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Psychopathic Manipulation
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convincing—that is, charming—manner. Unfortunately, many people
we deal with in our personal and professional lives are so selfabsorbed
and narcissistic that they rarely see our persona because of
the preoccupation they have with their own. Finding someone who
pays attention to us, who appreciates or actually “sees” us, is refreshing;
it validates who we are and makes us feel special. The psychopath
quickly fulfills this need.
The Puppetmaster
In describing his role in the murder of his friend’s father and
the attempted murder of his friend’s mother and sister, an offender
had this to say:
A friend of mine came in and we started talking, getting
to know each other. Well, I started to get to know him
better. Because the more he told me about himself, the
more leverage I had. The more I know about the guy, the
more I know what buttons to push. So, I started pushing
those buttons. He had a lot of unresolved issues from his
childhood, so I tried to get to the root of the problem and
started to get him to feel very angry, very hostile toward
his family. I said, “They have money. Why don’t you take
some? I’ll help you spend it because I’m your friend.” We
got together and it escalated and I encouraged the escalation.
I don’t know if in the back of my mind I truly believed
what the capabilities were, but I didn’t care. So it
started to become a plan. I just keep fueling the fire, the
more fuel I added to the fire the bigger payoff for me. And
plus that sense of control, power. I was the puppetmaster
pulling the strings.
We invest considerable mental energy in presenting our persona
every time we interact with someone. But behind our outward presentation,
and sometimes mixed in with it, are aspects of our private