Psychopaths could be changed by the power of love

Quartz featured psychology research from UBC’s Okanagan campus that examined if psychopaths can lead satisfying love lives, and if love and happiness are relevant to them.

Study authors Mark Holder, a professor who specializes in the science of happiness, and PhD candidate Ashley Love aimed to answer this question: If people who score high on the psychopath spectrum don’t care about others, are they happy?

“Good social relationships are a key component of happiness,” Love said. “The fact that people who score high on psychopathy questionnaires also tend to have poor social relationships may partially explain why these people also tend to be less happy.”

They also found that teaching psychopaths how to develop healthier interpersonal relationships with emotionally stable people could help to decrease their antisocial behaviours.