorder https://www.quora.com/Is-sociopathy-a-spectrum-disorder [3]: https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/LSRP.php https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/LSRP.php

Fnoord 8y ago
> And I would like to clarify that my own self-diagnosis and your reference to "The Psychopath Code" is not a reliable source of information for a diagnosis. Fair enough. > Sociopathy is very likely a spectrum disorder like autism. I'd say we're starting to understand disorders in general are. At the very least they're not binary. Even something like sexual preference such as homosexuality isn't binary. > I have killed animals (as a child). Whenever there was a stray animal in my alleyway (cats or dogs usually) I would pick it up and leave it in my trashcan by the side of the house until it got dark. Whenever my parents were asleep, I'd sneak out and take the animal out of the can to torture it. Sometimes I kicked it to death and other times I would suffocate it. This was my main source of entertainment since I didn't have many other things to do. I killed ants as kid, cause they didn't follow my traffic signs. I used a catapult to throw stones on a cow because I thought it was funny. I've also been a vegetarian and vegan. Most people are still omnivore. They can't watch a video of a cow getting slaughtered, but they'll happily eat the meat. Yet when some kind of animal which is commonly a pet such as a dog or cat is ill or gets killed they get super emotional. I don't understand that; and I dislike dogs (they smell, they poop on street, are noisy, and demand attention). I can imagine that dogs/cats on the street can be a nuisance. Especially if poop on your property or make noise at night. Been there. Had a couple of street cats for years on my premises at night. > Your score from primary psychopathy has been calculated as 1.9. Primary psychopathy is the affective aspects of psychopathy; a lack of empathy for other people and tolerance for antisocial orientations. > Your score from secondary psychopathy has been calculated as 3.3. Secondary psychopathy is the antisocial aspects of psychopathy; rule breaking and a lack of effort towards socially rewarded behavior. Hardly surprising for someone with ASD. I'm actually sensitive, but IRL I tend to carefully hide that so I don't seem too vulnerable (become a victim of the narcisist/sociopath/psychopath). I have a moral compass. Its values are different from the status quo which might make it seem like I am amoral, but I know very well I have one. Perhaps you'll enjoy The Mastermind [1] a series about Paul Calder Le Roux by Evan Ratliff. [1] https://magazine.atavist.com/the-mastermind https://magazine.atavist.com/the-mastermind
- vinceguidry 8y ago
  One thing that's leaping out of me in the course of this discussion is just how different ASD is from Cluster B, they affect different parts of the brain for different reasons. Cluster B largely happens as a result of trauma, and individuals on the spectrum can absolutely be traumatized and so develop emotional deficiencies. But this by no means happens with everybody on that spectrum. ASD largely affects the sensory parts of the brain and so while it has often dramatic effects on empathy, it does that for different reasons than 'mere' trauma. People can feel emotions without being able to sense them in others. (empathy) Trauma affects your ability to feel them at all.
  - mockingbirdy 8y ago
    ASD is an element of Cluster B personality disorders. > how different ASD is from Cluster B is therefore like saying "how different a football is from balls". Did you mean "ASD is different from Borderline (problems with emotional regulation, panic attacks, ...), Histrionic (egocentric, seeking attention) and Narcissistic (egotistic, abusive, ...) personality disorders" in the sense that those result from trauma?
    - vinceguidry 8y ago
      ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) is definitely not classed as a Cluster B personality disorder. You may be mistaking ASD for ASPD, Antisocial Personality Disorder, of which psychopathy is a variant. Sociopathy is not defined in the DSM-IV or DSM-5.
      - mockingbirdy 8y ago
        Yes, meant APD - wrong abbreviation. Sociopathy and psychopathy are not explicitly listed, but APD captures many of the symptoms (psychopaths are a subset of people with APD). Now your comment makes a lot more sense. I agree. There was a time when people thought that the mother is responsible for autism in their child (through their behavior) which was a huge injustice. I also think that autism is fundamentally different to personality disorders (except psychopathy which is an extreme form of APD that has biological roots AFAIK).

