On the other hand, Stedman's Medical Dictionary defines 'psychopath' only as a 'former designation' for a person with an antisocial type of personality disorder. Some medical dictionaries still define psychopathy in both a narrow and broad sense, such as MedlinePlus from the U.S. The term psychopathy initially had a very general meaning referring to all sorts of mental disorders and social aberrations, popularised from 1891 in Germany by Koch's concept of 'psychopathic inferiority' ( psychopathische Minderwertigkeiten). A sense of 'a subject of pathology, morbid, excessive' is attested from 1845, including the phrase pathological liar from 1891 in the medical literature). In medicine, patho- has a more specific meaning of disease (thus pathology has meant the study of disease since 1610, and psychopathology has meant the study of mental disorder in general since 1847. The first documented use is from 1847 in Germany as psychopatisch, and the noun psychopath has been traced to 1885.

The word psychopathy is a joining of the Greek words psyche ( ψυχή) 'soul' and pathos ( πάθος) 'suffering, feeling'. Main article: History of psychopathy Etymology While the term is often employed in common usage along with 'crazy', ' insane', and 'mentally ill', there is a categorical difference between psychosis and psychopathy. The term is also used by the general public, popular press, and in fictional portrayals. The study of psychopathy is an active field of research. Īlthough no psychiatric or psychological organization has sanctioned a diagnosis titled 'psychopathy', assessments of psychopathic characteristics are widely used in criminal justice settings in some nations and may have important consequences for individuals. Hare later repopularized the construct of psychopathy in criminology with his Psychopathy Checklist. The creation of ASPD and DPD was driven by the fact that many of the classic traits of psychopathy were impossible to measure objectively.

The DSM and International Classification of Diseases (ICD) subsequently introduced the diagnoses of antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and dissocial personality disorder (DPD) respectively, stating that these diagnoses have been referred to (or include what is referred to) as psychopathy or sociopathy. Cleckley, an American psychiatrist, influenced the initial diagnostic criteria for antisocial personality reaction/disturbance in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM), as did American psychologist George E. Different conceptions of psychopathy have been used throughout history that are only partly overlapping and may sometimes be contradictory. Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits.

Antisocial by Bradley Campbell