New test could identify killer psychopaths

Psychopathic murderers have a twisted perception of pain and suffering, and fail to see violence as unpleasant, a study has shown.

Scientists at Cardiff University have devised a test that could help to identify psychopaths before they commit serious crimes.

Their findings, published in the journal Nature, are based on interviews with 13 psychopathic and 17 non-psychopathic murderers at a secure mental hospital.

An Implicit Association Test (IAT) - previously used to unearthattitudes on race and gender - showed that psychopathic killers had more positive reactions to violence than either non-psychopaths or psychopaths who had not murdered.