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Psychology theories about serial killers
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A killer is not born. A killer is made. However, we are all born with the potential to kill, and any one of us can be made into a killer. It might take a lot to drive us to murder, but some people are simply more susceptible to the idea than others. People tend to believe that serial killers are mentally ill individuals, however, more often than not, they are rational beings who have suffered tremendously. Often, we cannot tell who is a serial killer. It could be the person standing next to you, and you would not have the slightest indication. Serial killers are shaped by isolation from their peers, neglect from loved ones or caregivers, and copious amounts of physical and psychological abuse as children. Many serial killers display social …show more content…
“42% of convicted serial killers suffered from physical abuse as children ,74% suffered from psychological abuse” (The Psychology of a Serial Killer n.p.). Besides, these children being severely beaten or sexually abused, they are also told that they are worthless, burdensome, and that everything is their own fault. “Emotional abuse impairs a child’s self-esteem, and interferes with his ability to function adequately in society, succeed academically, and form healthy, intimate relationships. Emotional abuse and neglect has been the form of abuse most of them (50%) suffered” (Gerber n.p.). The abuse is not only harmful to the child when it is taking place, but following it. In fact, the effects of abuse cause a disruption in daily life. The sense of worthlessness that the child feels at home causes him to act out in order to display his own self-importance. Usually, abuse causes people to act out not only against their abuser, but also towards their peers. It is an attempt to be seen and receive help. Serial killers continue to exhibit violent behaviors throughout their adulthood. The violence escalates until they end up …show more content…
They claim that serial killers are either born with brain problems, or they form them due to repetitive injury. “ 70% of serial killers received extensive head injuries as children or adolescents. Damage to the limbic brain, hypothalamus or temporal lobe may cause bouts of spontaneous aggression. These areas are involved with hormones, aggression, emotion and motivation.The prefrontal cortex does not function properly in psychopaths” (Gerber n.p.). The idea that killers are born surrounds the belief that the reason a child becomes overly aggressive with violent tendencies is due to anomalies of the brain, or chronic injury. If the lobes of the brain were functioning properly, the personalities and obsessions of the killer would not be present. Though based on that idea, conditions and circumstances would be irrelevant. In that case, someone raised in a loving and nurturing home would have the same chance of becoming a murderer as somebody raised in complete deprivation. The brain may play a role in the making of a serial killer, but if it does, it adds to the stress of the trauma. The brain itself does not define the
Most serial killers have a background of neglect and abuse. They may suffer from a mental illness. Also, brain injuries may contribute to their psychopathic tendencies.
The question of whether or not man is predetermined at birth to lead a life of crime is a question that has been debated for decades. Are serial killers born with the lust for murder, or are their desires developed through years of abuse and torment? Many believe it is impossible for an innocent child to be born with the capability to commit a horrible act such as murder. But at the same time, how could we have corrupted society so much as to turn an innocent child into a homicidal maniac? Forensic psychologists have picked apart the minds of serial killers to find an answer as to what forces them to commit such perverse acts. Their ultimate goal is to learn how to catch a serial killer before he commits his first crime.
The case of whether serial killers are born with the lust to kill or if they are truly victims of their environment has been a hot debated question by both psychologists and the FBI today. A serial killer is traditionally defined as one that kills 3 or more people at different times with “cooling off” periods in between kills. Both psychological abuse as a child and psychological disorders are to blame for the making of a killer. The nature vs. nurture debate is best applied to the mysterious behaviors and cases of serial killers and their upbringing and environment. Nature is the genetic and biological connections a person has, personality traits, and how genetic make-up all relates to a killer. Nurture is examining the upbringing and environment that a person is around that affects what a person becomes. In some cases however, the effects of only upbringing or only biological problems were the reasons certain serial killers committed crimes. Although there is no definitive answer to what plays the bigger role: nature or nurture, they both are contributing factors that make a serial killer. These deviants of society are afflicted with problems in either their upbringing or have psychological disorders, and are able to blend into our everyday lives with no apparent differences, yet they wreck havoc through their unremorseful killings.
The answer is highly disputed. Many sociologists and psychologists believe looking at a killer’s childhood can explain their behavior. Childhood abuse, though not the only explanation for serial murderers, is a frequent issue in many of their backgrounds (Serial Killers: Nature vs. Nurture). Albert DeSalvo, the Boston Strangler, was sold as a slave by his alcoholic dad. Henry Lee Lucas’ prostitute mothers made him go to school dressed like a little girl.
A person can also become a psychopath/ serial killer due to traumatic brain injury. As you can see, a serial killer can be born or raised to a cold blooded murder.
There have been many theories over the years about how a person becomes a serial killer, and how does having an unstable childhood effect a person. It has been proven by psychologist and stated by serial killers that their childhood is one of the many problems they faced that led them to become a serial killer. The childhood of a typical young boy would consist of loving parents, a stable home and having friends. As for serial killers this is not typical at all. During the childhood of a serial killer it is not uncommon that he or she was abused, raped, or even attempted suicide along with many other harmful acts that a child should not be faced with. There have been many studies on the childhood of serial killers, and how they grew up compared to other young children. Some of the traits most male serial killers have as a child would include killing animals, auto-erotic activities, physical head injuries, and even bed wetting.
