Are sociopaths born that way or do they become that way?
Still no clear evidence. Some say by hereditry and some say by nuture. I think it is a combination of inherited tendencies and nuture.
I notice a lot of confusion between sociopath and physcopath these words tend to get used interchangeably. I might make my own distinction this way:
Sociopath, one who has a social disorder. (from below)
Psychopath: personality outwardly normal but with diminished sense of social responsibility, abnormal, dangerous acts.
Socio ... social
Path .... disorder
Psycho ..... insane / obsessional
(Macquarie Dictionary)
Theres a big difference between social awkwardness with aspies and a sociopath (aka public social disorders). This is normal and gets worse with a sociopath (public social disorder) they cannot determine their error, but an aspies sure can. As for a pshcopath run the other way fast. (they are outwardly normal even very charming).
All aspies that I know, including myself are well aware they make continuing social errors. This is NOT the case for sociopaths / psychopaths who think their behaviour is normal. I am not commenting on the school shootings more likely to be by a paranoid schoizoid personality type. Aspies is simply (OK a simplification) a social relationship problem. By yourself you have no problem unlike the pyschopath.
While on the trail aspies don't really want to be loners (well almost all I know) it just tends to happen that way, but if you have seen a group of aspies together, they are very social since no-one is treated as having "social leprousy" to invent a term. And can have a great talk about their obsessions.
Unfortunately in a work situation this tendency gets nothing done, I suppose its a reaction to years of imposed social isolation. I may do some more study on this since I noticed it. Research etc.
I have so many obsessions. At least they are mostly intellectual, which means they cost less or nil. And I've even managed to compartmentalize them so they don't interfere with each other. Bit like a hard drive. Its there subject to the right code. You name it, just ask the appropriate question. And I can even acess the appropriate sector for social skills. But it still likes to run on the original programme.
Siemen I'm writing from my own personal experience and not from studies by others. There could be quite a divergence from the overall "norms". I had the very unwelcome opportunity to study a psychopath up close and personal. these are my observations.
Make no mistake this one really thinks whatever he says is real and shows no emotion that a normal person or an aspies for that matter may show when telling a monster lie even when caught out.
My 2Cents worth.
Science idea may start with a generalization based on personal observation, then I set out to disprove it. If I can't easily I'm onto something. Obviously it would be rather difficult to actually reliably interview psychopaths due to the fact of them telling straight faced monster lies. So it is possible with psycopaths they may never be reliably investigated.
Simen. I didn't say they can't be studied. I said is is difficult. not impossible and one has to construct a study with the possible distortions of truth from a psycopath in mind. My area of expertise is chemistry not psychology by the way. So that tends to colour everything I write.
Please be careful (especially regarding Aspies) in quoting anything by Dorothy McCoy. She has had her license revoked in North Carolina as a Licensed Professional Therapist. She is currently also being investigated by several other agencies for unethical conduct. She is someone who, while knowing that her step-son has Aspergers, endorses the total abandonment of his father (her husband) to a 13 year old Asperger's child. As a therapist she must know what that would do to a child without a disability but this has occured 3 seperate times. Acceptance of responsibility? No, and none is expected until they exist no more. People who are trying to fit into society with the difficulties they face everyday need quality and qualified information. This source is not the place to go.