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There are a number of criminals who appeared to have had caring parents and a normal environment as a child but for some reason they never developed a sense of empathy or respect for other human beings. I remember the horrible case of Charles Ng and Leonard Lake who tortured and murdered people in northern California many years ago. Charles Ng was from a wealthy family in Hong Kong but got into trouble in his teens and his crimes just kept getting worse as he got older. I won't pretend that I have any expertise in psychological matters, I just have the feeling that there are a few rare individuals who happen to be born with a predisposition to be a sociopath. We all know that prisons are filled with people who suffered abuse as children and they became abusers themselves as adults but there are also people whose behavior defies explanation and it can't be linked to any specific childhood trauma or mistreatment.
I've seen interviews with convicted killers on some of the real life crime documentaries they have on television and I've seen a few of them acknowledge the fact that they had absolutely no feelings whatsoever for their victims. Many of them also admit that they have had those feelings since they were children and were unable to control them. Jeffrey Dahmer admitted on camera that he was unable to control his urges and it finally spiraled out of control. He also apparently had a fairly normal childhood and was never abused.
I'm not saying that someone who might be born as a sociopath should get any special treatment from the legal system. I think they deserve to be in prison or possibly execution. I'm just curious if others agree that some people are just born bad and I'd like to hear any opinions from those who have some expertise in psychology as well.
From people I have known in my life, I would say some of them were definitely born missing the empathy gene. Most of the sociopaths I have known were people who were damaged by a bad childhood, and were not able to heal and recover.
I will never understand why some people who have a horrible childhood are able to rise above it and become good people, while some don't.
Well, a sociopath can acknowledge that he's only out for himself, such as myself, but I don't think about killing people. I did when I was younger watching movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th. I could care less about another human being and it doesn't bother me if someone dies because in the end we all die. nothing to be expected and nothing to be celebrated or even mourned. Just take it as it is. it's your fate. I have killed cats so does that make me a sociopath?
Oh, yeah, I forgot to say that I wasn't abused as a child.
I can remember once as a child playing a video game at a store one time, an old man kept pouring in the quarters so I could keep playing, and I took them in. after I was done I just left him alone, I knew he wanted to take me home, but I was insisting that I should get back to my home. The reason I said that is because sociopaths don't think about the next person's feelings and whatever they've contributed to their lives. I've lost many people, but I dont' feel the need to deal with death in any whichk, way, and form.
I will never understand why some people who have a horrible childhood are able to rise above it and become good people, while some don't.
well, exactly how normal are they? usually those people who have"normal" lives tend to have some devious tendencies you may not about.
Pedophiles are always quiet and shy, isn't that a redeeming quality,
the same thing goes for the serial killer, they have this "school-boy" demeanor that distinguishes them from the rest of the men in the area. fascinating, huh?
I like spychology myself and it's gotten me to question alot of things in life.
well, exactly how normal are they? usually those people who have"normal" lives tend to have some devious tendencies you may not about.
Pedophiles are always quiet and shy, isn't that a redeeming quality,
the same thing goes for the serial killer, they have this "school-boy" demeanor that distinguishes them from the rest of the men in the area. fascinating, huh?
I like spychology myself and it's gotten me to question alot of things in life.
I never said anything about normal. And so many people have devious tendencies, that it is practically normal. I, for one, would rather be referred to as eccentric. I don't want to be normal.
I think you are completely wrong with your assumptions about serial killers and pedophiles.
What is spychology? Is that the science of snooping?
you could be born that way, but more than likely, he got lots of help getting that way. the cruelty that most do to the weirdo that does not fit in, we accept as just having fun, this breeds lots of monsters.
Last edited by Huckleberry3911948; 02-26-2009 at 07:23 PM..
