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The next person who tells me that people with ASPD cannot feel emotions or empathy is going to have to walk the plank.
1) ASPD has been widely theorised to be a defence mechanism. There is a strong link between childhood abuse (particularly verbal and sexual) and ASPD. Theories state that the strength of emotion felt depends on proximity (both geographically to an event and emotionally
to a person such as a friend vs a work colleague), the severity of the situation (a life or death situation vs a really stressful but not fatal situation) and how recent it occurred (they may overcome emotional stress easier than other people). Other theorists
believe it more to be an on/off switch, or numbing of emotions, rather than a total lack of emotions. There is no empirical evidence that suggests that all ASPD sufferers are devoid of emotions. The DSMV was released in 2013 and many more studies have been released on the topic
since then. It’s been 7 years of research. Its diagnostic criteria has been heavily criticised for being too black and white and lacks the nuances of findings.
2) So, let’s go into proximity which relates to interpersonal relationships. People with ASPD can and do have genuine, normal relationships. The difference is that they tend to have a select group of few friends rather than a wide circle. This is partially due to the trust issues
people with ASPD reportedly feel (Engelmann et al 2019). They can and do have genuine relationships, just with less people. And yes, they can and do fall in love. The difference is that their relationships may be unstable and rocky due to their instinctive need to lead
rather than follow (which CAN be helped and foster healthy romantic relationships with therapy, patience and understanding, much like any relationship that involves mental illness).
3) As for geographically, they may feel less emotion for an event that they weren’t present for. If someone is mugged, it may not affect them as much if they weren’t present at the mugging.
4) Severity. A stressful day at a job may not affect someone with ASPD as much as
4) Severity. A stressful day at a job may not affect someone with ASPD as much as
those without ASPD. Some with ASPD may not feel bad for someone who broke their arm. Some people with ASPD require an intense situation (a death) to evoke emotion - but this isn’t all of them.
