Post on 16-Apr-2017
transcript
Mirror Neurons:
Brain cells that respond equally when we personally experience something and when we witness someone else experience the same thing.
Mirror neurons are important for understanding the actions of other people: they allow us to empathize (to feel what others
are feeling).
PsychopathyA personality disorder in which a person shows a lack of
remorse and empathy. Also known as anti-social personality disorder, psychopathy is characterized by lack of a conscience: a psychopath may understand society’s definition of right and wrong, but they either don’t care,
or don’t understand why they need to conform to it.
Mirror Neurons
Normally, when we see someone in pain, we empathize because our mirror neurons fire, causing us to understand
the feeling of pain, and perhaps feel pain ourselves.
Psychopathy
Fewer regions in the brain become active when a psychopath sees someone in pain, demonstrating that mirror neurons
are not as functional.
PsychopathySigns someone might be a psychopath:- They are charming, and good at
pretending to be a normal and likeable person
- They think they are better than others and have an inflated image of their own greatness
- They are good at manipulating others
- They frequently lie- They do not show any emotions or
sympathy for others- They are reckless and fearless
Psychopathy Facts:1% of the human population has the personality disorder known as psychopathy. That means out
of every 100 people you’ve met in your life, one of them was a psychopath!
Men are three times more likely to be psychopaths than women.
15-25% of all prisoners in jail are psychopaths.
The profession with the highest number of psychopaths is company CEO/top executive. Psychopaths also make
good lawyers, surgeons, and politicians.
SociopathyThe terms psychopath and sociopath mean roughly the same thing. The word “sociopath” was created to refer
to someone whose immoral behavior is learned (a product of the environment) rather than someone
whose immoral behavior is due to their nature (biology). The term has fallen out of use by psychologists.
Sorry Sherlock, A psychopath and a sociopath are the same thing…And you just made up the term “high-
functioning sociopath.”
Psychopathy Facts:
How does someone “become” a psychopath?
Brain damageBorn with
abnormalities in the brain
Psychopathy Facts:Symptoms of psychopathy can be present in
individuals with brain damage:
1966: Charles Whitman was a 25-year-old engineering student and former Marine who killed 17 people and wounded 32 in a mass shooting at the University of Texas, before being shot and killed himself by police.
Earlier that day, he also murdered his wife and mother. An autopsy was conducted and investigators found a tumor pressing against his amygdala, the small region
of the brain that controls emotion.
Structural Brain AbnormalitiesAny brain abnormalities that are not caused by brain damage: these abnormalities are due to the brain not
developing in the normal way after the individual is born.
Examples: 1. Smaller or larger
sections of the brain2. Uneven blood flow
in the brain3. Too much or too
little grey matter4. Little to no activity
in mirror neurons
Structural Brain AbnormalitiesAny brain abnormalities that are not caused by brain damage: these abnormalities are due to the brain not
developing in the normal way after the individual is born.
Many psychopaths have a smaller prefrontal cortex or amygdala.
Structural Brain AbnormalitiesAny brain abnormalities that are not caused by brain damage: these abnormalities are due to the brain not
developing in the normal way after the individual is born.
When shown images that usually create an emotional response in people, the psychopathic brain does not
respond with as much neural activity.
Structural Brain AbnormalitiesAny brain abnormalities that are not caused by brain damage: these abnormalities are due to the brain not
developing in the normal way after the individual is born.
Many schizophrenics have enlarged
ventricles (a fluid-filled cavity) in
the brain.
Causes of Structural Brain Abnormalities
Structural brain abnormalities are a type of birth defect. Birth defects can be caused by the following things:
1. Errors in the gene inheriting process: a baby can be born with too few or too many chromosomes, or with a damaged chromosome.
2. Inherited diseases: birth defects like hemophilia and dwarfism are passed on genetically.
3. Alcohol or drug use by the mother
4. Diet & overall health of the mother
5. Exposure of the mother to dangerous chemicals/toxins/radiation