Can Psychopathy Be Cured Part Two

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I have no idea how many of you cheated and just looked it up, but for those of you that actually guessed six months, well done. They “treated” them for eleven months, and followed up for six? I know I asked this already, but what are we even doing right now? What is this? How is this a “study”? Someone paid them money for this “treatment”.

So, of course I had to know how they got the participants to behave themselves, and basically they showed them that they could be put on a lower security tier if they straightened up.

Tangible Progress Incentives (Security & Placement): One of the strongest motivators was the prospect of reducing security classifications and moving to lower-security environments. This offered more freedom, better conditions, access to other programs, and eventual steps toward release. Many participants were motivated by this realistic pathway out of high/maximum security.

In other words, behave, you get to be on a lower security tier. Well, duh dumbasses. How do they not already know this? So not only not psychopaths but also less than intelligent. All right… good to know.

Here is a bit more about the reward system:

Building Motivation Internally (Livesley Model Principles):

Therapists focused on identifying realistic hope, addressing participants’ personal concerns, and linking behaviour change to the men’s own goals (e.g., better relationships, personal success, or getting out of restrictive units).

Validation — Recognizing successes and competencies to build self-efficacy.

Collaborative relationship- Treating participants as partners in the process rather than just recipients of treatment.

Explicit focus on motivation as a therapy target when it dipped, using education about thoughts/feelings/behaviours and self-reflection.

Going through it from the top.

Psychopaths do not respond to “hope”. It simply isn’t a thing for us. There are goals, and pathways to that goal. There is no hope, or despair. If I want to get off a restrictive unit, I would simply figure out the process for doing so, and do it. I don’t need someone to tell me about the process.

Validation. Psychopaths do not want or need validation. People compliment us, or tell us that we did something good, and our internal response is… “All right…? I don’t care what you think.” I don’t do anything for someone else’s sake. You would first have to care about their opinion.

Collaborative relationship. Yeah, we don’t care. We aren’t your partner, and trying to treat us that way is going to make us think that you are out to get something. Bugger off.

Holy hell I had to ask Grok what the last one even meant. I think it sensed my annoyance at the poorly written BS because this is what I got back:

In Plain English:

If a guy started thinking “Screw this program, it’s boring and useless,” the therapists would sit with him (in group or one-on-one) and unpack it:

“Why do you think that? What feelings come up? How does that make you behave? Is this thought actually helping you get what you want (like getting out of max security)?”

The goal was to help them become more aware of their own mental patterns so they could choose better responses instead of just giving up or acting out when things got hard.

This is a core part of modern therapy for personality issues- treating motivation as a skill you can actively work on, not something you either have or don’t have

And my response to that is… you want me to read all that? I am not motivated to do so. Where is the support team that I apparently get for when my motivation dips…?

All kidding aside, this also would not work on a psychopath. If I am unmotivated, you are not changing that. I don’t care, and nothing anyone says to me is magically going to fix the issue. Another aspect of psychopathy is stubbornness. The more you push, the less interested I am in doing what you want from me. There is nothing that is going to change it, and doing the “how do you feel about…” I’m already out.

I don’t think these people could handle an actual psychopath if they met one, so it is probably good that these participants were not psychopathic. None of this garbage has an effect on us. If anything, you are guaranteeing our lack of interest in whatever you’re selling. Especially if I can obtain whatever it is without you. You have to be a gatekeeper, and it is abundantly clear, they are not in this situation.

Further research into treatment programmes is needed to continue to improve outcomes for those high on psychopathy and those affected by it. Well-designed treatment programmes, such as those that adhere to the Good Lives Model and include Schema therapy approaches, are more likely to improve outcomes for people higher on psychopathy.

Again, in comes Grok, because when I go to the “Good Lives Model” I am immediately greeted with “The Good Lives Model (GLM) is a framework of offender rehabilitation which, given its holistic nature, addresses the limitations of the traditional risk management approach.”

And that is a nope from me. I am not reading that crap. Here is what Grok said about it:

Here’s a plain English summary of the Good Lives Model (GLM):The Good Lives Model is a way of helping offenders that focuses on building a better life for them, rather than just trying to stop them from reoffending through punishment or constant monitoring.

