top of page

How to Spot a Psychopath

I've recently had the pleasure (although the subject matter was less than pleasurable!) of working with the lovely Éanna Hardwicke on a series for the BBC. We had to create the voice of a young man convicted of murder, who displays psychopathic tendencies. We were intrigued to discover that these tendencies have a profound impact on the voice. So here's part of a list, originally published in Psychology Today in 2019, just in case you ever meet one! :-

  • Creating complex and often convincing lies

  • Charming the listener

  • Talkativeness

  • Attempt to dominate the conversation

  • Occasional stuttering when the topic touches on their vulnerabilities

  • Sudden shifts in the subject of conversation when they do not feel in control

  • Leaning in and frequent use of hand gestures

  • Non-genuine emotional expressions

  • Few emotion (especially fear) related words

  • Expression of emotions unrelated to the context/topic

  • Drawing conclusions based on limited information

  • Hinting at factors the listener knows nothing about

  • Black-and-white worldview

  • Tendency to generalize

  • Self-contradictions

  • Omitting essential details

  • Greater use of past tense

  • Greater usage of nouns and personal pronouns


8 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All
bottom of page