Latest news with #psychopathy
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Can YOU spot the psychopath based on these headshots? New study reveals subtle clues in people's faces
Would you be able to detect narcissism or psychopathy simply by looking at someone's face? Science suggests it's possible. A new study has demonstrated that people with so-called 'dark triad personality traits' share similar facial features and expressions. They tend to have stronger brow ridges, unreadable expressions, symmetrical faces, narrower eyes, and a direct gaze — and they smile less. Researchers in Turkey conducted three studies on people from Turkey and America who looked at photos of digitally created faces. The faces has been carefully crafted based on features associated with high or low levels of Dark Triad traits based on photos constructed by averaging the facial features of real individuals who scored either high or low on Dark Triad trait tests. The study showed that people could identify all of these traits at least 50 to 75 percent of the time from headshots alone. Scientists suggest that people's ability to identify these traits may be an evolutionary adaptation that our human ancestors developed to avoid dangerous people. 'Estimating the personality traits of others has adaptive advantages such as being aware of the opportunities and costs that the other party can offer... and it can guide us about behaving and making decisions in our social interactions,' the researchers wrote in the paper published in Personality and Individual Differences. People with the three main Dark Triad traits —narcissism (grandiose self-obsession), Machiavellianism (cold, tactical manipulation), and psychopathy (impulsive ruthlessness)— are often manipulative and emotional brick walls, typically willing to do or say anything to get their way. They also have a grandiose sense of self, are typically impulsive, and may engage in dangerous or exploitative behavior, such as love-bombing and emotional blackmail. People with these traits can be especially adept at hiding them, especially at first. Narcissists often come off as exceedingly charming and engaging upon meeting them. Machiavellians, meanwhile, excel at adjusting their moral values based on what will benefit them most and tend to be callous and cold. Researchers conducted three studies encompassing 880 total people. They viewed composite images from photos of people who scored very high or very low on personality tests, and were asked to guess which face displayed more of a given trait. The first study involved 160 Americans who looked at composite face images depicting high and low levels of the Dark Triad and Big Five traits -- openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (anxious versus stable). People had to guess which of two faces scored higher on a given trait. Participants guessed correctly over 50 percent of the time for Dark Triad traits, while the Big Five were identified less often. There were, however, a few exceptions, including agreeableness – which involves being kind and trustworthy, was the easiest for study subjects to spot, particularly in male faces – 58 to 78 percent of the time; conscientiousness, about 55 percent of the time, and extraversion, roughly 75 percent of the time. But people consistently struggled to identify openness and neuroticism, which covers emotional instability, anxiety, self-consciousness, and sadness, often guessing the associated faces incorrectly. They identified extraversion – being outgoing, sociable, and energized by social interactions – only in women's faces, not men's. In study two, researchers included 322 American adults who participated in the same study as the first but also included demographic questions such as age, ideology, and sex, which helps ensure that effects aren't driven by particular hidden biases, like if one group skews younger or more liberal. Dark Triad traits were again correctly identified, while identification of the Big Five traits was more mixed. Again, the only two that were not identifiable were neuroticism and openness. The subjects were not influenced by age, sex, or political ideology. Study two proved that the results of study one were not a fluke, researchers concluded. Study three involved 402 Turkish college students who repeated study two, but in a classroom setting. The results were the same. And they were better than American adults at identifying narcissism, though less able to judge male extraversion and openness. Researchers did not identify any of the faces belonging to people with psychopathy. Still, those people with those disorders tend to also possess those personality traits, including callousness, thrill-seeking behavior, ease of manipulating people, and superficial charisma. Throughout human evolution, being able to 'read' people has proven a key survival mechanism. Spotting personality traits by how someone looks gives people an advantage, telling us to steer clear of a person who seems manipulative or exploitative. These traits inform the way people act. People who score high in extraversion are typically easy to spot because they are talkative, energetic, and quick to smile. They exhibit outward cues, including a relaxed posture and a warm expression, that are typically easily recognized. On the other side of the spectrum, people with the Dark Triad traits are more likely to lie, manipulate, and act aggressively, which makes them more likely to cause trouble in workplaces and in their relationships.