Serial killers are defined to “be driven by instinct and desire to kill.” In a study done in 2000, Dr, Richard Davidson says, “people with a large amount of aggression – in particular people who have committed aggressive murders or have a social disorder – have almost no brain activity in the orbital frontal cortex or the anterior cingulated cortex while activity in the amyglade continued perfectly. The orbital frontal cortex and the anterior congulated cortex control emotional impulses while the amyglade controls reactions to fear.” Davidson concludes his research claiming that although environment can and will affect a serial killer’s thoughts, it is a killer’s genetic makeup that inevitably creates murderous thoughts.
There is a great distinction that separates serial killers from other murderers, and this is their motives to kill. Homicides are generally committed due to moments of rage and anger, or disputes from family problems, financial difficulties, gang violence, and conflicts between lovers and between friends. "A psychokiller, I should make clear, is not a regular murderer. A murderer has a vendetta, a nice specific personal thing against his victim". In contrast to this, the victims of serial killers, more often than not, are strangers that have never been encountered before the event of the killing. Serial killers are driven by instinct and a desire to kill.
Many studies suggest that there are significant differences in the brain between individuals who possess antisocial personality disorder (psychopathy). While not all people who possess an antisocial personality disorder will become serial killers, every serial killer studied has an antisocial personality disorder; “Neuropsychological testing revealed abnormalities in all subjects tested” (Blake, Pincus, and Buckner 1642). Brain injury, brain abnormalities, or mental illness affects all the serial killers tested. Even if all serial killers had some type of abnormality in the brain, would that mean that they were doomed to become a serial killer? According to the experimental findings discussed in Neurologic Abnormalities in Murderers; 64.5% of serial killers have a frontal lobe dysfunction and 29% have temporal lobe abnormalities. The frontal lobes of the brain “control the essence of our human...
The question of whether or not man is predetermined at birth to lead a life of crime is a question that has been debated for decades. Serial killers are made not born; it has been demonstrated that a man 's initial years are the most vital years. A youngster 's initial couple of years is a period of experimentation, a period to make sense of things for themselves, a period to set up the bits of the riddle. Like a newborn child, the mental health is reliant on its environment. A youthful youngster 's mind resembles a wipe; it gathers data through perception. The surroundings of a serial killer as a little child can enormously impact the way he or she will go about his or her life and his or her style of murdering. Certain experience, for example, youngster misuse, divorce, liquor misuse, tyke disregard, as well as medication misuse, can be negative to the advancement of a little child. Numerous serial killers were illegitimate kids. Due to their childhood and early backgrounds, serial killers swing to crazy murdering frenzies.
There have been many serial killer cases that have attracted the attention of not only the media but of mental health experts as well. Many experts from a variety of different fields have come together to answer one question: Why did they do it? It is believed that most, if not all, serial killers have a mental illness, motives, and/or trauma during their lives that made them start killing. Serial killers are not only the effect of nurture but also nature. The environment of their country, the United States is our focus, can cause the number of serial killers to increase especially if the country itself is unstable.
An attempt to explain, rationalize and predict has plagued law enforcement and medical personnel for a considerable amount of time. If law enforcement is to create proactive, rather than reactive, strategies to this type of criminal behavior then they must be able to understand why it happens. Unfortunately we still do not have a clear understanding for the motives of murder, thus making understanding serial murder that much more difficult. Coming to any definite conclusions or making any definitive statements is not currently possible, the best that experts can do is make broad generalizations and educated guesses. Current literature on the subject comes to a number of fairly educated (and a few non-educated) conclusions that help to explain serial murder. Only a relatively few studies have been done that include in-depth first hand interviews with the perpetrators of the crimes themselves. This analysis of past offenders has elicited several key behavioral and childhood similarities among this sub-group of homicide perpetrators i...
Most people who become serial killers have some type of psychological disorder. Other possibilities would be a bad childhood that raised an anger tow...
So what makes a serial killer? Levin points out that contrary to popular belief, serial killers don't just 'snap'; or 'go crazy'; (Douglas, p. 137). Many of the serial killers have been the victims of childhood abuse. Jack Levin stated 'Research shows many serial killers suffered abuse, incest or neglect as children and develop poor self images'; (Douglas, p. 137). Serial killers often have a childhood marked by the absence of any nurturing relationship. 'They often come from families where the parents were absent or ineffective, where authority was not defined, and where they could engage in destructive behavior undeterred-violent play, cruelty to animals, and incidents of arson being some of the childhood behavior patterns noted among many serial killers'; (Clark, p. 206).
Many people say that the childhoods of serial killers could be very similar, leading to brutal murders. Many serial killers have common mental and physical traits. Many serial killers come from dysfunctional families with an absent