Psychopathy linked to brain abnormalities - new research

Palinurus

The Living Force
New research provides the strongest evidence to date that psychopathy is linked to specific structural abnormalities in the brain. The study, led by researchers at King’s College London Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) is the first to confirm that psychopathy is a distinct neuro-developmental sub-group of anti-social personality disorder (ASPD)

[...]

Dr Nigel Blackwood from the IoP at King’s and lead author of the study says: ‘Using MRI scans we found that psychopaths had structural brain abnormalities in key areas of their ‘social brains’ compared to those who just had ASPD. This adds to behavioural and developmental evidence that psychopathy is an important subgroup of ASPD with a different neurobiological basis and different treatment needs’

‘There is a clear behavioural difference amongst those diagnosed with ASPD depending on whether or not they also have psychopathy. We describe those without psychopathy as ‘hot-headed’ and those with psychopathy as ‘cold-hearted’. The ‘cold-hearted’ psychopathic group begin offending earlier, engage in a broader range and greater density of offending behaviours, and respond less well to treatment programmes in adulthood, compared to the ‘hot-headed’ group. We now know that this behavioural difference corresponds to very specific structural brain abnormalities which underpin psychopathic behaviour, such as profound deficits in empathising with the distress of others.’

The researchers used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to scan the brains of 44 violent adult male offenders diagnosed with Anti-Social Personality Disorder (ASPD). Crimes committed included murder, rape, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm. Of these, 17 met the diagnosis for psychopathy (ASPD+P) and 27 did not (ASPD-P). They also scanned the brains of 22 healthy non-offenders.

The study found that ASPD+P offenders displayed significantly reduced grey matter volumes in the anterior rostral prefrontal cortex and temporal poles compared to ASPD-P offenders and healthy non-offenders. These areas are important in understanding other people’s emotions and intentions and are activated when people think about moral behaviour. Damage to these areas is associated with impaired empathising with other people, poor response to fear and distress and a lack of ‘self-conscious’ emotions such as guilt or embarrassment.
(emphasis, mine)
Full news article with illustrations here: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/iop/news/records/2012/May/The-antisocial-brain.aspx

Full source:
Gregory, S. et al. ‘The Antisocial Brain: Psychopathy Matters – a structural MRI investigation of antisocial male offenders’,
Archives of General Psychiatry – a JAMA Network publication (7th May 2012)
 
Interesting. Good to get more firm data about psychopaths' brain differences. The existing research shows that there's no possibility of treatment for psychopaths and that the ones who are not incarcerated are rarely studied. Just to keep those points in mind.
 
The Reuters version by Kate Kelland is available on SOTT now:

http://www.sott.net/articles/show/245204-Study-finds-psychopaths-have-distinct-brain-structure
 
Interesting that this study only considered VIOLENT offenders. So maybe they've got something on that type, but what about the sub-criminal psychopaths?

The following is a reply to this thread, but I decided to post it here because of greater relevancy, and also because it actually provides an answer to the above question.

In another thread Laura asked the folowing:

Again, the bizarre thing is the apparent inability to interface with reality via language and how telling a clue that must be if only the reader was paying attention (which I was). Some of the authors were better than others, but all of them had this problem.

Here are some things that came up after a bit of research. It began with a paper I stumbled upon recently. The paper made a connection between motor and language skills.

Fine motor skills utilized when using tools engage parts of the brain similar to those mobilized when we think about the construction of a sentence, researchers report.

We observed that the motor training and the syntactic exercises activated common areas of the brain in a region called the basal ganglia. The two tasks activated these common parts of the brain in similar ways (for example, we observed similar distribution of the activations).

Afterwards they did a series of exercises and tests that showed clear benefits of "tool training" prior to language exercises, and vice versa.

The function of basal ganglia is motor control, motor learning, executive functions and behaviors, and impulse control. And psychopaths are known for poor impulse control. Well, at least those who are in jail.

