The terrifying reason psychopaths are more likely to land a second date: study

Fatal attraction.Are you on a date with someone who’s handsome and kind? They could be a psychosexual sadist.At least that’s the theory floated by University of Alabama scientists, who found that psychopaths can exhibit desirable characteristics during a romantic outing, including humor, charm and physical attractiveness.In other words, they’re someone you might want to swipe right on in a dating app.“People higher in psychopathy and sadism manage to come across in ways that are emblematic of agentic boldness (confident, fun, good-looking),” the researchers wrote in a paper published in the Journal of Research in Personality.In fact, movie portrayals — and even highly publicized real-life cases — would have people believe that psychopaths slay it on the dating scene.The scientists cited the case of serial murderer Ted Bundy, who was notorious for using charisma and killer looks to deceive unsuspecting victims, the Daily Mail reported.There was also Rodney Alcala, a serial killer who “famously appeared on and won the televised show ‘The Dating Game,'” per the study.Of course, this evidence remains anecdotal.To discover how psychopaths really come across a romantic meetup, the researchers recruited 129 heterosexual university students and had them complete questionnaires measuring their levels of psychopathy and sadism. The students were then required to embark on a speed-dating marathon consisting of eight, three-minute outings. After each session, participants graded their partner on characteristics, including humor, kindness and attractiveness.

They then indicated whether they wanted a second date.Researchers found that people of both sexes who boasted high levels of psychopathy were selected for dates 53 per cent of the time — 10% more than those with below-average levels.Meanwhile, those with sadistic characteristics were chosen 54% compared to 42% for non-sadists.Researchers theorized that, along with showcasing appealing characteristics...