Core Idea:

Everyone wants certain basic good things in life, like:

Good health and safety

Psychopaths are not very concerned with health or safety. So that’s not going to work.

Close relationships

Lol, and no.

Feeling good about themselves

Already feel great about ourselves, so no.

Meaning or purpose

Not even a little. We also do not understand this motivation in others. We are alive, that is the meaning, that is the purpose.

Fun and hobbies

I mean… sure. I guess one out of however many is inevitable

Work or activities they’re good at

Nope. I can get good at a huge variety of things, and just as easily forget I know anything about those things.

Freedom and control over their own life

This isn’t a preference, it is a requirement. So they get two.

Peace of mind

That is standard hardwiring for us.

Feeling part of a community

Nope.

Pleasure and creativity

What do these two things have to do with one another? My guess is, nothing.

People commit crimes because they’re trying to get some of these good things, but they do it in harmful or messed-up ways (because they lack the skills, opportunities, or support to get them properly).

People commit crimes because they want to.

The Fix

Instead of just telling them “don’t do bad stuff,” the model says:
Help them get those good things in healthy, legal ways. Give them the skills, resources, and support they need so they don’t have to resort to crime.

This includes:

Fixing problems in their thinking or abilities.

Helping them build better daily routines and plans for the future.

Making sure different parts of their life fit together without major conflicts.

Bottom Line

Traditional approaches often focus only on risk and what’s wrong with the person. The Good Lives Model says: Fix the problems by building a life worth living — one where the person can meet their needs without hurting others. It’s more positive and practical, and it’s been used in sex offender programs and other rehabilitation work around the world.

I don’t mean to sound judgy here, but this sounds a little more like whoever wrote this is someone that has never met a criminal in their lives, and thinks that all they really need is a hug. It is garbage like this that annoys me. People who think that everyone is fundamentally good are kind of stupid. A lot of people in prison do not care at all about what they want out of them. They like what they do, and will keep doing it. This is Polly Anna nonsense.

Next is Schema therapy. I looked this up specifically in how it might be used in psychopathy.

Schema therapy for psychopathy (or antisocial personality disorder/ASPD with psychopathic traits) is an emerging application, primarily in forensic or specialized settings. Psychopathy has historically been viewed as difficult or “untreatable,” but schema therapy challenges this by targeting underlying early maladaptive schemas, modes, and unmet emotional needs.

Already we have ASPD being conflated with psychopathy, however, considering that this is being used in prisons and forensic hospitals, which sort of assumes that any psychopath there is probably antisocial.

Key Adaptations for Psychopathy/ASPD

Psychopathic traits often involve schemas like Mistrust/Abuse, Entitlement/Grandiosity, Insufficient Self-Control/Self-Discipline, Defectiveness/Shame, and emotional inhibition or deprivation. These can stem from harsh, abusive, or neglectful childhoods.

Hmm… nope, on most of these. Yes, psychopaths do not trust people. We lack the ability to do so. That is an oxytocin emotion, and we do not process oxytocin, so that is absent. Psychopathy has nothing to do with abuse. Abuse is a choice, and often one made in the heat of emotions, not in the emotional void that is psychopathy.

Psychopathy does not come with entitlement or grandiosity. That would be narcissism, not psychopathy. Insufficient self-control/Self Discipline- yeah, I can agree with that, especially with antisocial psychopaths.

Defectiveness/Shame. I am guessing that defectiveness is a psychological term, but all the same I disagree with it. Also, shame? No. Not at all. We cannot experience shame.

Emotional inhibition is hardwired, and we don’t have emotional deprivation. What does that even mean? Grok to the rescue:

People with this schema hold a deep, often unconscious belief that their core emotional needs will not be met by others. These needs typically include:

Affection, warmth, and love

Empathy, understanding, and validation

Guidance, protection, or nurturance

Yeah, none of that with psychopathy. None of those are core needs for us, and we are not concerned in the slightest that these things exist in our lives.

