Can You Spot A "Good" Psychopath?
Few things in life are black and white. Most of us live in the muddy waters of gray – a little of this and of little of that - like The Psychopathic Spectrum. The Psychopathic Spectrum is a scale that measures the number of psychopathic traits in an individual. As in any scale, a person can have a few traits (mild) to so many traits it dominates their personality and behavior (severe). Serial killers fall at the extreme range of The Spectrum. A killer boss might fall in the milder part of the spectrum. In today’s world, having psychopathic traits is not always a bad thing. “Psychopath up.” says Dr. Kevin Dutton, a renowned expert on psychopathy and author of The Wisdom of Psychopaths: What saints, spies, and serial killers can teach us about success. “A bit of localized psychopathy is good for all of us.” Some of the most distinctive traits on the scale are ruthlessness, fearlessness, ability to charm and manipulate others, and lack of empathy and conscience. What if ruthlessness translates into decisiveness; fearlessness into coolness under pressure; manipulation into charisma; and lack of empathy and conscience into the ability not to take things personally? Dutton calls it functional psychopathy. A functional or good psychopath can be very useful in today’s world – the kind of person you might need someday - like a confident neurosurgeon or fearless Navy Seal. It might also be the qualities you have or wish you have. Can you spot a good psychopath? Answer the questions below. Check your answers against the key at the end of the quiz. How do you rate? How do your significant others, friends, boss, or local politicians rate?