These days one hears and reads a lot about sociopaths or psychopaths.  The main reasons for this are that there appears to be somewhat of an increase in the prevalence of this very disturbing personality disorder and interest in such problem characters has grown in recent years.  Yet there are some misconceptions that persist not only about the disorder itself but also about the meaning of the terms used to describe it.  Further, there... 

As I have indicated in a prior post, Lying is one of the many tactics by which a person avoids taking responsibility for behavior while simultaneously attempting to manipulate or manage the impression of others.  It’s one of the most common, habitual tactics used by individuals with a disorder or disturbance of character.   In my prior posts, I’ve talked about what my experience working with disturbed characters has taught... 

I’ve been posting on the topic of character disturbance not only on this blog, but on other international blogs.  Readers from across the globe have offered several intriguing comments and questions. Because I think a robust discussion on this topic is so important, I’d like to address some of the issues raised in this post. One comment I was particularly struck by was from Sarah: “Freud’s was the dominant form of thinking and... 

First of all, having a disturbance (alt. “disorder”) of character is not the same as having a personality disorder, although many (including mental health professionals) erroneously use the terms synonymously. But before we can adequately explain what disturbances of character are all about, we have to define some terms. The word ‘personality’ is derived from the Greek word persona, which means “mask.” In the ancient theater,... 

I’ve been getting more mail than usual lately from across the globe from people who have found my book In Sheep’s Clothing, workshops I have done, this blog, other blogs for which I write helpful to them in understanding some of the difficult characters they’ve had to deal with in their lives.  As always, this kind of feedback is both edifying as well as informative.  One dedicated woman in Sweden used her experience... 

When you confront a manipulator or any disturbed character about their behavior, they will often attempt to sidestep the issue or to avoid the subject altogether.  They want to keep the spotlight off their problematic behaviors.  They also don’t want their true character to be exposed or to be put on the spot (i.e. caught momentarily without a good offensive strategy for taking advantage of another).  So, they are quick to dodge... 

Manipulators and other disturbed characters use a variety of tactics to control and manipulate others.  I’ve been posting on some of these in the past few weeks.  But in this post, I wanted to outline some of the main reasons why manipulation tactics work.  I also wanted to speak to issues about how people get themselves trapped in situations in which disordered characters of all types manipulate, abuse, or exploit them.   I’ve... 

Manipulators and other disturbed characters sometimes like to openly threaten or brow-beat someone else into giving-up or giving-in to their demands.   They like to terrorize others into submission.  They use fear as a weapon, whether it’s fear of the known or unknown.  People in relationships with disturbed characters are generally familiar with their track record of behavior, thus they know what the disturbed character is not... 

The most severely disordered characters will often make direct threats or even carry them out as a way of keeping others in line.  Skilled manipulators, however, are expert at making more subtle, implied or veiled threats to intimidate others into seeing or doing things their way.  Sometimes a veiled threat can be no more than a particular “look” or a glance.  Sometimes it’s imbedded not so much in what someone says or... 

The disturbed character is forever trying to trivialize important matters.  He tries to convince folks that the wrongful thing he did wasn’t really that bad or harmful.  He might admit part of what he did wrong, but usually not the most serious part.  Disordered characters use the tactic of minimizing to manage the impression others have of them.  It’s a way to manipulate others into thinking they’re not so bad despite...