Psychopaths can certainly have harsh, abusive, or neglectful childhoods, but that won’t create internal emotional issues. We simply learn what works in terms of interacting with the world. Teach us that violence works, and we will use violence.

Prominent schema modes in antisocial/psychopathic presentations include:

Overcompensatory modes — Such as Self-Aggrandizer (arrogance, superiority), Bully and Attack (aggression, dominance), or Predator (calculated manipulation).

Only one is correct, and that would be the predator one. The other two have to do with narcissism.

Detached Protector or other avoidant coping modes (emotional detachment, superficial charm).

Psychopaths are always emotionally detached because we cannot attach to begin with. We talked about charm, superficial and otherwise, in the last article.

Angry Child or Abandoned/Abused Child (underneath the facade, though often well-hidden).

None of this matters to a psychopath. There is no angry child, because we cannot feel anger deeply. It cannot last, and it doesn’t direct our behavior. There is no emotional memory for anything, and we don’t feel protected and loved in the first place, so we also cannot feel abandoned. An abused psychopath will carry negative behavior, because that is what they learned works, but not the emotional baggage of an “abused child”. That is impossible.

Limited Healthy Adult mode (responsible, empathetic self-regulation is weak).

We have no empathetic self-regulation. That is not a thing that can exist for us. We can choose to be responsible, we can choose not to be.

Therapy focuses on weakening these maladaptive modes, reducing risk-related behaviors (e.g., impulsivity, violence, manipulation), and building healthier coping and a stronger Healthy Adult mode. It addresses core emotional needs that were unmet, even if the person presents as not needing connection.

Well then, you are wasting your time. None of this will do anything for a psychopath. So far, 0-3, none of the treatment ideas are applicable.

Back to the article.

These outcomes include more prosocial behaviour while still in prison, enhanced reintegration into wider society upon release, and improved chances of getting jobs and staying out of the criminal justice system longer-term. This is achieved by collaborative planning between clinician and client, so rehabilitation can be tailored to the individual’s unique presentation of psychopathic traits.

This is going to be far more effective with an antisocial person, not a psychopath. The techniques aren’t going to be valuable to us. People need to actually understand how we think so they can have a chance at conversing with us in a meaningful (effective) way. So far, processes such as these have not been suggested. That’s unfortunate.

There are also treatment options for people with high levels of psychopathy traits who do not show antisocial behaviour that is illegal or violent.

Name one.

I’ll wait.

Name ONE.

However, many more general approaches, such as working on reactive behaviour, emotion regulation, and empathy may be beneficial, with some suggesting a multimodal approach may prove more effective for this population.

Oooo, you can’t. Go figure. You can’t name one, and immediately go into a description of things that have nothing to do with psychopathy, and in fact are things that are the opposite of psychopathy. I do not know why any of you put your names to this article, because it is an embarrassment for people that should, based on their credentials, know better.

Psychopaths do not have reactive behavior. That requires hot emotions. Psychopaths run cold. Not hot.

Psychopaths do not have emotional dysregulation. Our emotions are turned so far that they rarely make an appearance, and when they do, are never strong enough to direct behavior.

Psychopaths can never experience emotional empathy. It is literally impossible, so this would be a total waste of time. If one aspect of psychopathy is agreed upon, it is this total lack of empathy that comes hardwired with psychopathy.

None of this would do anything for psychopaths, and you claim that you want to be able to understand psychopathy better in the wider world, but you don’t understand it in the very limited world that you are already playing in. You have such a convoluted idea of what it is, that you have no hope of being able to do better with more information. You would just make a larger mess, if that can be believed.

Possible pathways to access this are talking to a GP or a therapist who will be able to provide individual therapy.

I’m sorry, who exactly are you talking to in this closing sentence? Surely not psychopaths. We aren’t interested in being anyone different than who we are. Are you speaking to pretend psychopaths, figuring that they need help regardless, so you might as well play into their delusions if it gets them into the therapy chair? I can’t think of any other reason for such a pointless closer.

That’s it, that’s the article. It was… not great. It was actually pretty terrible, which is unfortunate. I don’t know why they needed so many people to write this drivel, but here we are. Terrible writing that perpetuates terrible stereotypes.