Criminologist discusses the 22 questions that prove someone is a psychopath
Research suggests that around one in every 100 people meets the criteria for psychopathy, but being able to spot the signs isn’t always easy.
Usually, the signs of psychopathy might go undetected, even by close friends or loved ones.
However, a UK criminologist has discussed a checklist that is out there that can apparently reveal whether someone may be a psychopath.
Sitting down with LADbible to answer the ‘Honesty Box’ questions, Professor David Wilson explained the behaviors that can make psychopaths harder to detect.
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He said: “Psychopaths don’t have horns on their head or a long-pointed tail, if it were that easy, it would be easy to spot a psychopath.”
With his 30-year career interviewing and profiling murderers, Wilson referred to the original 'Hare Psychopathy Checklist', which is a tool used to measure psychopaths via 22 questions and dives into a sense of ‘grandeur’ or ‘promiscuity’ in the patient.
He revealed that there is a ‘significant number of people that I would encounter who have used lethal violence who would score highly on Hare's Psychopathy Checklist’, but there are those who score highly that wouldn’t use violence or lethal violence.
“There is definitely a correlation between scoring highly and the kinds of crimes that they would commit,” Wilson added.
What is Hare's Psychopathy Checklist?
The Hare Psychopathy Checklist is a psychological assessment tool 'used to rate a person's psychopathic or antisocial tendencies', as per the Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders.
It was originally developed in the 1970s by Canadian psychologist Robert D Hare with the aim of using the checklist during psychology experiments.
Since then, it has gone through the PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist - Revised) where two of the questions from the original assessment were removed after an analysis showed they weren’t helpful.
Now, it has 20 questions, but for the sake of using the OG, we’ll show you the original test (not revised).
What questions are in Hare's Psychopathy Checklist?
Here’s what it’ll ask you, where you’ll have to answer it based on a three-point scale (zero means it does not apply, one means it applies somewhat, and two means the item definitely applies).
The scores are then added up to rank between zero to 40.
Disclaimer: This test should be conducted by a professional who has been specifically trained in its use for results to be accurately measured.
1. Are you glib or display superficial charm?
2. Do you have a previous diagnosis as psychopath (or similar)?
3. Are you egocentric or have a grandiose sense of self-worth?
4. Are you prone to boredom / have a low frustration tolerance?
5. Do you take part in pathological lying and deception?
6. Do you con or lack of sincerity?
7. Do you have a lack of remorse or guilt?
8. Do you have a lack of affect and emotional depth?
9. Callous / lack of empathy
10. Do you take part in a parasitic lifestyle?
11. Short-tempered / poor behavioral controls
12. Do you have promiscuous sexual relations?
13. Did you display early behavior problems?
14. Do you lack of realistic, long-term plans?
15. Are you impulsive?
16. Did/do you display irresponsible behavior as parent?
17. Have you had frequent marital relationships?
18. Have you exhibited juvenile delinquency?
19. Do you display a poor probation or parole risk?
20. Do you have failure to accept responsibility for own actions?
21. Have you had many types of offense?
22. Is your drug or alcohol abuse not a direct cause of antisocial behavior?
When would someone be considered a psychopath?
According to the University of Toronto, an average person would score around five or six points, while those who score 25 to 30 or higher are more likely to be diagnosed with psychopathic personality disorder.
He theorized that when it comes to psychopathy, a person must score above high on the test, and that psychopathy was correlated with an inability to understand moral norms.
Topics: Health, Mental Health, Crime
Britt Jones