Serial Killers Emotions According to the Oxford Dictionary; a serial killer is a person who commits a series of murders, often with no apparent motive and typically following a characteristic, predictable behavior pattern. They usually go through a cooling down period where there are no murders. Then start the killing spree back up again after the cooling down period. The killing spree usually doesn’t last more than a couple of years without the murderer being caught. And there is usually a victim type and killing style which leads to the killer being identified. This is the definition of a serial killer so why is it so commonly believed that this is a male dominated area. “However, if, as seems to be the case in many countries, the only …show more content…
Which allows there killing spree to go on for years even decades without being caught unlike males who get caught within years of committing serial murders. Their victims are usually people they know or have known, and the killing style is not as messy and overdone as a male. They either use poison, or any other non-detectable and not aggressive means. The poisoning method may take a long time and the killer has to be a witness to the victim slowly dying from the small amounts of poison given. The motifs associated with female killers are revenge, control, power, and gained assets. These motifs and the victim types are all emotion triggered. An example is a woman marrying or dating multiple men to just kill him for the assets he owns, this is called the black widow type. The female killers also sometimes do not have a criminal record or even have the stigma of someone troubled or harmful. But they can also be dealing with childhood abuse and/or rape. Causing a psychiatric break adding to why they became serial killers. This is not always the case for everyone who deals with this type of trauma. Just certain people use the traumatizing events to become serial …show more content…
Because they portray themselves as everyday good people, so you would trust them and not think otherwise. Or they are someone you know such as family, a health care physician etc. Their education levels are not the highest and most do not have a college degree. As well as not having a conscious of the fact they just killed people. Females especially since they are killing people who they grew relationships with or grew up with and “loved”. Making it seem like females do not truly have emotions if they are capable of something like this. Since when males first start their kills they often feel disgusted at first and fear the act all together. Yet they kill more brutally then females and are more aggressive towards the victim before and after death. Both also had troubling events happen to them in childhood. But the motifs for female serial killers all relate to revenge or some type of power gain. They are the ones more emotionally triggered and base their murders on these emotions. Which is why in fact female serial killers kill based on more emotion over male serial
Mainly we have talked about male, but now let’s talk about female serial killers. When people think of a psychopathic killer, typically a male comes to mind and we have no sense of what a females capabilities are. After studies in this article, they categorized female serial killers into 7 different categories. Those categories would be black widow, angel of death, revenge killer, murder for profit or crime, killer whose sanity is in question, team killer, and sexual predator. So you see, female serial killers may not be common but often are in low profile and quite dangerous when put into play. When looking for a psychopath, there is a unique check list that they have talked about using in this article. First and for most they tend to be quiet and unsociable, but at the same time come off charming. They are very manipulative in getting what they want, this goes back to the “Sadomasochistic Serial Killer Protagonist in the Killer Inside of me” article. This article is a great representation of my topic because it focuses on how to know when someone is a psychopath aka “Serial Killer”. It directly answers my question on what makes a serial killer by identifying the personality traits of
In a study conducted by Hickey, he discovered that out of thirty-four female serial killers, almost one in two had a male accomplice committing murders with them (Holmes et al., 1991). He also revealed that 97% were white and the average age the women started committing murders was thirty-three (Holmes et al., 1991). Women serial killers differ from men in that most women kill for material gain, such as money or insurance benefits, and they usually commit murder with pills or poison. Stephen Holmes, Ronald Holmes, and Eric Hickey developed a typology for female serial killers similar to the one developed by Holmes and Holmes, discussed earlier. They begin with visionary serial killers, who are compelled by some force, such as God, or spirits, to commit murders. The second type is the comfort killer, who usually kills acquaintances and does so for a material gain, money or real estate (Holmes et al., 1991). The third category is hedonistic female serial killers, which is similar to the earlier typology in that the offender connects murder with sexual gratification. This is the least represented category for female offenders, but evidence for this type of killer can be seen in the case of Carol Bundy (Holmes et al., 1991). Bundy allegedly helped her husband kidnap, murder, and decapitate the
A serial killer is someone who does three or more killings in a short period of time. However, not all serial killers are the same. There are many differences between a male and female serial killer. For example, a female serial killer tends to commit more premeditated murders because they either know their victims or they know their routines. Many women serial killers have a history of being sexually abused as they were growing up, while the men have been physically abused. Most female serial killers choose poison and strangling, a less messy approach.
A serial killer is a person who murders three or more people over a period of more than 30 days, with a "cooling off" period between each murder, and whose motivation for killing is largely based on psychological gratification. Most people do not understand what can make a person want to kill multiple people for no reason other than own satisfactional gain. In actuality serial killers have been studied for over hundreds of years, and the information that has been documented continues to grow. The research that I have gathered about serial killers focuses on their childhood development, the differences and similarities between men and female serial kills, and finally general information on how their brains operate and their motives for committing such harmful acts.
