Without Conscience Robert Hare

3/3/2013 10:25:00 AM

Introduction: The problem Characteristics o Self-centered o Callous o Remorseless o Lacks empathy o Ability to form warm emotional relationships Killers o Not mad o Cold calculating rationality o Inability to see others as humans o Majority of psychopaths are not murderers o Complete lack of empathy which is the prerequisite for love 2: Focusing the picture Psychopathy literally means mental illness Psychopaths are not out of touch with reality Rational and aware of they are doing Some think the disorder is forged solely by social forces so they prefer sociopath Hare prefers psychopath because he believes psychological, biological, and genetic factors contribute Antisocial personality disorder is related to both terms o Diagnosed by DSM o Cluster of criminal and antisocial behaviors Psychopathy o Defined by a cluster of both personality traits o Socially deviant behaviors o Phrases commonly used to describe a psychopath Shrewdness and agility of mind Talks entertainingly Exceptional charm Incapable of understanding personal matters He knows the meaning of the words but does not understand them Distorting and molding the truth to suit their purposes Impression management

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Chapter 3: The Profile Key Symptoms Emotional/Interpersonal Glib and superficial Egocentric and grandiose Lack of remorse of guilt Lack of empathy Deceitful and manipulative Shallow emotions Social Deviance Impulsive Poor behavior controls Need for excitement Lack of responsibility Early behavior problems Adult antisocial behaviors

It is a syndrome o Cluster of related symptoms Witty and articulate Charming Narcissistic and grossly inflated view of themselves Live according to their own rules Power and control over others Charismatic Lack of concern for the devastating effects their actions have on others No sense of guilt o Ability to rationalize their behavior and to shrug off personal responsibility for actions Interrogations of Psychopaths result in: o Memory loss o Amnesia o Blackouts o Multiple personality o Temporary insanity

Most of their characteristics are associated with a lack of empathy View people as objects Family members are usually possessions Lying, deceiving, and manipulation Do not care about being caught Sometimes they are unaware that they are lying

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They are prone to dramatic, shallow, and short-lived displays of feeling Emotions are so shallow that they are little more than proto emotions Lack of physiological response of fears o Punishment usually results in fear o Psychopaths lack a response to fear so have no response to punishment 4: The Profile: Lifestyle Impulsivity o o o o o o Need o o Achieve immediate satisfaction, pleasure, or relief Highly reactive to perceived insults Inhibitory controls are weak If they blow up it is like they are having a temper tantrum Cold aggressive displays Lack intense emotional arousal like others for excitement Live life in the fast lane Do not care about breaking the rules

o Doing crime for excitement or thrills Inability to tolerate routine o Easily bored o Unlikely to be engaged in occupations or activities that are dull or repetitive o Obligations and commitment mean nothing Irresponsibility o Erratic o Do not hesitate to use resources of family Behavioral problems o Exhibited at an early ages o Persistent lying o Cheating o Theft o Fire starting o Truancy o Class disruption

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Substance abuse Vandalism Violence Bullying Running away Precocious sexuality History of behaviors is extensive and serious Early cruelty to animals Cruelty to other children Lack of empathy

Chapter 5: Internal Controls: The Missing Piece Socialization o Learning to behave according to the rules and regulations of society o Contributes to the formation of their conscience o For psychopaths this never takes hold Know the rules but choose to only follow the ones they want to Little aptitude for experiencing fear and anxiety o Results from early childhood punishment o The link between this and anxiety is weak for psychopaths Have a weak capacity for mentally picturing the consequences of their behaviors Calculates costs and benefits o Anxiety is not a cost Lack of empathy in young criminals is more evident 6: Crime: The Logical Choice Some criminals learn to do crime Some criminals can be understood as the products of the cycle of violence Others run afoul of the law because of a powerful need Negative social factors Some commit crimes because it pays, easier than working, or its exciting Psychopaths show no loyalty to group 20% of prisoners are psychopaths

