Antisocial Personality Disorder

1. By: Jordan Davis Ian Brooks Antisocial Personality Disorder

2. Antisocial Personality Disorder • Antisocial Personality Disorder is defined as a persistent disregard for/violation of the rights of others • Deceit and manipulation are central features of this disorder

3. Diagnosis • To be diagnosed, the personmust be at least 18, and must have shown symptoms before age 15 • To diagnose being a psychopath, it does not require a previous diagnosis • Common traits of diagnosed people: • Anger and arrogance • Capable of acting witty and charming • Good at flattery and manipulating other people's emotions • Substance abuse and legal problems

4. Symptoms • Selfish, callous and remorseless use of others: • Grandiose sense of self-worth (greatly inflated idea of one's abilities and self-esteem, arrogance and a sense of superiority) • Pathological lying • Conning/manipulative (uses deceit to cheat others for personal gain) • Lack of remorse or guilt (no feelings or concern for losses, pain and suffering of others) • Emotional poverty (limited range or depth of feelings) • Callous/lack of empathy (a lack of feelings toward others; cold, contemptuous and inconsiderate) • Failure to accept responsibility for own actions • Chronically unstable, antisocial and socially deviant lifestyle: • Need for stimulation/proneness to boredom (an excessive need for new, exciting stimulation and risk-taking) • Parasitic lifestyle (exploitative financial dependence on others) • Poor behavioral control (frequent verbal abuse and inappropriate expressions of anger) • Lack of realistic, long-term goals • Impulsivity • Irresponsibility (repeated failure to fulfill or honor commitments and obligations) • Juvenile delinquency (criminal behavioral problems between the ages of 13-18) • Early behavior problems (before age 13)

5. Treatment & Prognosis • Very difficult to treat • People rarely seek it for themselves, they usually only start when ordered by court • The disease usually peaks in teenage years & early adulthood, and may improve in middle years

6. Statistics & Additional Findings • About 3% of males and 1% of males have Antisocial Personality Disorder • From 3-30% of psychiatric patients have this disorder • Children diagnosed with Antisocial Personality Disorder often have parents who also have it • Anxiety Disorders, Depressive Disorders, and other Personality Disorders (such as borderline personalities and narcissism) frequently co-occur with this disorder. 

7. Etiology • The actual cause of this disease is unknown, but many theories have been formed about the origin • One theory suggests that abnormalities (such as learning disorders and hyperactivity) in development of the nervous system may cause ASP • A recent study suggests that smoking while pregnant may bring about lowered oxygen levels to the fetus which may result in subtle brain injury

8. Famous Sociopaths and Psychos • Ted Bundy • Killed between 30-100+ people, often by strangulation or bludgeoning . • He used disguises and ruses to lure in young girls who thought they were helping an injured man, or talking to a police officer, once he got their trust he would assault and kidnap them. • Bundy claimed to often visit corpses that he had stashed, and would dress them and apply make-up, then lay with them for hours and engage in necrophilia until putrefaction forced him to move on. • Starting at a young age Ted showed very anti-social behavior, He mostly kept to himself and even claimed that he simply did not understand society.

9. Charles Manson • Charles Manson ,born November 12, 1934, Moved to California and like most early psychopaths he started committing smaller crimes such as burglary and armed robbery • Manson started a cult called “the family” made up of him and several women which he used as prostitutes and servants. He taught them that there would be a massive rebellion of Blacks and the whites would lose. Then He and the family would step in and rule the Blacks.

10. Jeffery Dahmer • Dahmer was born in West Allis, Wisconsin, the son of Joyce Annette and Lionel Herbert Dahmer. • Dahmer murdered 17 men and boys – many of whom were of African or Asian descent – between 1978 and 1991, with the majority of the murders occurring between 1987 and 1991. His murders were particularly gruesome, involving rape, torture, dismemberment, necrophilia and cannibalism.

11. Edward Gein • Edward Gein was a necrophiliac and a cannibal, and dug up 15 women’s graves, including his mother’s. Gein tanned their skin used their hides to make upholstery, lamp shades, a belt made from nipples, a necklace of lips, a face mask, a waistcoat of breasts and a vagina, and an entire wardrobe using human skin • He was found innocent because of insanity and eventually died in a mental hospital

12. Bibliography • Reviewed by Linda Vorvick MD (10/17/2008). Antisocial Personality Disorder. Retrieved from http://www.healthline.com/adamcontent/antisocial-personality-disorder • Written by Phillip W. Long, MD (2008). Antisocial personality disorder. Retrieved from http://www.mentalhealth.com/dis/p20-pe04.html • Written by Donald Black, MD Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy D. (12 Dec 2006). Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/lib/2006/what-causes-antisocial-personality-disorder • David G. Meyers. Psychology 8th edition. Retrieved from Psychology 8th edition.