Fnoord 8y ago

> And I would like to clarify that my own self-diagnosis and your reference to "The Psychopath Code" is not a reliable source of information for a diagnosis. Fair enough. > Sociopathy is very likely a spectrum disorder like autism. I'd say we're starting to understand disorders in general are. At the very least they're not binary. Even something like sexual preference such as homosexuality isn't binary. > I have killed animals (as a child). Whenever there was a stray animal in my alleyway (cats or dogs usually) I would pick it up and leave it in my trashcan by the side of the house until it got dark. Whenever my parents were asleep, I'd sneak out and take the animal out of the can to torture it. Sometimes I kicked it to death and other times I would suffocate it. This was my main source of entertainment since I didn't have many other things to do. I killed ants as kid, cause they didn't follow my traffic signs. I used a catapult to throw stones on a cow because I thought it was funny. I've also been a vegetarian and vegan. Most people are still omnivore. They can't watch a video of a cow getting slaughtered, but they'll happily eat the meat. Yet when some kind of animal which is commonly a pet such as a dog or cat is ill or gets killed they get super emotional. I don't understand that; and I dislike dogs (they smell, they poop on street, are noisy, and demand attention). I can imagine that dogs/cats on the street can be a nuisance. Especially if poop on your property or make noise at night. Been there. Had a couple of street cats for years on my premises at night. > Your score from primary psychopathy has been calculated as 1.9. Primary psychopathy is the affective aspects of psychopathy; a lack of empathy for other people and tolerance for antisocial orientations. > Your score from secondary psychopathy has been calculated as 3.3. Secondary psychopathy is the antisocial aspects of psychopathy; rule breaking and a lack of effort towards socially rewarded behavior. Hardly surprising for someone with ASD. I'm actually sensitive, but IRL I tend to carefully hide that so I don't seem too vulnerable (become a victim of the narcisist/sociopath/psychopath). I have a moral compass. Its values are different from the status quo which might make it seem like I am amoral, but I know very well I have one. Perhaps you'll enjoy The Mastermind [1] a series about Paul Calder Le Roux by Evan Ratliff. [1] https://magazine.atavist.com/the-mastermind https://magazine.atavist.com/the-mastermind

vinceguidry 8y ago
One thing that's leaping out of me in the course of this discussion is just how different ASD is from Cluster B, they affect different parts of the brain for different reasons. Cluster B largely happens as a result of trauma, and individuals on the spectrum can absolutely be traumatized and so develop emotional deficiencies. But this by no means happens with everybody on that spectrum. ASD largely affects the sensory parts of the brain and so while it has often dramatic effects on empathy, it does that for different reasons than 'mere' trauma. People can feel emotions without being able to sense them in others. (empathy) Trauma affects your ability to feel them at all.
- mockingbirdy 8y ago
  ASD is an element of Cluster B personality disorders. > how different ASD is from Cluster B is therefore like saying "how different a football is from balls". Did you mean "ASD is different from Borderline (problems with emotional regulation, panic attacks, ...), Histrionic (egocentric, seeking attention) and Narcissistic (egotistic, abusive, ...) personality disorders" in the sense that those result from trauma?
  - vinceguidry 8y ago
    ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) is definitely not classed as a Cluster B personality disorder. You may be mistaking ASD for ASPD, Antisocial Personality Disorder, of which psychopathy is a variant. Sociopathy is not defined in the DSM-IV or DSM-5.
    - mockingbirdy 8y ago
      Yes, meant APD - wrong abbreviation. Sociopathy and psychopathy are not explicitly listed, but APD captures many of the symptoms (psychopaths are a subset of people with APD). Now your comment makes a lot more sense. I agree. There was a time when people thought that the mother is responsible for autism in their child (through their behavior) which was a huge injustice. I also think that autism is fundamentally different to personality disorders (except psychopathy which is an extreme form of APD that has biological roots AFAIK).