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Women really DO love a bad boy: Men with psychopathic traits are rated as more attractive, study finds
From Christian Bale in American Psycho to Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, psychopaths in films are often played by very handsome actors. And according to a new study, this is no coincidence. Researchers from Hunan Normal University have revealed that men with psychopathic traits are rated by women as more attractive. In their study, the researchers showed over 500 women photos of men with varying degrees of Dark Triad traits - narcissism, machiavellianism, and psychopathy. The women were asked to rate the men for attractiveness and trustworthiness. The results revealed that men with high Dark Triad traits were seen as both more trustworthy and more attractive. 'In short-term cooperative settings, individuals with high Dark Triad traits tend to inspire more trust,' said study author, Dr Qi Wu. '[This is] partly due to being seen as more attractive based on their facial features.' Psychopathy has been widely studied for decades. For example, previous studies have uncovered a link between the condition and eye-gaze, sadism, and being single. However, until now, the link between psychopathy and trustworthiness has remained largely unstudied. To address this research gap, the team enlisted 592 participants, who were split across four studies. In the first study, participants were shown neutral facial photos of men with varying levels of Dark Triad traits, and asked to rate them for trustworthiness. The second study was a trust game, while the third centred on another facial evluation taks - this time requiring participants to rate the men for dominance, extraversion, and attractiveness. Finally, the fourth study repeated tasks from the second and third studies, involving different participants. The results revealed that, across all four studies, men with high Dark Triad traits were rated as more trustworthy. Surprisingly, traits like dominance and extraversion did not play a big role in this effect. 'Notably, their faces still prompt greater trust even when other traits like dominance, extraversion, and attractiveness are accounted for, suggesting facial features have a unique influence on how trustworthy people are perceived,' Dr Wu added. The study comes shortly after scientists found a link between psychopathy and 'sadism' – deriving pleasure from inflicting pain, suffering or humiliation on others. Everyday examples of sadism include trolling people online, killing video game characters, killing bugs and even sticking pins on voodoo dolls. So if you engage in these sadistic behaviours – even if it's just making other people feel embarrassed online – you could be a psychopath. WOULD YOU KNOW HOW TO SPOT A PSYCHOPATH? Psychopaths display different traits depending on their disorder. Common signs include superficial charm, a grandiose notion of self-worth, the need for stimulation and impulsiveness, pathological lying, the ability to manipulate others and a lack of remorse and empathy. But despite the popular association, not all psychopaths become killers. Experts claim people usually find psychopaths intriguing, but can't put their finger on why. This is down to incongruous behaviour because psychopaths tend to do a lot of acting to deceive, or mimic normal reactions, sometimes changing their views and reactions quickly. For example, Self-professed psychopath Jacob Wells said that upon meeting someone, he tries to become 'the most interesting person they know' and presumably adopts suitable interests and responses to do this. His response also gives away another common trait - a grandiose notion of self-worth - in that he can be the most interesting person in the room. Psychopaths occasionally tend to exhibit unconvincing emotional responses, with slip-ups including tone of voice or body language. This may be because they are unable to understand emotions such as fear and love, but can mimic them. Generally psychopaths' 'emotions' are shallow and short-lived and there is a manipulative ulterior motive to showing them. For example, Mr Wells said he offers to do favours and tells false secrets to people to gain their complete trust. He also displays insincere charm - another trait associated with psychopaths. He says: 'I keep secrets, and tell them fake secrets to further gain their trust, and once they trust me enough, I ask for favours, reminding them of the favours I did them. I can get literally anything from them, which is incredibly useful.' Psychopaths typically display an incredible ability to manipulate others and sometimes take pleasure in doing so. Psychopaths often have an air of superiority about them, perhaps shown by Mr Wells' belief he can spot other psychopaths
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Forensic psychiatrist reveals how common female psychopaths are - and 3 ways they are different from their male counterparts
A psychiatrist has revealed how common female psychopaths are - as well as three ways in which they differ from their male counterparts in a video on YouTube. Dr Sohom Das is a forensic psychiatrist, from London, who also runs an eponymous YouTube channel. He shares content about crime, mental health conditions, and psychology among other topics. His previous video topics include how having ADHD can affect your love life, why women are more likely to binge watch true crime than men, and six reasons why female prison officers have sex with inmates. Speaking in the video, Dr Das said: 'Psychopathy can occur in both men and women, although it's more commonly diagnosed in men - some estimates have suggested that they could be about a 10 to one proportion.' However, he explained, some experts say the assessment is 'skewed towards obvious male traits and that female psychopathy is more subtle'. According to the expert: The first part of the psychopathy assessment looks at how emotionally detached, selfish, uncaring and manipulative a person is so this is relevant for both male and female psychopaths. 'The second part of the test, which covers the psychopathic lifestyle, focuses on violence and anti social behaviour, and these are more male traits.' He added that proportionally, most of the pertinent research is largely based on studies of criminals who were in jail at the time, and in the UK, more men (88,000) are incarcerated than women (less than 4,000). Dr Das then shared three differences between male and female psychopaths. 1. Male psychopaths are more aggressive and impulsive Speaking in the video, Dr Das explained: '[Male psychopaths] tend to be more aggressive and impulsive, so they commit more crime, more violence, more substance abuse and general criminal activity. 'However, [female psychopaths] often present with more covert and manipulative behaviour. They rely on their charm deception and emotional manipulation.' 2. Their motivations are different According to the forensic psychiatrist, male psychopaths are driven by 'a desire for power, excitement, revenge or sexual urges'. However, he explained, female psychopaths are generally motivated more by 'financial gain, status or attention'. 3. They generally commit different types of crime In his video, Dr Das said that male psychopaths are more likely to commit 'violent crimes, assaults, stabbings'. Meanwhile, female psychopaths are 'more likely to commit fraud, embezzlement and other white collar crimes'. This means they are less likely to end up in prison '[This] goes back to my point that they're less likely to be examined, and therefore the proportion is likely to be underestimated,' Dr Das concluded.
