Is there a link between being a sociopath and having ADHD?

Answer 1

Some websites portend that as ADHD (can) create low impulse control there is cross correlation in this feature. A sociopath doesn't have the impulse control or capacity for forward planning and just acts on thinking. Coupled with this a sociopath does not have a conscience, feelings of guilt or remorse (they could kill their own child without any emotional disturbance if this so suited them). They have an underlying need for power and feeding of this ego and despite not attaching to surrounding people, they can enjoy a persons company and are inevitably very charming, charismatic people.

An ADHD person on the other hand does care about other people just like everybody else. In fact for some ADHD people, as their frontal lobes are firing so much faster than the typical brain it can make some very sensitive to their environments and the people around them so they are very aware of how others feel creating above average empathy levels, as opposed to a sociopath who has no empathy.

So if an ADHD child was severely neglected and not taught social protocols it is possible that their poor impulse control could lead them into a world where they were just acting on their own behalf, deviate into violent behaviors as acting out of boredom, restlessness and/or acting out behaviors they have witnessed (as a coping mechanism).

Answer 2

It certainly seems to be as the sociopath with whom I had a 2-1/2 year-old relationship has a son with ADHD - obviously the father was the genetic source. At first I thought his probems were JUST from adult ADD but later determined it was much more serious - true sociopathy. Not coming from any research-mind, but it certainly seemed the case in this situation.

Answer 3

ADHD is a mental illness that results in underdeveloped regions of the brain, mainly the regions that help people control impulses or planning (executive functions). ADHD can exist with antisocial personality disorder; in fact ADHD shares similar symptoms like poor impulses and greater likelihood of drug abuse.

A psychiatrist would be needed to determine whether the individual was suffering from both or only one.