There is also this paper that talks about "Neurobiological correlates of impulsivity in healthy adults: Lower prefrontal gray matter volume and spontaneous eye-blink rate but greater resting-state functional connectivity in basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuitry."

So far it correlates with what was said in the first paper that was mentioned in this thread. Impulsiveness may be increased and associated with reduced frontal lobe activity and reduced gray matter volume.

What is also curious is the greater functional connectivity in basal ganglia. If we take into account what is said in the paper about language skills, it may explain why some psychopaths exhibit glib charm and "silver tongue".

But then it still doesn't answer the question: If psychopaths have such a poor impulse control, why some of them are able to hide? What's the difference between "unsuccessful" and "successful" psychopath?

This paper says the following:

People with psychopathic traits are predisposed toward antisocial behavior that can result in “unsuccessful” outcomes such as incarceration. However, many individuals with psychopathic traits are able to control their antisocial tendencies and avoid committing the antagonistic acts that can result...

Neuroimaging reveals ‘successful’ psychopaths (those who can control their antisocial tendencies) have greater levels of gray matter density between the left and right ventromedial prefrontal cortex. This area of the brain is implicated in self-regulatory processes, including reactive emotions...

Most neuroscientific models of psychopathy emphasize deficits in brain structure and function. These new findings lend preliminary support to the growing notion that psychopathic individuals have some advantages compared to others, not just deficiencies...

It's possible that in some cases they may even have greater levels of gray matter than "normals".

Coming back to the topic of language and malapropisms, I wasn't able to find a paper that talks specifically about that in relation to psychopathy. Maybe it was mentioned on some other thread on the forum. But there is indeed research that indicates abnormalities in supramarginal gyrus.

The supramarginal gyrus (plural: supramarginal gyri) is a portion of the parietal lobe of the brain. It is one of the two parts of the inferior parietal lobule, the other being the angular gyrus. It plays a role in phonological processing (i.e. of spoken and written language) and emotional responses.

Here's the paper.

We tested the hypothesis that psychopathy is associated with abnormalities in semantic processing of linguistic information. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to elucidate and characterize the neural architecture underlying lexico-semantic processes in criminal psychopathic individuals and in a group of matched control participants....

Consistent with our hypothesis, psychopathic individuals, relative to controls, showed poorer behavioral performance for processing abstract words...

Analyses confirmed our prediction that psychopathic individuals would fail to show the appropriate neural differentiation between abstract and concrete stimuli in the right anterior temporal gyrus and surrounding cortex.

The results are consistent with other studies of semantic processing in psychopathy and support the theory that psychopathy is associated with right hemisphere abnormalities for processing conceptually abstract material.

Unfortunately I lack proper academic background and knowledge to draw any conclusions. There is also no clear cut differences in how language is being processed in prefrontal cortex regions and other regions of the brain. Here's some info about Broca's region for example.

But it's possible that there is something to it, and what I was able to gather from everything I read today, that if the psychopath is considered to be "successful", i.e has enough gray matter, he or she can benefit from better activation of the language center by way of greater connectivity in basal ganglia. This way they can be charming and talk their way out of situations.

But if at the same time they lack a proper processing of abstract concepts, the longer we interact with them, the higher the chance that this deficient will become more apparent. Malapropism is a type of semantic error and requires a more abstract understanding of when to use specific words of phrases.

Basically, we may be dazzled by their overall impression, but the more we pay attention, their use of the language, especially abstract concepts, can "reveal their hand".
 
But then it still doesn't answer the question: If psychopaths have such a poor impulse control, why some of them are able to hide? What's the difference between "unsuccessful" and "successful" psychopath?
Hello thorbjorn, maybe it's not their ability to hide who they are that plays a role, but a person's ability to recognize who they really are through knowledge or as Lobaczewky says in " Political ponerology "because the person is" immune "to his speech? Just my two cents... 🤔
 
I tried looking for examples of malapropisms in movies or series, because this would be a fertile ground for all kinds of manipulations.

