Content

• To step
• Tips
• Warnings

Robert Hare's psychopathy checklist, the PCL-R, was initially developed to investigate the psyche of criminals. However, the checklist is nowadays applied to people who appear to have the traits and behaviors of a psychopath. Most social workers, therapists, psychologists and psychiatrists agree that a psychopath is a predator who takes advantage of others through charm, deceit, coercion, and other methods. However, there are more features. With the help of the PCL-R and by trusting your intuition you can determine for yourself whether you are dealing with a psychopath.

To step

1. Note the person's smooth tongue and superficial charm. A psychopath will also often mentioned it by professionals mask of sanity (a mask of mental health). The mask is fun and pleasant and gives the psychopath something human.
2. Check for excessive self-overestimation or megalomania. Psychopaths often think they are much smarter or more powerful than they really are.
3. See if there is a need to be stimulated all the time. Psychopaths don't like silence, peace and reflection; they need constant entertainment and action.
4. Determine if there is pathological lying. A psychopath lies about everything; from little white lies to huge stories designed to deceive people.
5. Try to determine the extent of manipulation. All psychopaths are characterized by their shrewdness and their ability to make people do things they normally would never do. They use feelings of guilt, violence and other methods.
6. See if the alleged psychopath has feelings of guilt. The absence of guilt or regret is a sign of psychopathy.
7. Pay attention to the affective or emotional response someone has. Psychopaths react emotionally superficially when it comes to deaths, injuries, trauma, and other life-changing situations. These events are said to cause deep, violent reactions in healthy people.
8. Notice if there is a lack of empathy. Psychopaths are harsh and cannot connect with others.
9. Look at the lifestyle. Psychopaths are often parasites and take advantage of others.
10. Observe the behavior. The PCL-R has three behavioral indicators; poor behavioral control, sexual promiscuity and problematic behavior in youth.
11. Talk about the goals in life with the one you suspect. Psychopaths have unrealistic long-term goals. Sometimes there is a lack of goals and other times the goals are unattainable and based on a grossly exaggerated belief in one's performance and capabilities.
12. See if someone is impulsive or irresponsible. They are two characteristics of psychopathy.
13. See if whoever you're dealing with can take responsibility. A psychopath will never admit that he is wrong or acknowledge that he has made mistakes or mistakes in his judgment.
14. Investigate the person's marital status. If there are many short marriages, there is an increased chance that the person is a psychopath.
15. See if there is a criminal past from adolescence. Many psychopaths are already criminals during adolescence.
16. Check if there is any criminal behavior in which the versatility of it stands out. Psychopaths can get away with a lot, and while they do get caught sometimes, their flexibility in committing crimes is characteristic.
17. See if the person often portrays themselves as victim. A psychopath is an expert in manipulating people's emotions and insecurities. In this way he can move people to see him as a pitiful victim. He is then the victim who has been wronged and that affects people. This makes them more sentimental than they normally are and therefore they run the risk of being exploited by the psychopath in the future. When these kinds of psychological manipulations are constantly accompanied by unacceptable and malicious actions, it is clear what a person's real nature is.
18. Pay close attention to the way this person treats other people. A psychopath often humiliates and patronizes other people. A psychopath also often approaches others mockingly. Sometimes the psychopath assaults others and even attacks people physically (also killing others in the extreme cases). Often the victims are people who do not benefit the psychopath in any way, such as subordinates, physically frail people, or people of lower status such as children, the elderly, and even animals - especially the latter group. Remember Arthur Schopenhauer's famous words: "A person who harms or kills animals cannot be a good person."

Tips

• Trust your instincts and intuition. If you believe that someone is exhibiting the characteristics of a psychopath, it is best to keep your distance from that person so that you cannot be manipulated or get into a relationship that will be destructive.
• See if the person is really a psychopath, and not a sociopath or narcissist. Psychopaths don't feel emotions, while sociopaths feel some emotions, such as anger, very strongly. Narcissists have a very exaggerated self-love, and will never appear weak, even if they achieve more.

Warnings

• Resist the temptation to categorize people you don't like as psychopaths if they meet 1 or 2 characteristics of Hare's checklist. Only a psychiatrist or psychologist can officially determine whether there is psychopathy.
• Try not to get involved with the psychopath by, for example, warning others about her or him. Chances are that the psychopath will come after you, and besides, it is none of your business.