The criminal disposition

This may sound like an off-the-wall question but I was hoping to get nsight into this phenomenon. It's something I've always wondered about. It may have some link to some form of criminal psychosis, that non-criminal minds lack. I don't know.

What makes people with criminal dispositions have less fear? And why do the innocent who have altercations with such people have fear?

Assuming both parties are the same size physically, same gender and there's no weapons involved.

For example I remember reading a case of a gentleman who moved to a new town. He was standing at the railway station when other gentleman of the same race and stature approach him. He asked the man standing there what his name was, where he was from, what he was doing, where he was going. The gentleman trying to be polite answered in vague terms and politely walked away. The other gentleman followed him, eventually tapped him on shoulder and sucker-punched him. Fearful the gentleman held his jaw and ran away. The now assailant chased him. Still clutching his jaw the gentleman made his way through the streets found a taxi and quickly hopped in. The assailant reach through the window trying to grab at him before the taxi sped away.

Why was this assailant not afraid of approaching this man at the railway station? Why was this man afraid of this assailant?

What is it about human psychology that makes some people less fearful than others? What is it about human psychology that allows certain people to instill fear in other people?

Do certain people have more of something psychologically and other people lack certain things psychologically?

Just curious what your thoughts are. Comments?

I'm going to give you my thoughts on this based off my own experience.

Being someone who was attacked, I was scared to death. Why? Because an un-assessed threat had attacked me without known provocation. It was out of pattern and routine. When other humans are out of pattern, it has the ability (at least for me) to up my adrenaline into fight or flight mode. Because any danger pre-programmed into our brains is a threat to our life. My response isn't predetermined and therefore will happen on the fly, so to speak.

Being the attacker, I knew what I was doing and I knew the possible outcome. Mentally, I had the resolve of not caring about possible consequences because this had to be done, for whatever reason. I didn't care anymore. I'd spent so much of my life afraid and wanting to run and hide....I was simply tired of being scared. That didn't mean the fear was gone but simply, my fear was morphed into a numb anger; just enough to do what I felt I had to do.

So, it's a sudden short-term fear vs. meditated long-term fear. That's the only real difference I experienced. Sorry if it doesn't make much sense.

Is a lack of morality the same as a lack of fear?

Some people have a brain numb to some transmitter substances and a smaller amygdala. They don't get the same positive or negative kicks as normal people.

I have seen several types. I believe there are those that do stop to weigh out the decision on whether or not to commit the act. Then there are those, the sociopaths and psychopaths, who lack that thing in their brain that we have which makes us hesitate and weigh out our options. For the one, the end always justifies the means. For the other it doesn't even occur to them the grief and hurt they cause around them.

Just the way I see it.

It's all about evolution. It is nessessary for human survival throughout history that some of us are fearless. Some are more brave than fearless (rational) and some survived based on their fear and ability to hide alone. We are now biproducts of evlotion. We will continue to adapt and change and certain traits will be weeded out by natural selection over time. They will simply become uneeded traits and will die out. If we don't cause our own distinction or have a natural disaster before that. What society considers attractive is what will drive evolution. Social global education will change our world. What traits will win over? Sociopaths often excell at positions of power and CEO type positions. Empaths are well suited to mental health care and social service fields. Which do we value more as a society? People or things? Get the majority to answer these questions truthfully and you might be on your way to seeing who will win out in the end.

I agree with Elsa, i like a lot of her responses, maybe i just relate to what she says but it seems to me we've had some of the same experiences, i hope she doesn't mind if i do usually agree with her, it makes it easier on me than to think of what to say when i'm posting. Thank you!!

Interesting question OP. We have a neighbor who's taken it upon himself to punish us with sirens, alarms, horns, cameras, verbal threats, and more. I too am curious about a personality who believes their demands should supersede anyone else's. What makes someone believe it's justifiable to terrorize another family?

Hormones are not only responsible for sexual differentiation, but also influence other physiological processes, and acts directly on the central nervous system.

For example testosterone, the primary male Androgen is at the highest blood concentration in the early morning hours. This reflects to what the other poster was saying about evolution.

Men are primarily hunter-gatherers, and early morning hunting was the most successful at securing food.

High blood concentrations of testosterone influence aggression and subsequently courage. Rightfully so for hunting and gathering at the break of dawn. In contrast, an aging man's testosterone level declines rapidly.

Evolutionarily speaking, a man's need for high blood concentrations of testosterone at 60 isn't required. The reproduction years, and hunting years are left for younger males. However, all is not done when males age and androgens decline. Older males still play a vital role in human evolution as wisdom and guidance for the young are now his purpose.

For women, estrogen is the primary androgen. When women go through menopause very distinct shifts in both the body and mind are seen - Such as hot flashes and uncontrollable mood swings. Some women report during menopause feeling "crazy".

I've read cases of famous athletes taking androgen inducing substances becoming enraged and committing heinous acts of violence. Similarly, I've read cases of women committing the same during a menopausal induced outrage.

This said, I think there is a strong correlation between androgen levels and assertiveness and aggression in the criminal disposition. There could also be abnormal endocrine disruption occurring. The same may be true in certain people's fear and regression.

To clarify, I think a true criminal disposition (sociopaths and psychopaths) is not the same as your common convict. People in jail are their for a variety of reasons and some of it has much more to do with poverty than disposition. Many people if raised under certain conditions could have broken one of numerous crimes which can land someone in jail.

Such a neighbor is likely to be self absorbed (narcissistic) reality is, he just don't care about anyone else. People like this are difficult to deal with as they enjoy causing trouble/drama, it brings them the attention they crave. Possibly he is jealous, narcs are prone to extreme bouts of jealousy.

True Jimi
I read a article a while ago prisoners participated in a study, Oxycontin was given to a 'normal' group, and a group of suspected psychopaths the question was:
Would giving Oxycontin (the love hormone) to a psychopath cure them?
The brains were scanned and it was found that there was extra activity around the Amygdala in the normal subjects as the Oxycontin was absorbed. There was no such activity in the psychopaths, the conclusion was that doses of Oxycontin will not cure psychopaths as they do not have the neurons to facilitate the uptake of Oxycontin. Wired differently.
Therefore psychopaths do not/can not love or feel empathy.