One thing that contributes to the psychopathic problems is Fetal Alcohol Syndrone. It's caused by the mother drinking alcohol during her pregnancy. The child, depending on the amount of damage done, seems not to understand time. Therefore, if they do something good or bad, they don't think about what will happen to them in the future. It's just the present. And if they want to do something, they do it. They don't seem to understand that their actions cause things to happen.
For example. A boy shoots the neighbor's pet, or child, Well, he thinks it wasn't his fault. The pet should have been kept in the house, the child shouldn't have been playing in that spot. The mother should have been watching the child better.... But never does the shooter see it as his fault for shooting in that direction.
The same inability to see the Cause and Effect of actions carries over into adult life.
I think that people carry certain genetic traits that can make them more prone to acting in certain ways, predisposition if you will, but that does not always mean that there is a certain "genetic cocktail" that automatically makes one a psychopath.
I think if one were to take a person with a genetic leaning towards something such as extreme narcissism, a high 'Type A' personality, etc... (common traits found in many serial killers) that they could just as easily become something perfectly normal and meaningful within society that satiates those genetic pre-dispositions. A person who is pre-disposed to something like risk-taking doesn't mean they will commit crimes that involve a lot of risk; they could just as easily become a racecar driver, a skydiving instructor, or a lion tamer.
However, I think there are certain individuals born with a very prime 'mix' of genetic predisposition when put in certain environments as children (usually at the hands of an ultra-abusive mother or father but not always) that will conform to certain behaviors characteristic of what we find in many serial killers, psychopaths, and the like.
I'm by no means an expert in psychology, I read a Freud book once, if that counts, but I think there is less of an element of nature vs. nurture as there is with nature and nurture that tends to typify most behaviors we see. In this light, we could take almost any behavior, even an innocent behavior such as what one finds interesting and apply it to this framework. At least, that's my completely un-knowing and un-researched assumption.
I think that people carry certain genetic traits that can make them more prone to acting in certain ways, predisposition if you will, but that does not always mean that there is a certain "genetic cocktail" that automatically makes one a psychopath.
I think if one were to take a person with a genetic leaning towards something such as extreme narcissism, a high 'Type A' personality, etc... (common traits found in many serial killers) that they could just as easily become something perfectly normal and meaningful within society that satiates those genetic pre-dispositions. A person who is pre-disposed to something like risk-taking doesn't mean they will commit crimes that involve a lot of risk; they could just as easily become a racecar driver, a skydiving instructor, or a lion tamer.
However, I think there are certain individuals born with a very prime 'mix' of genetic predisposition when put in certain environments as children (usually at the hands of an ultra-abusive mother or father but not always) that will conform to certain behaviors characteristic of what we find in many serial killers, psychopaths, and the like.
I'm by no means an expert in psychology, I read a Freud book once, if that counts, but I think there is less of an element of nature vs. nurture as there is with nature and nurture that tends to typify most behaviors we see. In this light, we could take almost any behavior, even an innocent behavior such as what one finds interesting and apply it to this framework. At least, that's my completely un-knowing and un-researched assumption.
I did a little reading ahead in my text books and you are right. It is generally a mix of the two. Research has shown that both genetic predisposition and environment carry equal weight in the pathology of many psychological conditions.
One study of adopted children showed that children who were born to someone with a disorder but raised by adoptive parents had three times the chance of developing that disorder in adulthood. At the same time a child born to parents with no disorder, and raised by adoptive parents that do have one, have the same chance (ie. three times) of developing that same disorder. So there are strong arguments for both sides and it really depends on which approach you take to Psychology, biological or behavioural.
in the posts, i see some variations on perceptions of a sociopath, understandingly as the definition itself is pretty loose. i did a link bek the link pretty much covers the whole range.
my scary experiences with them is of the hannibal, silence of the lamb type, absolutely no body language to correspond with true intention, hence no warning. could be in a state of rage and you would never know it.
very scary.
Last edited by Huckleberry3911948; 02-27-2009 at 12:34 AM..
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. I, for one, would rather be referred to as eccentric. I don't want to be normal.
