The Making of a Serial Killer

1043 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The psychology behind serial killers pdf

Not to be confused with psychopaths, psychosis is also a cause of serial killers. Psychotic patients, unlike psychopaths, have lost their sense of reality (Brogaard). For example, Carl “Coral” Eugene Watts was charged with strangling twelve woman with many more suspected victims because he believed they had “evil in their eyes” (Brogaard). Psychotic serial killers mostly tend to be either, schizophrenic or bipolar (Brogaard). Richard Trenton Chase was a schizophrenic who believed the Nazis were after him with poison that would turn his blood to powder (Brogaard). In order to prevent this, he consumed and soaked himself in the blood of those he had slain (Brogaard). Psychotic serial killers can be triggered by the loss of close relatives, such as in the case of Ed Gein (Morrison 51). Ed Gein was also a Schizophrenic, who began digging up graves and most notably skinning his victims to make suits consisting of women’s breasts and genitals (Morrison 52). Gein wore these suits made from his female victims because he wanted a sex change (Brogaard). These criminal actions were triggered after the loss of his brother, father and, most importantly, his over-bearing mother (Morrison 51). Early childhood development plays a significant role in the formation of serial killers. Future serial killers can first appear during the early stages of life, if children display a lack of connection to other people or do not adequately bond to people (Thomas). Anger may stem from this “avoidant attachment” (Thomas). (Example). Childhood abuse, rejection, and neglect can also give rise to a potential serial killer (Larson). Daniel Larson stated that the social learning theory explains the relationship between stress and ‘childhood “traumatization,”’ a... ... middle of paper ... .... My Life among the Serial Killers: Inside the Minds of the World's Most Notorious Murderers. New York: William Morrow, 2004. Print. Osterweil, Neil. "Bully on the Brain." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 06 May 2014. "Psychoanalysis." Dennis Rader Psychology. Weebly, n.d. Web. 06 May 2014. Raven. "What Creates Serial Killers and Psychopaths: Genetics or Environment?" Living Among Predators. OverBlog, n.d. Web. 06 May 2014. "Serial Killers: Nature vs. Nurture." American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress, n.d. Web. 06 May 2014. Thomas, Michael. "Psychopaths, And How Not To Become A Serial Killer." Exposing The Truth. Exposing The Truth, 29 Sept. 2013. Web. 06 May 2014. Wenzl, Roy, Tim Potter, L. Kelly, and Hurst Laviana. Bind, Torture, Kill: The inside Story of the Serial Killer next Door. New York: HC, 2007. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Nature versus Nurture: Criminal Behavior

    2165 Words  | 5 Pages

    The nurturing of individuals plays a role in the making of killers, as 94% of serial killers had experienced some form of abuse as children and 42% have suffered severe physical abuse (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2010). A child abuse is a determining factor, in which supports the idea that serial killers and psychopath, are influenced significantly by nurture (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2011). In most cases social, cultural and physiological determinants all play a role in influencing serial killers to grow into a mass murderer. It is important that physiological and social determinants can be identified, so they could be altered for the purpose of preventing the number of crime.

    Read More

  • Studies on The Childhood of Serial Killers

    1453 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Charles Manson’s Influence

    1514 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hickey, Eric W. Serial Murderers and Their Victims. Belmont, California: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company, 1991. Print.

    Read More

  • The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule

    1806 Words  | 4 Pages

    Simon, Robert I. "Serial Killers, Evil, And Us." National Forum 80.4 (2000): 23. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.

    Read More

  • Nature vs Nuture: Are People Born to Kill?

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Serial Killers: Nature Or Nurture?

    902 Words  | 2 Pages

    Due to crime-inspired shows that air on television, fascination with serial killers presents itself more and more. People want to learn what makes a person break to the point of taking another’s life. Some suggest that killing releases a sexual desire, while others suggest that revenge may be the motive. A serial killer has the stereotypical look of a white male who tends to act socially awkward, not easily approachable, and possesses a mental illness. While the accuracy of this look tends to be true occasionally, the majority of the time a serial killer looks no different than anyone else and appears rather social. Some experts believe that a serial killer has codes in his DNA which causes him to kill; nonetheless, other experts believe environmental

    Read More

  • Perry Smith: A Passion to Kill

    1346 Words  | 3 Pages

    2011. “Serial Killers and Mass Murderers.” American Decades. Ed. Judith S. Baughman, et al. Vol. 9:

    Read More

  • Carl Panzram: Serial Killers

    1341 Words  | 3 Pages

    Vronsky, P. (2004). Serial killers : the method and madness of monsters. New York, NY:

    Read More

  • Serial Killers and Mass Murderers

    1992 Words  | 4 Pages

    Mass Murderers and Serial Killers are nothing new to today’s society. These vicious killers are all violent, brutal monsters and have an abnormal urge to kill. What gives people these urges to kill? What motivates them to keep killing? Do these killers get satisfaction from killing? Is there a difference between mass murderers and serial killers or are they the same. How do they choose their victims and what are some of their characteristics? These questions and many more are reasons why I was eager to write my paper on mass murderers and serial killers. However, the most interesting and sought after questions are the ones that have always been controversial. One example is; what goes on inside the mind of a killer? In this paper I will try to develop a better understanding of these driven killers and their motives.

    Read More

  • Serial Killer Informative Speech

    1406 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Gender and Serial Killers

    2475 Words  | 5 Pages

    Beasley, James. 2004. “Serial Murder in America: Case Studies of Seven Offenders.” Behavioral Sciences and the Law 22: 395-414

    Read More

  • How Serial Killers came to be

    1910 Words  | 4 Pages

    Several serial killers have a definitive and common personality profile. Almost every major social, biological, psychological behavioural influence that has been seriously suggested as playing a role in causing crime has been thoroughly thought as potentially contributing to the behavior of serial killers (Levin, 2008). The time period and amount of killings fluctuate depending on the individual committing the crimes. Usually, the murders happen in different geographical areas. A mass murder has a separate definition than a serial killer, because a serial killer has a “cooling off” period, where mass murders kill several individual in a single event.

    Read More

  • Is a Serial Killer Born or Created?

    1033 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mitchell, Heather, and Michael G. Aamodt. "The incidence of child abuse in serial killers." Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology 20.1 (2005): 40-47.

    Read More

  • Serial Killers: Is Pure Evil Born or Made?

    1552 Words  | 4 Pages

    Many people with antisocial personality disorder are taught to have a lack of empathy in early childhood. There is a high number of serial killers with abusive pasts. Parents who abuse their children both mentally and physically at an early age are training their child to be cold and emotionless. Many killers suffered this fate at childhood and became heartless creatures with little to no remorse for their actions. In the article “What makes Serial Killers Tick?” it is said that Serial Killer Albert Desalvo was sold into slavery by his father and was sexually and physically abused for most of his you...

    Read More

  • Child Development: Heredity and Environment

    1252 Words  | 3 Pages

    “According to Eric Hickey (Author of Serial Murderers and Their Victims), stress caused by childhood 'traumatizations' may be a trigger to criminal behavior in adulthood. It is important to understand that most people go through one or more of these traumatizations with no lifelong effects. However, in the future serial killer, the inability to cope with the stress involved with these trauma...

    Read More

More about The Making of a Serial Killer

Open Document