Brain scans reveal link between thinner brain cortex regions and higher psychopathic traits

[erronis]

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-brain-scans-reveal-link-thinner.html

I hope we get autopsies of the perpetrators of this disaster of a regime when Orrex's question is finally answered in the affirmative.

A team of researchers from Spain was curious to know if people with high psychopathic traits have anomalies in the brain's physical structures, which make them incapable of feeling regret or capable of manipulation and other antisocial behavior. They conducted an experiment in which they interviewed men convicted of intimate partner violence (IPV) and a control group with no history of violence to measure their psychopathic traits, followed by brain scans.

The results showed that men with thinner cortex in certain brain regions--particularly fronto-temporo-parietal areas--tended to display higher antisocial tendencies, regardless of their history of violence.

Fronto-temporo-parietal cortex regions refer to parts of the brain's outer layer, which houses gray matter and supports functions such as sensory processing, motor control, and higher cognitive activities. The findings further reinforce a broader idea in neuroscience that regions in these brain regions play a major role in shaping behaviors such as callousness, a lack of empathy, and manipulative tendencies.

The findings are published in Aggression and Violent Behavior.

Markers of psychopathy

Psychopathy is a neuropsychiatric disorder that affects how people feel, think, and control their behavior. Individuals with strong psychopathic traits often show little empathy for others, have shallow emotional responses, and struggle with impulse control. Even though they make up only a small portion of the population, people with psychopathic traits are linked to a surprisingly large share of serious crime.

. . .

More information

Angel Romero-Martinez et al, Reduced cortical thickness in fronto-temporo-parietal regions associated with high psychopathic traits: Conclusions of a review and an empirical study with intimate partner violence perpetrators, Aggression and Violent Behavior (2026). DOI: 10.1016/j.avb.2026.102134

[slightlv]

1. I didn't read the entire article, I'll admit...

I've got some housecleaning going on here, as well as popping in to see what's up around here...

But one thing I'm wondering about... would these brain regions (frontal/temporal/parietal) show these same signs at the beginning of life? Is there a way to view and measure them before birth... or in childhood? We know that kids who abuse and kill small animals tend to grow up as psychopaths and sociopaths who do great harm to society around here... and are more likely to murder/kill someone in adulthood. If these types of "brain abnormalities" show up before... or even shortly after... birth, is there a way to turn the situation around and correct it before too many years (and behaviors) show themselves?

Second, but linked to the first... is this brain region subject more to nature or to nurture? The enlarged amygdala present in conservative, cruelty-first brains is at least partially enhanced by family, friends, and environment the person is subjected to on an ongoing basis. Is the same true of this brain region? What kind of treatments could be devised to shrink the amygdala and grow the cortex in these "fronto" regions?

I'm not going to be around to see what gets one and how, but we ARE going to have to finally discuss some sort of treatment plans for these types of individuals. Magas aren't going to just crawl under a rock once they're dear leader is gone. We have to find some way to "deprogram" them and fit them firmly into society with civilized behavior. We don't want to be cruel... we're democrats and generally empathetic people. But we will have to find a way to bring these people back to the path of civilized society... because the only other options are to either ignore them (and we're seeing now what that brings)... or deport them to a country, etc., all of their own, for example. It's something my head turns to thinking about when I need a break from all the current cruelty.

[erronis]

2. Good questions (about knowing the brain construction pre- and post- birth). Don't know, either, but

finding non-correctable anomalies early on and then "doing something" about them seems to veer towards a form of society that we probably don't want.

[slightlv]

4. Yes and No, erronis.

We certainly don't want to veer into eugenics, but we already correct fetal genetic abnormalities in utero today. I can see doing the same type of genetic counseling for psychopathic behaviors.

[erronis]

5. Perhaps if we have known solutions for these neuropathological disorders.

Last edited Tue Mar 17, 2026, 11:20 AM - Edit history (1)

Obviously counseling a fetus, new-born, infant won't work. Hmmmm, maybe music therapy?

Counseling the parents of such a child is already being done if the condition is known - and I guess that's what you are suggesting.

[slightlv]

6. Yip.. you read me right. But i can see

An overwhelming problem there, too. I guess one can assume that maga parents want maga kids, no matter how bad for societal assimilation. Like I've said before, I just don't get magas. But my eyes are opened enough to know they'll be trouble in the future.

[Bayard]

3. You do have to wonder,

What kind of people trump, Miller, and company, would have turned out to be if there had been some kind of intervention early on. But, you would have to figure out how to test all babies, what percentage of abhorrent behavior should be allowable, and resolve the ethical questions. Parents would undoubtedly object.

[generalbetrayus]

7. I do wonder if being able to identify children with psychopathic tendencies at as early an age as possible

would be beneficial in treatment. I have an autistic granddaughter who wasn't identified as autistic until third or fourth grade, and I have read that the younger an autist is diagnosed as one, the better chance there is of socializing them.

This is in no way to compare autistic individuals to psychopaths - my granddaughter's brain simply can't handle the overbearing, random sensory signals present in our modern-day civilization, and she is largely homebound as a result. Maybe an earlier diagnosis would have allowed for therapy to help her adjust to today's ever present noise. And maybe finding children with psychopathic tendencies at the earliest possible age would permit treatment(s) to help them socialize more effectively.

NOTE: I don't think decreasing the amount of psychopathy in our society is necessarily going to put all that big a dent in the MAGA phenomenon. Most of these people are just ignorant or incapable of logical thinking, the latter or which is another societal problem altogether. I decided a long time ago that there are some people for whom the Age of Enlightenment simply never happened.

[erronis]

8. I agree - earlier detection and earlier understanding - and if necessary, correction would be helpful.

If we (the US medical profession) had treated mental issues (neurodivergence?) as seriously as those of the heart, lungs, etc., we might have known more about them many years earlier and been able to understand cures - or at least methods to deal with them.

Also agree that there is apparently a large segment of the population (US and worldwide?) that are lacking in empathy for people outside of their "tribe". Not all would be labeled psychopaths in general terms but I'll bet the ferocity against "outsiders" may be felt as if it were psychopathy.

(Getting way out of my depth now!)