Norman Bates, Hannibal Lecter, Patrick Bateman, Tommy DeVito. What is it that makes them psychopaths?
Something deep within the fabrics of their genes? A result of their upbringing? Or is it simply a choice?
Well, Dr Daniel Boduszek from the University of Huddersfield has created a list of 20 questions which he hopes can identify whether somebody is a psychopath or not, reports indy100.
Boduszek asked 1,800 inmates at a high security prison in Poland the following statements and judged their psychopathy by how much they agreed with each.
So without wasting anymore time, here’s the 20 statements:
1. I don’t care if I upset someone to get what I want
2. Before criticising somebody, I try to imagine and understand how it would make them feel
3. I know how to make another person feel guilty
4. I tend to focus on my own thoughts and ideas rather than on what others might be thinking
5. What other people feel doesn’t concern me
6. I always try to consider the other person’s feelings before I do something
7. I know how to pay someone compliments to get something out of them
8. I don’t usually appreciate the other person’s viewpoint if I don’t agree with it
9. Seeing people cry doesn’t really upset me
10. I am good at predicting how someone will feel
11. I know how to simulate emotions like pain and hurt to make others feel sorry for me
12. In general, I’m only willing to help other people if doing so will benefit me as well
13. I tend to get emotionally involved with a friend’s problems
14. I’m quick to spot when someone is feeling awkward or uncomfortable
15. I sometimes provoke people on purpose to see their reaction
16. I believe in the motto: ‘I’ll scratch your back, if you scratch mine’
17. I get filled with sorrow when people talk about the death of their loved ones
18. I find it difficult to understand what other people feel
19. I sometimes tell people what they want to hear to get what I want from them
20. It’s natural for human behavior to be motivated by self-interest
Apparently, the more egoism an inmate revealed in their response – the more psychopathic their tendencies were.
How did you do?
