From: National Post
‘Everyday sadists’ receive emotional boost from seeing others suffer, studies show
National Post:
Two new studies show that people who score high on a measure of sadism seem to enjoy pleasure from behaviours that hurt others, and are even willing to spend extra effort to make someone else suffer.
New research led by psychological scientist Erin Buckels of the University of British Columbia suggests that everyday sadism is real and more common than previously thought.
The new findings are published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
“Some find it hard to reconcile sadism with the concept of ‘normal’ psychological functioning, but our findings show that sadistic tendencies among otherwise well-adjusted people must be acknowledged,” says Buckels. “These people aren’t necessarily serial killers or sexual deviants but they gain some emotional benefit in causing or simply observing others’ suffering.”
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Comments
When the scientists say that sadists receive an emotional boosts by seeing others suffer. Do you mean by the victim suffering physically or emotionally?
Please share these comments and your insights with The Smithsonian Magazine featuring an article in January 2015 (Tour Paris with the Marquis de Sade as Your Guide) and a “historical” article in February of 2015
(Who Was the Marquis de Sade?) with opening remarks describing him as
“Prince of Enlightment”, a misspelling for enlightenment.
There were remarks on the Smithsonian Facebook, but I don’t see any now. These articles are out of touch when our news shows 70th Anniversary celebrations of Auschwitz Camp Liberation, Vanderbilt student athletes sentenced for entitled and disgusting sexual behavior&alcohol abuse, and Dartmouth initiating a 4yr required Sexual Violence Prevention Program.
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