Tackling a Tough Question: Who is the Emerging Psychopath?

Volume 1 - Issue 3

Jamie L Flexon*

Received: June 05, 2018;   Published: June 12, 2018

DOI: 10.32474/PRJFGS.2018.01.000117

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Abstract

Defining who the nascent or emerging psychopath is tied to an unfortunate reality. There is no uniformly accepted definition of the concept, which is tied to debate in the literature. As some have argued, and rightfully so, the most common measures for psychopathy are operating in a theoretical vacuum and the measures have been confused with the construct [1,2]. This is the opposite of how this should work, as the construct should inform the measure. Little ground in conceptually defining psychopathy will be made as long as clinicians and researchers continue to move forward as though this issue has been resolved. Since some claim to use the work of Hervey Cleckley [3] to inform their work and measures of psychopathy, it seems prudent to go to the source when discerning the features of psychopathy. Through several editions of Cleckley’s seminal work, The Mask of Sanity, the concept of psychopathy was refined. In his fifth edition, Cleckley [3] offers the following:

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