Сouldn't find anything "unintentional", but did find a good example of a psychopathic character that constantly used malapropisms.

It's Tony Soprano and other characters from Sopranos. I haven't watched the show, but apparently it's considered to be a good depiction of a sociopath (or others with psychopathic tendencies), and that apparently Tony Soprano was even diagnosed as such in the show.

Here's a list of malapropisms.


Don't know if creators knew about this as something that has to do with psychopathy and that's why incorporated it into the show, or the phenomenon was indeed so prevalent among the "mafia elements", that it became part of their "culture".

Also don't know if the depiction of a psychopath in the show was acurate enough, since most of the time writers like to muddy the waters or glorify psychopathy in some way.
 
Here are some things that came up after a bit of research. It began with a paper I stumbled upon recently. The paper made a connection between motor and language skills.

Very interesting! That strongly reminds me of the following clues Lobajewski gave about Psychopathy, namely, that they seem to be pretty bad at performing any kind of technical, practical or craftsmanship work. Their skills in that area seem to be pretty bad/limited. In fact, it seems to me that factor is one of the most obvious/striking and consistent that Lobajewski pointed out about Psychopathy throughout his book:

The average intelligence of the psychopath, especially if measured via commonly used tests, is somewhat lower than that of normal people, albeit similarly variegated. Despite the wide variety of intelligence and interests, this group does not contain examples of the highest intelligence, nor do we find technical or craftsmanship talents among them. The most gifted members of this kind may thus achieve accomplishments in those sciences which do not require a correct humanistic world view or practical skills. (Academic decency is another matter, however.)

In the psychopath, a dream emerges like some Utopia of a “happy” world and a social system which does not reject them or force them to submit to laws and customs whose meaning is incomprehensible to them. They dream of a world in which their simple and radical way of experiencing and perceiving reality would dominate; where they would, of course, be assured safety and prosperity. In this Utopian dream, they imagine that those “others”, different, but also more technically skillful than they are, should be put to work to achieve this goal for the psychopaths and others of their kin.

Similar needs apply to other areas as well. The building director for a new factory is often someone barely connected with the pathocratic system but whose skills are essential. Once the plant is operational, administration is taken over by pathocrats, which then often leads to technical and financial ruin.

If the many managerial positions are assumed by individuals deprived of sufficient abilities to feel and understand the majority of other people, and who also exhibit deficiencies in technical imagination and practical skills – (faculties indispensable for governing economic and political matters) – this then results in an exceptionally serious crisis in all areas, both within the country in question and with regard to international relations.

The 6% group constitute the new nobility; the 12% group gradually forms the new bourgeoisie, whose economic situation is the most advantageous. Adapting to the new conditions, not without conflicts of conscience, transforms this latter group into both dodgers and, simultaneously, intermediaries between the oppositional society and the active ponerological group, whom they can talk to in the appropriate language. They play such a crucial role within this system that both sides must take them into account. Since their technical capacities and skills are better than those of the active pathocratic group, they assume various managerial positions. Normal people see them as persons they can approach, generally without being subjected to pathological arrogance.

The world of normal people is always superior to the deviant one whenever constructive activity is needed, whether it be the reconstruction of a devastated country, the area of technology, the organization of economic life, or scientific and medical work. “They want to build things, but they can’t get much done without us.” Qualified experts are frequently able to make certain demands; unfortunately, they are just as often only considered qualified until the job has been done, at which point they can be eliminated. Once the factory has started up, the experts can leave; management will be taken over by someone else, incapable of further progress, under whose leadership much of the effort expended will be wasted.

One of the first discoveries made by a society of normal people is that it is superior to the new rulers in intelligence and practical skills, no matter what geniuses they seek to appear to be.

A normal person deprived of privilege or high position will go about finding and performing some work which will earn him a living; but pathocrats never possessed any solid practical talent, and the time frame of their rule eliminates any residual possibilities of adapting to the demands of normal work.
 
