Psychopaths are social predators, and like all predators, they are looking for feeding grounds. Wherever you get power, prestige and money, you will find them.
Robert D. HareRead
Language and words for psychopaths are only word deep; there is no emotional colouring behind it. A psychopath can use a word like, ‘I love you’ but it means nothing more to him than if he said, ‘I’ll have a cup of coffee.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote illustrates that psychopaths can manipulate language without genuine emotional understanding or sincerity.
Robert D. Hare's quote highlights the emotional detachment prevalent in psychopathy, where individuals can articulate sentiments like love without any true emotional depth. This suggests a stark contrast between the superficial use of language by psychopaths and its deeper, more meaningful application in normal emotional contexts, underscoring the profound difference in emotional processing within these individuals.
Themes
PsychopathLanguageEmotionLoveCommunication
In practice
Example use cases
In a psychology class discussing emotional intelligence, this quote could be used to illustrate the concept of emotional detachment.
More from Robert D. Hare
All quotes →Many psychopaths describe the traditional treatment programmes as finishing schools where they hone their skills. Where they find out that there are lots of techniques they had not thought about before.
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Measurement and categorization are, of course, fundamental to any scientific endeavor, but the implications of being able to identify psychopaths are as much practical as academic. To put it simply, if we can't spot them, we are doomed to be their victims, both as individuals and as a society.
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Not all psychopaths are in prison - some are in the boardroom.
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A psychopath can tell what you're thinking but what they don't do is feel what you feel. These are people without a conscience.
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