Psychopathy does not mean a bad person, or a serial killer, it is not a strictly clinical term, and it does not follow an exact checklist. That's why what you cited and many articles about it are full of weasel words and long lists of traits that someone might have some of.
Many doctors, CEOs, soldiers, military pilots, police, etc. develop psychopathic personalities and there is nothing wrong with that. They still go home and are capable of loving their family, dog, and neighbors. There is a large body of research on exactly the fact that many people in high stress jobs like First Responders develop a psychopathic personality.
The fact that you take offense at this, and that apparently many people in this thread have a knee jerk reaction and daytime drama understanding that psychopath means evil, is what's egregious and ignorant.
...I did not say that people who exhibit signs of psychopathy are bad people or serial killers...at least I'm pretty sure I didn't?
And yes neither does it follow an exact checklist because it seems to have branching meanings depending on the context its brought up. Like I think, keyword,
think that it means one thing in Law while in Psychiatry it doesn't seem to be diagnosable (if that's even a word). Not to mention in some eyes there seems to be some overlap between Psychopathy and Antisocial Personality Disorder:
APA Dictionary ( 15 / 11 / 2023 ) said:
the presence of a chronic and pervasive disposition to disregard and violate the rights of others. Manifestations include repeated violations of the law, exploitation of others, deceitfulness, impulsivity, aggressiveness, reckless disregard for the safety of self and others, and irresponsibility, accompanied by lack of guilt, remorse, and empathy. The disorder has been known by various names, including dyssocial personality, psychopathic personality, and sociopathic personality. It is among the most heavily researched of the personality disorders and the most difficult to treat. It is included in DSM–IV–TR, DSM–5, and DSM-5-TR.
While others believe otherwise, and this is before factoring in various holistic or pseudoscience sources...on the other hand, from what I gather from some of what I read, there's a change of focus from it simply causing harm to the individual, but rather to society, explaining some of the overlap with AsPD. This also does lead to some believing that a key part of the diagnosis of Psychopathy involves antisocial and criminal behaviors, thanks to the lack of empathy, but again, others believe otherwise and that it should be separated from such behaviors.
So yeah, that definition? That was honestly the best I could do given the opposing views of the condition without necessarily painting anyone with broad strokes, especially since
you used the term in the post I took offense to, not because, as you wrongly assumed, I was making a statement as to which one is "good" and other "evil" but because you had confused definitions.
If you were arguing morality with someone else, don't drag me into that, I honestly don't care much for those discussions.
I just care that you seem to think a mental technique used for dealing with stressful situations is the same as a psychological condition.
