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Lovefraud education for teens and young adults:
Sociopaths and Abusive Dating Relationships

Donna Andersen talks to high school students about sociopaths and abusive dating. Watch a short video on YouTube.

Bullying, dating violence, drug and alcohol abuse, sexual assault, suicide—what do all of these issues have in common? The answer: problems that are often caused by sociopaths.

High school and college years are an excellent time for students to learn about social predators. Students are old enough to understand the information, but young enough that hopefully they have not yet come across them. By arming students with information, they may be able to recognize the warning signs of an exploiter and avoid interactions that could irrevocably damage their lives.

Lovefraud offers two programs to make students—and the adults who guide them—aware of social predators: Sociopaths and Abusive Dating Relationships, and Sociopathy Awareness for Staff and Counselors.

These programs are presented by Lovefraud Education and Recovery, a New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation.

For high school and college students

Donna Andersen, author of Lovefraud.com, brings the information to life by using the example of her own marriage to James Montgomery, who she believes is a sociopath. She also relates the experiences of other Lovefraud.com readers. Liane J. Leedom, M.D., a psychiatrist who was also married to a sociopath, consulted in the development of the program.

The 90-minute presentation covers:

• What is a sociopath?
• How many sociopaths are there?
• Where can sociopaths be found?
• Mail and female sociopaths
• 10 Signs that you’re dating a sociopath
• Dangers of online dating
• When sociopaths say, "I love you"
• Real love and empty love
• Sociopaths and bullying
• Healthy dating relationships
• Abusive dating relationships
• Why young people are more at risk
• Why these relationships are addictive
• How to break up with an abuser
• Protecting yourself from sociopaths

High school students who have participated in the presentation say:

“It was extremely interesting and opened my eyes to the truth about sociopaths.”

“It was interesting and informative. I didn’t even know that sociopaths were a part of our everyday life.”

“I thought it was a great presentation and every high school should have it.”

Read 30 actual student evaluations here

Watch a video clip of the presentation on YouTube.

Professional development program

Students who have experienced the Lovefraud presentation recognize that learning about sociopaths relates directly to their lives. In fact, generally a few students in each session, upon hearing the description of the disorder, realize that they already dealing with a sociopath.

The 60-minute program covers:

• The Inner Triangle—ability to love, impulse control, moral reasoning, developed by Liane J. Leedom, M.D.
• Sociopathic traits among high school students
• Relationship among sociopathy, ADHD and substance abuse
• Relationship among sociopathy, bullying and dating violence
• Intervention for sociopathic behavior in high school students
• Responding when students may have sociopathic parents
• Responding when students may have sociopathic dating partners

Lovefraud provides certificates for one hour of professional development training to all participants in this program.

Bring the programs to your school or college

Programs are available both as assemblies and classroom instruction.

Download Sociopaths and Teen Dating Abuse pdf

For more information, please contact Terry Kelly at terry@lovefraud.com or 609-945-1384 (Eastern time).