I see that scientists have conducted research that indicates (note I say "indicates") that aggressive, antisocial teenage boys with the condition known as conduct disorder (CD) have differences in the size and structure of parts of the brain that relate to empathy.
The study indicates that the differences are there, regardless of the age at which the patients developed the disorder.
However, it has yet to be "indicated" as to whether these brain differences are the cause of CD or are in fact caused by CD.
Suffice to say (as with so many other "excuses" used by certain parents and those with a political agenda) this research will be used by some to excuse the behaviour, and to abdicate responsibility for the CD of their offspring.
However, life is never really that simple; we cannot simple shrug our shoulders (when someone acts like a git) and say "well, it's genetic there's nothing we can do".
Bollocks!
Human society has been around long enough for each generation to have had its fair share of gits with CD, yet we have managed to survive and deal with those individuals.
The brain (even in those humans classified as super intelligent) is barely used, it has the capacity to achieve far more than we have ever yet tried to do with it. There are many people who have been struck down by strokes, severe autism, disabilities etc who with the correct stimulation can regain part (in some cases all) of their faculties as the brain rewires itself and compensates for shortcomings in certain areas.
As with any animal (humans are but a "nano chromosome" removed from animals) that is "acting up", corrective behaviour can be instilled into the animal via a mixture of kindness, patience, rewards and punishment.
A child that constantly ignores warnings not to put his hand into the flames will one day put his hands into the flames, but once burned he will never do that again.
The responsibility for correcting CD rests with the parents (in extreme cases with the appropriate support of professionals). Where the parents refuse to accept that responsibility, and let the child run amok in the community, then the situation can be addressed by taking away all of the family's "toys".
Specifically institute a family curfew every evening (confine the entire family to their house), and deprive them of their TV's, stereos, pcs, mobile phones etc. They would be forced (like it or not) to face each other very evening, without the distractions of their "toys". Eventually they would have to address (one way or another) their behaviour as individuals and as a group, and the consequences of that behaviour on themselves and others.
One way or another, empathy would be learned (even if the parts of their brains that normally deal with empathy are withered and redundant).
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Interesting thoughts Ken.
ReplyDeleteNanny has deemed that "Personality Disorders" which are what you are talking about, are not mental illnesses for the purpose of the mental health acts. Her thinking is that because a personality disorder cannot be "treated" and "cured" it should not be treated as an illness, this has led to many "offenders" with personality disorders being put into ordinary prisons, as opposed to secure forensic psychiatric hospitals or special hospitals, such as Broadmoor. In the good old days, before political interference, a person with a psychopathic personality disorder that committed murder or rape etc, would not have been released until he or she was considered to be no threat to the public or his or her self; with the PD this would never happen, so they would stay put and never pose a threat to the public again. Being incarcerated in "hospital" was, in past times, considered in itself to be "treatment" but Nanny didn't like it and thus we now see very dangerous people released back into the community.
These personality defects tend to be "caused" by a combination of two things; enviromental and genetics factors.
If a youngster has a genetic propensity to such a disorder and is unlucky enough to be in a bad enviroment that could trigger that underlying condition, such as bad parenting, then the personality defect will develop.
Until you've sat in on a pschiatric assessment of someone with an anti social personality disorder, you really cannot understand just how different these people really are compared to you and I. They are very manipulative, often very intelligent and come across as very normal but, for example, I had one patient that had killed a kid after seriously sexually assaulting him, I asked how he felt afterwards and he went into a Frankie Howard style "Woe is me, I've died a thousand deaths with the guilt etc etc" I pushed him to tell me how long he felt bad about the murder and assault and he said a long time, again I pushed him for a time frame, eventually he said at least ten minutes....He just had no concept of what he had done nor any empatyhy at all; that is classic Anti Social Personality Disorder or, "A Psychopath" in layman's terms.
I've got hundreds of CDs and there's nothing wrong with me
ReplyDelete@Ken - //A child that constantly ignores warnings not to put his hand into the flames...//
ReplyDeleteBUT - as Kipling pointed out (1919) - some people can't/won't learn -
// the burnt Fool's bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire;//
http://www.kipling.org.uk/poems_copybook.htm
Anyone with a "conduct disorder" or any other condition that renders them unable to take responsibility for their actions -- and I do believe that such conditions exist -- should undergo mandatory sterilization, as we don't want genetic maldispositions (if I may coin a term) passed down to the next generation, and even if their condition isn't inherently genetic, since they can't control their own aggressive behavior, they can't possibly be fit parents.
ReplyDeleteIn 1980something, the Thatcher Government closed the mental hospitals to save money...what?, oh sorry, for care in the community. (note: believe it or not, this was originally mooted by Enoch Powell when he was Health Sec in MacMillan's Government). Anyway, as far as womenfolk are concerned, those who would have been in secure mental hospitals are now in prison.
ReplyDeleteTonk. This may interest you. A young lady, who had fallen on hard times, was given help by a kind lady on her street. One day, the young lady showed her immense gratitude by killing her kindly neighbour in a grusome way. Whilst serving her sentence, she was asked a question, "Do you regret anything"? Her answer was, "I regret being caught".