What's a Psychopath?

The word “psychopath" can be thrown around rather flippantly— but what does it really mean to be a psychopath? Psychopathy expert Dr. Arielle Baskin-Sommers of Yale University joins us to explain this anti-social trait a little more clearly. And answers some caller questions, including one from Nora who calls in to ask, “Can psychopaths have real relationships?” Plus, Arielle gets “dorky” science on us with a deep dive into the role of empathy in psychopathy. 

You can listen to ad-free new episodes of Science Rules! only on Stitcher Premium. For a free month of Stitcher Premium, go to stitcherpremium.com and use promo code ‘SCIENCE.'

This episode is sponsored by American Dental Association (www.ADA.org/sciencerules), Invitae (www.invitae.com), Quality Logo Products (www.qualitylogo.com code: SCIENCERULES), KiwiCo (www.kiwico.com/SCIENCERULES), and DoorDash (code: SCIENCERULES).