Uplifting: 10/1/11

Foxes and Reptiles: Psychopathy and the Financial Meltdown | Reality Sandwich

In other words, Greenspan recognized that his model had a psychological flaw that made an incorrect assumption about human motivation. I believe that Greenspan would have been quicker to recognize this flaw in his understanding of motivation if he knew more about psychopathy. Psychopaths are, of course, motivated by self-interest, but there is another, more primary motivation that will often trump self-interest. As we have discussed earlier, psychopaths are emotionally vacuous, and therefore they are powerfully drawn toward risk taking in order to feel anything. Psychopaths also live in the present and are not very concerned about consequences for themselves and others. Harsher penalties may not be much of a deterrent for psychopaths and might actually contribute to the adrenaline rush they often crave when they take risks.