(NaturalNews) Psychopathic behavior lurks among human interactions today, infecting character traits and destroying families and organizations along the way. It's a behavior pattern that is void of empathy, seeking attention and personal gain no matter the cost. Entire families can be ripped apart and drained of energy all because of a psychopath's cunning web of lies. In the culture of big business and big government, psychopathic behavior is practically given incentive, as people learn to manipulate, colluding their way to the top.

Sadly, psychopaths can go undetected in modern-day society, often because they appear loving and angelic at first, using flowery language to gain other people's trust. Psychopaths are aware of what they want and play on people's emotions to get what they want. Oftentimes, they will paint themselves as a victim, only to use other people's sympathy for attention and personal gain. Other times, they will paint themselves as heroic, telling descriptive tales that make other people believe in them. This is how psychopaths ensnare people in their web of lies; they build up a level of perceived trust that their victim tries to keep and strive toward.

But at their core, psychopaths are cold and ruthless, with intentions to manipulate their way forward and to the top. They will find any way to be the center of attention, taking the energy from those around them. While their lack of empathy is hard to decipher at first, two behavior patterns can indicate their psychopathic ways: irresponsible and impulsive behavior. The best way to find them out is to fact-check their stories. Do their stories add up? If they talk about someone, it's best to go to the person whom they speak of and see if their story lines up.

If anyone questions the psychopath or confronts their manipulative behavior, then the truth-teller becomes the psychopath's enemy. The psychopath will do everything possible to destroy their enemy, concocting lies about the truth-teller, lies that bring them even more fame. In this way, a psychopath can make themselves appear poignant, moving entire groups of people in their favor.

Research shows how psychopaths intelligently conceal their intentions

In new research appearing in The Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology, intelligent psychopaths were found to be the most dangerous, disguising their psychopathic behavior while rising to positions of power and influence in both business and government. The study found that ruthless risk-takers often rise to top positions in business by learning how to intelligently conceal their psychopathic behavior. When psychopaths are aware of their behavior, they learn to consciously lie to manipulate and destroy others' reputations while getting what they want.

The study found an interaction between psychopathic behavior and intelligence. Those with higher IQs were able to control their psychopathic behavior, moderating physiological responses. For example, this technique can be used to manipulate self-report scales to elicit results that benefit oneself. The study showed how highly intelligent psychopaths can roam throughout society destroying others while going virtually undetected.

In the study, 50 college students with majors were given a Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale, a 26-item self-report measure designed to assess psychopathic characteristics like uncaring, selfish and manipulative traits, as well as antisocial, impulsive and self-defeating lifestyle behaviors. The results were compared with a standardized IQ test. Finally, the students were presented with an image task using the International Affective Picture System. Designed to measure empathetic response, 40 pictorial stimuli were flashed before the individual's eyes while galvanic skin response (GSR) electrodes recorded their physiological responses to the pictorial stimuli. The pictures used would normally shock or cause discomfort in the average person. Those with Factor One psychopathic tendencies (often found in those who become business managers) show little or no emotional response to the picture stimuli. A Factor Two psychopath would respond to the pictures with increased excitement.

According to the University of Huddersfield study, the GSR responses among the participants were similar to predictions, "except for the fact that it was only those with lower levels of intelligence who displayed the expected levels of excitement."

"The conclusion is that those with higher IQs had sufficient intelligence to fake their emotional response, making it more difficult to detect their condition."

It's important to note that psychopaths do not know how to truly love. This lack of understanding love may be derived from early development and socialization that was not accompanied by normal affective experiences. Sadly, though, trying to teach them love will only embolden their narcissistic behaviors, as they continue to use the love only to get what they want.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.hud.ac.uk

http://www.tandfonline.com