My Inquiry Question for this year will be:
How are psychopaths and sociopaths genetically similar/ different?
I’ve always been intrigued by the topic of psychopaths and sociopaths, even more so now that I’m taking psychology 12 at school. Psychopaths and sociopaths are commonly portrayed in movies and TV dramas as ruthless killers and the differences between psychopaths and sociopaths aren’t usually shown. Psychopaths tend to be more charming and manipulative, leading a somewhat normal life, while sociopaths tend to be more erratic, aggressive and the ability to lead a normal life is minimized. Most people think psychopaths and sociopaths are interchangeable but they have different meanings. To briefly explain, “sociopath” is a term that describes a personality disorder, where psychopathy describes a set of personality traits. I hope this can educate people on the differences between psychopathy and sociopathy on a deeper level by exploring the genetic basis of the disorders and how they relate to each other.
hi ronnie!
I had just read your comment on my post about my inquiry question. I can’t believe both of us love to watch those types of shows. we should talk to each other about our projects and see if both of us has something similar to both of our questions.
Hello Ronnie,
I also thought psychopaths and sociopaths were similar and never bothered to know the difference! Thanks for the information. I’ve also wondered after watching the movie Joker, if he was a sociopath or psychopath. I think I’ll be able to tell now. It’ll be interesting if you do research on how people become sociopaths. Here’s a website I read after I read your inquiry question: https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/Psychopath-vs-Sociopath