7 hours ago
https://www.sciencefocus.com/wellbeing/f...icult-spot
EXCERPTS: Girkin worked in Tasmania’s welfare sector for over 20 years and says she encountered coworkers who she believes displayed a number of psychopathic traits, and heard similar stories from others in the field. It got her thinking about female psychopathy, which some studies suggest presents differently than in men, with less overt aggression and an emphasis on tactics like emotional manipulation and relational aggression.
Girkin’s study, published in the Proceedings of the 5th International Developments in Applied Psychology and Business Management Conference, and coauthored with Dr Sharyn Curran, a senior lecturer in the School of Management and Marketing at Curtin University, draws from interviews with 13 people working in Tasmania’s welfare industry.
Eleven of them said they’d met at least one person who displayed eight or more psychopathic traits like lying, a lack of remorse or a refusal to take responsibility. Some reported leaving jobs or sitting in their cars crying for hours because of interactions with these coworkers. Others left the welfare sector entirely. “I had a number of women saying that they tried to take their own lives as a result of the experience,” Girkin says.
In Girkin’s study, participants identified 36 women and 11 men who acted in ways that met criteria for psychopathy. Girkin says it highlights a lack of attention on female psychopathy, which she argues can have severe impacts in the workplace and beyond. A lack of research on female psychopaths could mean women displaying problematic behaviours are more likely to go unnoticed, causing harm with little chance of repercussions.
It raises a troubling question: are there more psychopaths than we realise?
[...] Not all psychopaths are violent criminals. In fact, most aren’t. Psychopathy is defined by a number of traits, including short-lived emotions, a lack of remorse, low empathy, manipulativeness and pathological lying that can lead someone to act in ways that are antisocial.
Psychopathy is often divided into two types. Primary psychopaths tend to display behaviours like repeated lying or a lack of empathy, while secondary psychopaths are impulsive and thrill-seeking, and more likely to commit crimes or be violent.
“The secondary psychopath doesn’t have a lot of self-control, whereas the primary psychopath does,” Girkin says. “That’s why they’re able to hide well in everyday society.”
[...] “The antisocial behaviours of women are different to those of men,” Eisenbarth says. “There might be more manipulative and antisocial behaviour of the kind we often don’t score in men.”
It’s a trend Abigail Marsh, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Georgetown University in the US, says she’s seen in women with psychopathy. Marsh says many psychopaths have learned to mask their true feelings or thoughts exceedingly well. But underneath, people with psychopathy, male or female, are often motivated by a desire to get what they want.
Differences between the genders mean distinct tools work better for each: a physically larger man may be able to get what he wants by using violence, while a woman may find social methods work better. In some cases, that means a charm offensive is the best approach.
“The thing I think people don’t always anticipate about psychopathy is that the best way to get things out of people is by being really nice to them,” Marsh says. “I find that when people with psychopathy want you to like them, you almost certainly will.” (MORE - missing details)
EXCERPTS: Girkin worked in Tasmania’s welfare sector for over 20 years and says she encountered coworkers who she believes displayed a number of psychopathic traits, and heard similar stories from others in the field. It got her thinking about female psychopathy, which some studies suggest presents differently than in men, with less overt aggression and an emphasis on tactics like emotional manipulation and relational aggression.
Girkin’s study, published in the Proceedings of the 5th International Developments in Applied Psychology and Business Management Conference, and coauthored with Dr Sharyn Curran, a senior lecturer in the School of Management and Marketing at Curtin University, draws from interviews with 13 people working in Tasmania’s welfare industry.
Eleven of them said they’d met at least one person who displayed eight or more psychopathic traits like lying, a lack of remorse or a refusal to take responsibility. Some reported leaving jobs or sitting in their cars crying for hours because of interactions with these coworkers. Others left the welfare sector entirely. “I had a number of women saying that they tried to take their own lives as a result of the experience,” Girkin says.
In Girkin’s study, participants identified 36 women and 11 men who acted in ways that met criteria for psychopathy. Girkin says it highlights a lack of attention on female psychopathy, which she argues can have severe impacts in the workplace and beyond. A lack of research on female psychopaths could mean women displaying problematic behaviours are more likely to go unnoticed, causing harm with little chance of repercussions.
It raises a troubling question: are there more psychopaths than we realise?
[...] Not all psychopaths are violent criminals. In fact, most aren’t. Psychopathy is defined by a number of traits, including short-lived emotions, a lack of remorse, low empathy, manipulativeness and pathological lying that can lead someone to act in ways that are antisocial.
Psychopathy is often divided into two types. Primary psychopaths tend to display behaviours like repeated lying or a lack of empathy, while secondary psychopaths are impulsive and thrill-seeking, and more likely to commit crimes or be violent.
“The secondary psychopath doesn’t have a lot of self-control, whereas the primary psychopath does,” Girkin says. “That’s why they’re able to hide well in everyday society.”
[...] “The antisocial behaviours of women are different to those of men,” Eisenbarth says. “There might be more manipulative and antisocial behaviour of the kind we often don’t score in men.”
It’s a trend Abigail Marsh, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Georgetown University in the US, says she’s seen in women with psychopathy. Marsh says many psychopaths have learned to mask their true feelings or thoughts exceedingly well. But underneath, people with psychopathy, male or female, are often motivated by a desire to get what they want.
Differences between the genders mean distinct tools work better for each: a physically larger man may be able to get what he wants by using violence, while a woman may find social methods work better. In some cases, that means a charm offensive is the best approach.
“The thing I think people don’t always anticipate about psychopathy is that the best way to get things out of people is by being really nice to them,” Marsh says. “I find that when people with psychopathy want you to like them, you almost certainly will.” (MORE - missing details)