But if at the same time they lack a proper processing of abstract concepts, the longer we interact with them, the higher the chance that this deficient will become more apparent. Malapropism is a type of semantic error and requires a more abstract understanding of when to use specific words of phrases.

Basically, we may be dazzled by their overall impression, but the more we pay attention, their use of the language, especially abstract concepts, can "reveal their hand".

This then reveals the internal landscape of the psychopath/organic portal. I remember when the subject of NPCs came up, commenting on the lack of internal monologue and in other cases the inability to visualize images, or that they have no imagination, which I understand as a lack of creative ability.


Since they can't express what they don't have, they resort to a proximate word to fill the space.
 
Very interesting! That strongly reminds me of the following clues Lobajewski gave about Psychopathy, namely, that they seem to be pretty bad at performing any kind of technical, practical or craftsmanship work. Their skills in that area seem to be pretty bad/limited. In fact, it seems to me that factor is one of the most obvious/striking and consistent that Lobajewski pointed out about Psychopathy throughout his book:

Thank you for all the quotes! It definitely complicates matters, because there are probably psychopaths that are quite proficient with "tools"

Some time ago this list of "which professions have the most psychopaths" was posted:

448x376xpsychopath.jpg.pagespeed.ic.rPJvTXUqRk.jpg

And while most of the professions are "logical" for psychopaths and don't require "tool proficiency", we do see a "surgeon" there. Note that it isn't a "doctor", but specifically a surgeon.

It's important to note that this list is taken from Kevin Dutton's book, and he and his book were discussed both on the forum and SOTT. So should be taken with a grain of sult. But apparently there is other research that was done on the same topic.

And there is indeed a prevalent "understanding" that higher percentage of surgeons have personality traits that would be more on a "dark triad" spectrum. It's possible that Lobajewski wouldn't call them bona fide psychopaths, but those who have a certain characteropathy, don't know. Heck, there are even surgeons that glorify psychopathic traits and think that surgeons should strive to have them.

And I am pretty sure that there are probably enough psychopathic military specialists with a talent of handling various weaponry, explosives and what not.

So even if at the moment I don't have enough understanding to figure out what is really going on, it's possible that psychopaths do have an ability to "handle tools", but they lack insight and ability to grasp a bigger picture (among other necessary deficiencies) to take on a long and intricate technical project that involves several interconnected factors. For example, being an engineer.

It's possible that there will be psychopaths among them as well, but they will probably soon enough gravitate toward the CEO positions. And there are probably examples in the science world of scientists that are or were involved in technological developments, and would score high on psychopathic traits.

Perhaps their deficiencies become quickly apparent when the project they are working on involves people, not to mention people welfare. Perhaps that's why Lobajewski said the following: "The most gifted members of this kind may thus achieve accomplishments in those sciences which do not require a correct humanistic world view or practical skills." 🤷‍♀️
 
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So, based on what I was reporting in this thread The Consortium, the Quorum, the alien interface, depicted in 'romantic' fiction - what the heck?!, it seems that a bunch of psychopaths have been recruited to write certain types of fiction with a view toward debasing humanity.
I tried to sample the other, non-approved stories written by the writer group calling themselves "Georgia Le Carre". But your approved selection was impeccable. In the non-approved books I only found debasing jokes and unhealthy lifestyles (Billie Black eating only jam & sweets + drinking copious amounts of alcohol) advertising anti-life sentiments and showing anti-life examples (fake boobs), that I think are specifically intended to poison the mind of the readers spreading the Vetiko virus using the language and behavior bordering on sexual-violence.

Selfish, extremely possessive male "hero psychopath billionaires" are enslaving females is put forward as the norm: disguised as something fashionable and desirable, because the enslavement is delivered by way of "sexy / sexual trendy jokes".

The government secret revealed in Blind Reader Wanted for example is an outright lie. It appears that half of the writers are psychos in the "Georgia Le Carre"-group and they are intent on destroying humankind via 'evil mental injections' using the popular romance stories venue as an attack vector.

Hollywood is full of these examples.
 
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