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psychopaths are responsible for more than 50% of serious crimes Much more likely to be violent Commit more than 2x violent and aggressive acts Violence is callous and instrumental o Usually to satisfy need Violence of psychopaths frequently occur during crime, drinking bout, or act of revenge Victims of psychopaths are usually males o 2/3rd Serial rapists and batterers Recidivism of psychopaths is double of other Violent recidivism is triple Personality traits and behavioral patterns usually stay stable High level of criminal activity until around age 40 7: White Collar Psychopaths Use professional position to satisfy personal needs Make good imposters Psychopaths who stay out of jail usually keep up with the appearance of being normal Subcriminal psychopaths o Not illegal o Typically violate ethical standards o Hovering on the shady side of the law Very successful at white collar crime o A lot of opportunities o Have what it takes to defraud others White collar crime is lucrative, chances of getting caught are minimal, and the penalties are often trivial

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8: Words from an Overcoat Pocket Speech of psychopaths is puzzling Frequent use of contradictory and logically inconsistent statements Left Cerebral Hemisphere o Skilled at processing information analytically o Understanding language Right Cerebral Hemisphere o Processes information as a whole

Bilateral language processes evident in psychopathy o Each hemisphere tries to run the show Learn to use ordinary words but the feeling does not come to pass Most people respond to an emotional word quicker than a neutral word o Psychopaths do not o Words do not have the same effect of psychopaths Use listeners reactions as cue cards Recent evidence that neither side of the brain is efficient in processing emotions in psychopaths Psychopaths thoughts and ideas are organized into rather small mental packages o Can facilitate lying Notorious for not answering the question posed to them Know enough about what they are doing to be held accountable for their actions 9: Flies in the Web Put on a show for other Intrude into personal space Intensive eye contact Sometimes have groupies Self gratification of psychopaths is usually satisfied because some people are quite willing to play victim 10: The Roots of the Problem Parents can do little to help Become evident early in age repetitive, casual, and seemingly thoughtless lying apparent indifference to, or inability to understand, the feelings, expectations, or pain of others defiance of parents, teachers, and rules continually in trouble and unresponsive to reprimands and threats of punishment petty theft from other children and parents persistent aggression, bullying, and fighting a record of unremitting truancy, staying out late, and absences from home

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a pattern of hurting or killing animals early experimentation with sex vandalism and fire setting attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, characterized by developmentally inappropriate degrees of inattention, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity conduct disorder, a persistent pattern of conduct in which the basic rights of others and major age-appropriate societal norms or rules are violated oppositional defiant disorder, a pattern of negative, hostile, and defiant behavior without the serious violations of the basic rights of others that are seen in conduct disorder if interventions will have any chance of working it will have to be done during early childhood a distinct syndrome of personality traits and behaviors that spells long-term trouble, no matter how one refers to it interactions with caregivers interactions with environment 11: The Ethics of Labeling The precise assessment of psychopath is essential Must correctly identify them Can have predictive validity 12: Can anything be done Traditional forms of therapy do not work Psychopaths see no reason to change their behavior See it legitimate to manipulate others They are not fragile people Do not seek help on their one Therapy does little more than help psychopaths rationalize their behavior Should address the issue early in life There have been few programs that meet acceptable scientific and methodological standards Few programs are designed specifically for psychopaths Efforts to treat psychopaths might be misplaced New program from Hare

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o At several meetings we decided that the focus of our efforts should be on psychopathic and other offenders prone to violence, and we hammered out the broad outline of a model program that we felt had a reasonable chance of success. The government recently has decided to go ahead with the program, and steps are being taken to set up an experimental unit at a federal institution o This means that the program for psychopaths will be less concerned with attempts to develop empathy or conscience than with intensive efforts to convince them that their current attitudes and behavior are not in their own self-interest, and that they alone must bear responsibility for their behavior. At the same time, we will attempt to show them how to use their strengths and abilities to satisfy their needs in ways that society can tolerate. Epilogue But the fact is, compared with other major clinical disorders, little systematic research has been devoted to psychopathy, even though it is responsible for far more social distress and disruption than all other psychiatric disorders combined Second, rather than try to pick up the pieces after the damage has been done, it would make far greater sense to increase our efforts to understand this perplexing disorder and to search for effective early interventions We have to learn how to socialize them, not resocialize them

3/3/2013 10:25:00 AM

3/3/2013 10:25:00 AM