

This is not the case for the sociopath or psychopath who may be court mandated for treatment but find it nearly if not totally impossible to experience any remorse or empathy. It is also more likely as noted above that the narcissist will seek treatment or be pressed to do so by others who care about him and have been hurt by him emotionally. The main difference between the narcissist and the sociopath or psychopath is that the narcissist may experience or learn to experience some remorse and eventually some empathy for actions that hurt others and his maltreatment is verbal not physically aggressive or violent. But, as you will read, the belief that psychopaths and sociopaths can change is viewed much more pessimistically. The psychoanalytic findings are presently buttressed by the concurrent work of psychotherapists and current neuroscientists. Most likely this personality disorder has been the most frequently addressed clinically because this group is the most likely though not necessarily available to seek treatment. The treatment for the narcissistic personality is the most well-defined because it has been studied for decades by prominent psychoanalysts who believe change is possible. Furthermore, the psycho-therapeutic treatment of these disorders are controversial. The terms or conditions are too often used interchangeably which is incorrect as you will find in the specific characteristics described below. Each are distinctive disorders significant not only to parents raising children who do not want their kids to grow up to have these personality disorders as adults but also to neuroscientists who are studying variations in the brain based on findings from MRI’s. In long and short-term relationships, in the workplace, and in society at large today there is increasing concern about the terms narcissist, sociopath, and psychopath.
