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Schools for troubled youths may help teens with psychopathy

By Staff Writer

A recent study by researchers from the University of Washington and Emory University shows that children who do not register fear as quickly as other youths may be more prone to psychopathy.

For their study, researchers gathered boys who are emotionally distant and possibly prone to psychopathy, as well as a group of healthy young men. They were then shown a series of flashing photos that showed four facial expressions, including fearful, happy, disgusted and neutral. The children were told to press a button when they saw a certain face.

Healthy children were able to recognize fearful faces faster than happy and neutral faces, while children who are prone to psychopathy were slow to pick up on fearful emotions.

Patrick Sylvers, the main author of the study, said that the idea that psychopaths do not recognize fear like other people comes from research done in the 1950's. The theory was that children who are not initially afraid to socialize with other kids do not respond correctly because of it.

Parents who believe their children may suffer from psychopathy may want to research the option of enrolling them in schools for troubled youths.

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