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I recently realized a very simple way to describe the difference between a protopsychopath and metapsychopath. Both are when an empath (not a psychopath) suspends their conscience temporally, allowing them to act like a psychopath.
The difference is, who is in control of the change.
A protopsychopath is captured by outside forces. A person or persons uses emotional manipulation to negate the useful warnings of the target’s conscience. Careful control of nearly every experience (it can take an entire childhood or lifetime for example.) can result in a protopsychopath, an empath who not only respects the master/slave model, but lives by it. In the diagram the most likely candidate would be a person with a low EQ and little parental love.
A metapsychopath is an empath in control of their emotions. Not that they don’t have them but that they can temporally suspend them in order to interact with psychopaths and psychopathic societies with minimal personal influence. It is a defense against emotional mind control, and can be a way to initiate and function in a psychopathic alliance. Great empathic leaders must visit and use these powers to varying degrees.
It is important to remember that both states are temporary and induced by a rational intelligence. The conscience is both self healing and anti-fragile. In other words, simply removing a protopsychopath from external influence, can completely break control given enough experiences. Likewise metapsychopaths will fall out of practice if not exposed to psychopathic behaviour for a period of time. This is why empaths with high EQs and a difficult background (possibly post childhood) make great leaders. They are driven to condition themselves against selfish binary behaviour and may seek it out simply for practice with their metapsychopath skills.