In contrast, psychopaths have more self-control and are more calculating than sociopaths. They blend into society more effectively than sociopaths because, as Bonn points out, they are “often well educated and hold steady jobs.” Not all psychopaths are violent or a threat to society, and some manage to channel their need to control others into gainful employment. They gravitate toward positions of authority and jobs requiring objective analysis and decision-making. According to a Time article, some professions with the most psychopaths include CEOs, lawyers, surgeons, and police officers. Oddly enough, chefs and salespeople also made the list.
Sociopaths have a slight edge over psychopaths when it comes to establishing meaningful relationships. According to Bonn, “it is difficult but not impossible for sociopaths to form attachments with others.” They are “capable of empathy in certain limited circumstances but not in others” and “with a few individuals but not others.”
Gary Ridgway is a good example of the sociopath’s “limited” ability to feel empathy and form emotional attachments. Between 1982 and 2001, he “murdered at least 49 women in Washington state,” according to biography.com. One article reports that his victims were prostitutes and young runaways. After killing them, Ridgway “often returned to his dumping grounds to have sex with his victims’ corpses.” He also dumped some of their bodies in the Green River, which earned him the name of the Green River Killer. While Ridgway committed these horrible crimes, he was married to his third wife, Judith Ridgway. Although he targeted prostitutes because of his “hate” for them, he loved his wife and had a good relationship with her. In an interview six years after her husband went to prison, Judith Ridgway still had trouble believing that her husband was a serial killer. She described their life together as “loving” and “content.” She said, “He made me feel like a newlywed every day.” However, she had to face the truth about what her husband had done after she and the police discovered evidence linking him to some of the murdered prostitutes. She divorced Gary Ridgway after 16 years of marriage and has no contact with him today. She told the interviewer, “I loved the man I knew, and I hate the man who took him away.”
13 Clear Traits of a Psychopath (Spot Them)
Continue reading on the next page
Sharing is caring!
