Confessions of an Author

Hare’s Checklist Most psychopaths are not killers, or ever convicted of any crime. It is an inherited disorder, and you might know someone who meets the criteria. Robert D Hare MD, put together a checklist of traits to help psychologists diagnose psychopaths. He warns against laymen using this list to diagnose themselves or those they know, as psychopaths. Psychopathy is a syndrome - it is a cluster of several traits, and most non-psychopaths will have at least some. However, just in case you are interested, (and just for fun) I have listed the main symptoms below: A person is scored 0 if the trait is not present, 1 if the trait is sometimes or partially present, and 2 if the trait is definitely present. A score of more than 30 would indicate someone is likely to be a psychopath. •  glib and superficial charm •  grandiose (exaggeratedly high) estimation of self / egocentric   •  need for stimulation •  pathological lying/ deceitful •...