Reader’s Digest Canada – September 2019

and emotional characteristics, includ-

ing things like being charming, a

good speaker and alluring—while

also ruthless and lacking in empathy.

And the second is a chronic anti-social

lifestyle: breaking rules and being

irresponsible. The latter could lead to

cruelty to people and animals, van-

dalism and violence. Some people are

low in some areas and high in others;

so, for example, not all psychopaths

are violent.

Is it possible, then, to have a relatively

healthy relationship with someone

who demonstrates psychopathy?

It is possible, though issues will always

rear their heads because psychopathy

is ultimately a relational disorder. The

person may not be able to reciprocate

emotionally, and they’re probably not

going to be able to dispense empathy

if you’re having a bad day or if there

is a death in the family. If someone is

psychopathic they are more likely to be

domestically abusive, but that doesn’t

mean that all are. They may also cheat

or run up credit card bills. Worst-case

scenario, they could be living a double

life. That’s very unlikely though. We

tend to see that more on TV.

Does the average psychopath get a

bad rap based on prominent examples

like Paul Bernardo or Ted Bundy?

I think that could be the case. In my

academic and clinical work, I actually

don’t use the term psychopath. I say

“person with psychopathy.” Even if they

are different, these people don’t want

a terrible life. I’m not saying go out and

hug the closest psychopath, but it’s

important to recognize that these are

human beings deserving of dignity.

Mark E. Olver is a registered doctoral

psychologist and professor at the Uni-

versity of Saskatchewan.

FA S T FA C T S

Birds of a feather

According to a recent

study published in the

Journal of Personality,

individuals with psycho-

pathic tendencies are

more likely to be

attracted to other individ-

uals with the same ten-

dencies. Researchers

speculate this could

explain why psychopathy

persists throughout time.

Gender divide

Psychopaths make up

one per cent of the popu-

lation, but approximately

20 per cent of the male

prison population. There

is less research on women

with psychopathy, but

some studies indicate

they may be more

inclined to emotional

manipulation than crime.

American psychos

A group of researchers

asked various biogra-

phers of U.S. presidents

to complete the Psycho-

pathy Checklist on behalf

of their famous subjects.

JFK, and Teddy and Frank-

lin Roosevelt came back

with the highest scores.

reader’s digest

104 september 2019