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Sylvia
199 Posts |
 Posted - 01/22/2013 : 07:14:22
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Is there any mannerism, any type of behavior, any use of language, that can identify a sociopath?
According to Martha Stout, Ph.D., author of The Sociopath Next Door*, the best clue that you are dealing with a sociopath is the pity play.
"The most reliable sign, the most universal behavior of unscrupulous people is not directed, as one might imagine, at our fearfulness," Stout says. "It is, perversely, an appeal to our sympathy."
The combination of consistently bad or inadequate behavior and frequent plays for your pity, Stout continues, is the closest thing to a warning you'll ever get that you are being manipulated by a sociopath.
Manipulation techniques
In her book, Stout also describes other techniques that shameless sociopaths use to keep the rest of us in line. They are:
Charm
Risk-taking, and convincing others to do it with them
Recognizing a person who is decent and trusting—the perfect target
Sexual seduction
Crocodile tears—especially when sociopaths are about to be confronted
Righteous indignation—Plan B when sociopaths are about to be confronted
Exploiting social and professional roles
Gaslighting—making victims doubt their own perceptions
The term "gaslighting" comes from a 1944 movie called Gaslight, in which gold-digging husband marries a rich, innocent woman and tries to make her feel like she is going insane. Sociopaths are experts at it.
Winning is all
A sociopath has no conscience, no emotional attachment to others, and no ability to love. For a sociopath, Stout says, "life is reduced to a contest, and other human beings seem to be nothing more than game pieces, to be moved about, used as shields or ejected."
So what does a sociopath want? According to Stout, a sociopath wants only to win.
TMS is hard enough, I thought this might be of use to recognize when you may have engaged a sociopath. |
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plum
United Kingdom
641 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 08:07:00
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I've known a couple of clowns who totally fit this M.O.
Excellent info to have in mind. Thanks for the heads up. |
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 08:15:21
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| Read the novel "American Pyscho," it is the a very good description of a sociopath to the extreme. Luckily they are not all like that. It also is the most bloody violent and pornographic book I have ever read, so beware. The movie is Sunday School material in comparison. Also the book "Snakes in Suits" is a good book on this topic. |
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Sylvia
199 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 08:53:19
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Ya don't need to worry about the American Psycho, but you can easily get entangled with the run of the mill sociopath who is in all levels of society and professions.
With the everyday sociopath ya just gotta recognize and disengage. |
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 10:05:00
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| I wonder if sociopaths get TMS? |
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Sylvia
199 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 11:46:29
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I dunno if Sociopaths do. Somewhere, maybe it was from Dr. Sarno saying that the mentally ill, I suppose in sanitarians are VERY healthy. Wait, maybe it was from SteveO.
At any rate I don't know if they do.
TMS can be mental illness as an equivalent, I don't know if I all the way accept that assertion. Because animals do show mental illness, depression, anxiety, even psychosis. I saw a show a long time ago when a female ape, or was it a chimpanzee, murdered a member of the troup. Out and out psychosis.
But you know animals can have all kinds of disfiguring accidents and amputations and never after healing lay there oh, the pain the pain. They are up and about as best as limbs will carry. So, what was my point? Guess I haven't any... |
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chickenbone
Panama
398 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 13:35:22
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I think we have arrived at a point in time when sociopaths have really come out of the woodwork. Bankers and politicians come to mind. I think this will not end well.
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bryan3000
USA
513 Posts |
Posted - 01/22/2013 : 14:02:54
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quote:
Originally posted by Sylvia
but you can easily get entangled with the run of the mill sociopath who is in all levels of society and professions.
Yep. |
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2013 : 11:10:51
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quote:
Originally posted by chickenbone
I think we have arrived at a point in time when sociopaths have really come out of the woodwork. Bankers and politicians come to mind. I think this will not end well.
As I recommended, read the book "Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work." The author, Dr. Robert Hare, has devoted more than three decades of his professional career to the investigation of the psychopath and how psychopathic behavior influences and corrupts society. Hare is the creator of the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R), a twenty item personality checklist. There is no doubt that everyone has come in contact and possibly been deceived by a psychotic personality. In fact, most disturbingly, it's the nature of a psychopath to initially come across as very appealing and likable. How do you defend yourself against such a person in the workplace? In "Snakes in Suits", industrial and corporate psychologist Dr. Paul Babiak teams up with Dr. Hare to focus on the psychopath's role in modern corporations. Together they created the B-scan, a personality test for job candidates so that employers can identify potential psychopaths. As today's business world has perfect conditions for the psychopath, "Snakes in Suits" informs the reader how to spot him before he destroys. It reveals the psychopath's secrets, introduces the ways in which they manipulate and deceive, and helps readers see through their games. The rapid pace of today's corporate environment provides the perfect breeding ground for these employees, and "Snakes in Suits" will give readers the necessary tools to protect themselves and their companies before it's too late.
Here is the book as a pdf file: http://www.sel.eesc.usp.br/informatica/graduacao/material/etica/private/snakes_in_suits_-_when_psycophats_go_to_work.pdf |
Edited by - shawnsmith on 01/23/2013 11:11:49 |
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Sylvia
199 Posts |
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pspa123
672 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2013 : 14:37:21
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| Why are we talking about sociopaths anyhow? Am I missing the relevance? |
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chickenbone
Panama
398 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2013 : 16:45:13
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Awesome, Shawn and Sylvia.
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2013 : 17:11:38
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quote:
Originally posted by pspa123
Why are we talking about sociopaths anyhow? Am I missing the relevance?
Hahahaha pspa123, we talk about a lot of stuff on here that has very little to do with TMS. |
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shawnsmith
Czech Republic
2048 Posts |
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pspa123
672 Posts |
Posted - 01/23/2013 : 17:13:39
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quote:
Originally posted by shawnsmith
quote:
Originally posted by pspa123
Why are we talking about sociopaths anyhow? Am I missing the relevance?
Hahahaha pspa123, we talk about a lot of stuff on here that has very little to do with TMS.
I thought I was missing some inside joke or something, I mean just out of the blue a post on how to spot a sociopath? LOL. |
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Sylvia
199 Posts |
Posted - 01/25/2013 : 11:52:11
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I forgot to respond. It is the soothe/rage or strain/ease need for tms relief. If you have got yourself involved with a sociopath you will be hard pressed to feel at ease, or soothed ever.
It is good to know such things, because if you are not a sociopath you would have no reference to spot one.
Key words I think are
Winning is All
Appeal to our sympathy.
Beware BEWARE!! (maniacal laugh) |
Edited by - Sylvia on 01/25/2013 11:55:59 |
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How to spot a Sociopath
