| Jan. 23rd, 2008 @ 09:37 am Learned Sensitization? |
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A sociopath is a person who functions by having a lack of a conscience. In my life alone I've personally known two, and it was scary. This moral deficiency allows them to do things that regular people would maybe daydream about but rarely act on. When they are caught breaking the rules they seem to understand the concept of a penalty but react in a "What's the big deal?" kind of way. It is believed that this lack of conscience is an inherited trait not a developed one and that 1 out of 300 women and 1 out of 100 men will have it.
In romantic relationships, a sociopath may be charming and affectionate just long enough to establish intimacy with a partner, and then suddenly become abusive, unfaithful, and manipulative. The bewildered partner might turn to friends and family with their story, only to be met with disbelief—how could the warm, outgoing individual everyone has come to know possibly be guilty of these acts? All too often, the abused partner blames the situation on themselves, and comes out of the relationship emotionally destroyed.
The lack of a moral compass enables the sociopath to typically be more successful than those counterparts who do have one. They can take risks while shrugging off failure, and can exploit moments of opportunity without hesitation caused by social mores. This emotional detachment also gives them a strong social advantage because they don't feel embarrassment (which is tied to remorse), and can make jokes at their own expense.
While mimckry of this behavior can be achieved by those who have a conscience by careful practice, it is incomplete compared to that of the sociopath. It is possible for a person to develope a sense of distance from their remorse when the situation precipitates its neccessity but doing so is similar to flexing a muscle- the detachment can not be maintained indefinately. For example a devout person who holds on to the ideology that they should not kill is capable of being trained to overcome this when they are drafted into military service and a situation where they will be killed if they do not.
Emotional detachment is a skill that can be learned as well as inherited, but can emotional detachment be un-learned?
The concept that it is possible to learn it as a skill suggests the possibility that it would be likely that it could be reversed. However you would have to find a sociopathic subject who actually wanted to develope a conscience before the behavior could be adopted. In theory though, it seems to me that it should be possible to teach those who lack a conscience to have one What do you all think? |
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