Some psychologist believe that if a serial killer displays or kills his victims in such a way then it qualifies as fulfilling as sexual desire. These killers are usually diagnosed with a mental disorder referred to as sexual sadism. Psychologists refer to serial killers who kill in this manner as sexual sadist. A sexual sadist enjoys the ‘suffering or embarrassment of others to the point of arousal’ (Serial Killers and Sexual Sadism). Sociologists believe that a serial killer needs to “fulfil a sexual desire by turning a fantasy into a controllable reality” (Serial Killers: Nature vs. Nurture). Sadist crave the dominance and control over their victims because they feel as if they cannot control other aspects of their life. Another biological factor derives within the DNA of the person. Many killers have the “MAO-A gene (monoamine oxidase A). This gene, which has been the target of considerable research, is also known as the "warrior gene" because it regulates serotonin in the brain. Serotonin affects your mood — think Prozac — and many scientists believe that if you have a certain version of the warrior gene, your brain won't respond to the calming effects of serotonin (A Neuroscientist Uncovers a Dark Secret).” With this gene psychologist and scientist alike believe that this can foretell a serial killer before he becomes a serial
America has been battling serial killers since 1893. Most known killers were men but a new age has come and new killers have emerged as women. Most serial killers have the ability to manipulate people around them and they come from dysfunctional families. Publicity inspires serial killers to keep committing murder, they try to show everyone they deserve a star status. Aileen Wournos is a serial killer who changed how Americans viewed female serial killers with her murders, publicity, and manipulation.
They have no sense of remorse or guilt. Most of the time they are not in serious relationship or have any emotional obsession with any one person, besides their victims. Most of the well-known serial killers are: Robert Pickton, Charles Manson, Anthony Sowell, Ted Bundy, The Zodiac Killer, The Green River Killer, and The BTK murderer. (Sanmartn, 2001). Often, women were never seen as even a suspect in a serial murder, but little did they know, women were just as bad as men.
The FBI has defined serial killing as “the unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s) in separate events” (Farrell, Keppal, & Titterington, 2011, p. 231). While individuals who partake in such activity do receive a large amount of attention, the female parts of this population are vastly under recognized. Female serial killers receive little academic attention, even though they are a complex and dynamic group to study (p. 229). Women make up 15% of American serial killers, with 36 known to be active in the last century (p. 230). It is speculated that at any given time there are 50-70 serial killers in the United States, and approximately 7-8 of them are female (Schurman, 2000, p. 12). Moreover, females acting alone manage
Behavioral Science Unit (BSU) out of Quantico defines how one becomes listed as a serial killer and that is; someone who kills more than three people, the killing spree happened over a length of time, and the killing has no break between the killings (FBI Gov.). I started to look into what it takes to be a criminal, how the mind reacts to certain situations, and that a woman is likely to commit such horrible crimes themselves. There’s many reasons why one commits a crime, or even why they become a serial killer, a female serial killer. Female serial killer’s spree can usually last longer than their counterparts, because they tend to keep a lower profile. I found one woman who was coined a serial killer and she was Aileen Wuornos. Her story
The stereotype that exists for individuals who commit serial murder is one that mainly includes males of a specific race. However, it is now known that white males are not the only individuals who commit serial murder. Men and women from all racial and ethnic backgrounds and socio-economic statuses have been found to be serial murderers. Although this information has been presented to society, the cultural schema of the white male serial killer is still prevalent. The assumptions that involve serial murderers often include two aspects, the serial murderer is male and the serial murder is a type of “lust murder”, often involving sexual crimes by a sadist (Keeney and Heide, 1995). Keeney and Heide (1994) define serial murder to be the premeditated murder of three or more victims committed over time, in separate incidents, in a civilian context, with the murder being chosen by the offender.
Female serial killers have long careers, and it is often hard to interview them because they are rare (Johnston, 2012). There are different types of female serial killers, and different things motivate them. This leads one to ask: What are the different types and causes of female serial killers, and how do they target their victims?
Serial killers are usually young, white males who are quite intelligent and often come from broken homes. They may have been abused either physically or sexually during childhood and they have serious personality defects, such as low self-esteem and a lifelong sense of loneliness. Although no two serial killers are alike, they all fit this description somewhat. In the sixth edition of Crime and Criminality by Sue Titus Reid, a serial killer is defined as a person who commits more than one murder but at different times (Reid, p. 134).
Serial murder as defined by the FBI is, “[t]he unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s), in separate events" (Morton Robert J. Ed, & Hilts., Ed, 2005, p. 9). Numerous people disagree with the definition, this researcher included, since it lacks the cool- down period after they murder, which various people feel stands necessary for serial killer status. Serial killers remain a rare phenomenon. The FBI states, serial murder accounts for less than one percent of killings per year (Morton Robert J. Ed, & Hilts., Ed, 2005, p. 2). Nevertheless, throughout the years, countless people have researched serial killers since they commit such heinous crimes. Criminologists and researchers have been attempting to identify various
In order to identify serial killers before they kill repeatedly, a person needs to study the characteristics that makes up this type of criminals. Most serial killers have been abandoned, by one or both parents, they are emotionally, physically, and even sexually abused by a family member, or relatives from unstable families who have criminal, psychiatric and alcoholic histories, or tend to have hate for their parents and people in general which makes them have antisocial personality disorder. They have conflicted pain or tortured animals at a young age and most are highly interested in gaining control over things. Even though not every serial killers posses these characteristics, but most share these characteristics the same way they share the psychological need to have complete control and power over people.
(Attention Getter) We are fascinated by them, hypnotized by their true-crime exploits in books, and motion pictures. We bestow unabashed affection upon these multiple murdering sociopaths known as serial killers. As gendered pronouns indicate, serial killing is a man’s game.