The world is full of different kinds of people, but did you know that 0.6% of the population can actually be classified as psychopaths? Even though they might look just like everyone else, there are deeper signs that can point to the darkness they’re hiding.
Mostly folks know the common characteristics that define psychopaths, like a lack of remorse, the ability to lie easily, and other antisocial behaviors. What people don’t realize is that there are even more subtle ways that can help pinpoint if someone is psychotic.
Hopefully no psychopaths will cross your path, but if they do, here's how you can spot them
Image credits: American Psycho /Edward R. Pressman Productions
They always bring every conversation back to food, money, or intimacy
The way people talk is often a window into their soul, and for psychopaths, this is no different; in fact, their words can tell a lot about what’s on their mind. A report by Jeff Hancock, a Cornell professor, analyzed speech patterns and found that folks with psychotic tendencies spoke twice as much about their physical needs as regular people do.
This could be because they are mostly focused on their own wants and often display excessive selfishness, detachment, and a lack of emotion. Apart from that, researchers also noticed that psychopaths tend to use conjunctions like “because” and “since,” or filler words like “um,” much more often, as they might be trying hard to make a positive impression while talking.
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They are less likely to start yawning after someone else does
Humans are built with something called an “empathy switch” that allows us to put ourselves in other people’s shoes and teaches us how to respond to social situations. The problem with psychotic folks is not that they lack empathy, but that they are able to turn it on and off at will to achieve their goals.
When it comes to yawning, compassion is actually at the core of it, and researchers at Baylor University found that folks who didn’t yawn after seeing someone else do it tended to have a higher “cold-heartedness” score. The only problem is that a person’s level of tiredness can also affect whether they yawn back, so don’t be so quick to call someone a psychopath just for that.
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They’re always moving their hands around while talking
You’ve probably seen motivational speakers, salesmen, and your own friends make lots of hand gestures while talking; heck, you’ve probably even done it yourself. The difference is that when it comes to psychopaths, they tend to use fast-paced up and down hand movements while talking as a way to emphasize specific things.
This is actually a subtle manipulation tactic, and a police interview with the criminal Paul Bernardo shows how he used his big hand gestures to distract from all the lies he was telling. Experts also explain that this kind of behavior could be because psychopaths have a greater need for stimulation since they experience boredom very easily.
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They have weird sleeping habits and don’t feel as tired
If you consider yourself a night owl or don’t need much sleep on average, this might be the wake-up call for you. That’s because studies have found that a preference for staying awake into the early hours of the night can be linked to anti-social behavior, narcissism, and psychopathy.
Psychologists explain that the reason for this is that psychopaths have a small emotional range and don’t experience intense fear, anxiety, or sadness; so they have less REM sleep on average. They also experience a more fragmented sleep cycle but don’t tend to feel tired or fatigued throughout the day, which can signal a brain-body disconnect.
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They can keep their head eerily still
Moving your head while talking or listening is often something that we all do automatically, so we tend to take it for granted. What’s interesting is that science has found that our head movements play a big role in communication, by helping convey confusion, agreement, emphasis, and even dissent.
On the other hand, personality researchers noted that psychopaths could keep their heads perfectly still even during long conversations and stare for a while without blinking. This could be a way for them to steer the conversation without giving away much through nonverbal cues.
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Although it’s incredibly hard to pinpoint a psychopath with just these few clues, it could definitely help you steer clear of some unfavorable people. Along with these 5 signs, here’s one bonus trick to help you figure out who has psychotic tendencies, although this one might be the subtlest of them all.
According to a survey conducted by researchers at the University of Innsbruck, folks with higher levels of antisocial personality traits often seemed to prefer bitter tastes more. This doesn’t just mean that they like black coffee, dark chocolate, or green tea; it’s more that they're drawn to bitter foods in general.
This definitely isn’t permission for you to just go around calling people psychopaths willy-nilly because that might not end well. It’s best to keep your eyes peeled for anyone exhibiting such traits, and also probably look in the mirror to see if you’re doing any of the things on this list.
We’d love to hear if you know of any other signs of psychopathy, so please do share those in the comments below.
Some folks felt that neurodivergence could be confused with some of these signs, which is why they should be taken with a grain of salt
