Serial murder, which is defined as “the unlawful killing of two or more victims, by the same offenders, in separate events”(Lubaszka & Shon, 2013, p. 1), is a term that American society has become quite familiar with. At a ripe age, parents begin teaching their children not to talk to strangers in hopes of shielding them from the potential evil our world has to offer, but what if I told you the serial killer may not always be the scary man driving a van and offering candy? Our society, like it does most things, has placed a stigma upon serial killers. Although not all implied labels are untrue, this stigma makes us vulnerable to the hidden deviance lurking behind us, dressed in sheep’s clothing. Over the course of this analysis, I will discuss and elaborate on Christine Lubaszka and Phillip Shon’s work, “The notion of victim selection, risk, and offender behavior in healthcare serial murders”. My evaluation will consists of a thorough description of Lubaszka and Shon’s article, followed by a brief critic explaining how their work relates to other forms of deviance, social control, and the material studied in this course, as well as stating a few of the drawbacks and benefits of the authors’ work and suggestions for future researchers.
Nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals symbolize people whom we seek in time of need, but in the article, “Reconceptualizing the notion of victim selection, risk, and offender behavior in healthcare serial murders”, we are introduced to a new type of monster. Lubaszka and Shon define healthcare serial killers as, “any healthcare professional or worker who intentionally kills two or more patients in a care-giving environment for reasons not related to mercy, euthanasia, or physician ass...
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...cal theories learned this semester, such as, the labeling theory and social control theory, finding limitations within previous works is made possible. Although the conflicting forms of murder have similarities, it becomes clear, healthcare serial killers have gone undetected as a result of their misconstrued categorization. To resolve this problem, Lubaszka and Shon suggest future researchers assess healthcare serial killers with their recently developed findings in mind.
Works Cited
Goode, E. (2011). Constructionist Perspectives of Deviance. Deviant Behavior (Ninth Edition ed., ). Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall, Inc..
Lubaszka, C. K., & Shon, P. C. (2013). Reconceptualizing the notion of victim selection, risk, and offender behavior in healthcare serial murders. Journal of Criminal Psychology, 3(1), 65-78. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/20093821311307776
The present paper intent to enquire into a female serial killer. It shall describe and analyze the theories behind the occurrences and sequent offer explanations. The studies of criminology theories it is important to recognize why humans decide on living a life cycle of crime. Wikipedia.org defines serial killer as, “a person who murders three or more people, usually in service of abnormal psychological gratification, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant break (a “cooling off period”) between them.” Precisely of this, humans who tend to be a serial killer are prone to developmental and physical characteristics. Several of these trends could fit into a model standard of a crime. A good example of analyzing the life and crimes of Aileen Wuornos, an American female serial killer who killed
Adler, Patricia A., and Adler Peter. Constructions of Deviance: Social Power, Context, and Interaction. 6th ed. Belmont: Thomas/Wadsworth, 2009.
2011. “Serial Killers and Mass Murderers.” American Decades. Ed. Judith S. Baughman, et al. Vol. 9:
“What types of people commit homicide?” This question is asked by psychologists and regular people alike. Could gender play a role? Does the age of a person affect their tendency to kill? How does someone’s financial stability effect whether or not they are a murderer? These thought provoking questions could lead to the answers that people want, but there is a problem which is brought up by forensic psychiatrist Douglas Mosman. “People exhibit different kinds of behavior or thinking patterns that could possibly lead to a violent act…But the problem is that there are hundreds of individuals who display these same patterns, who don’t go on to act violent” (qtd. in Heits 77). Many factors can push an individual to kill. Abuse, mental illness, relationship problems, and more may result in cases of homicide. So, what makes murderers different from those with the same problems?
An analysis of the most famous murderers and serial killers in the Chicago area shows varying degrees of psychopathy or mental illnesses, which ultimately contribute to homicidal comportment. Analysis also shows that...
Almost every major social, biological, psychological, behavioural influence that has been seriously suggested as playing a role in causing crime has been thoroughly thought of 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 crime. 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 individuals in a single event. Each of a serial killer’s killings temporarily gratifies whatever provokes the killer’s actions, and each subsequent killing terminates a separate sequence of behaviors.
Serial killers have many frightening facets. The most frightening thing about them is that experts still do not know what makes a human become a serial killer. Many experts believe serial killers become what they are because they have a genetic disposition or brain abnormality while other experts believe that a serial killer is created by childhood abuse; and some other experts believe that it is a combination of both brain abnormalities and abusive childhood experiences that creates a serial killer. A murderer is considered a serial killer when they “murder three or more persons in at least three separate events with a “cooling off period” between kills” (Mitchell and Aamodt 40). When defining a serial killer, their background, genes, and brain are not mentioned; perhaps one day those aspects of the serial killer can be included.
Killers have been roaming across the world for hundreds of thousands of years. Society outlaws murder, yet people keep on killing. Among these people who take somebody else’s life, there are serial killers. A serial killer is somebody who commits a series of murders, sometimes with no motive, but usually a characteristic, predictable behavior pattern left behind the crime scene. Serial killing is psychological, someone to be labeled as a serial killer is to have a psychological motive for taking life. Some of the greatest serial killers to have wandered America, searching for their prey are Ted Bundy, H.H. Holmes (Hermman Webster Mudgett), John Gacy, and perhaps the most notorious killer from Wisconsin, Jeffery Dahmer. Jeffery Dahmer,
' God, I've never done anything. Help me, help me, help me! God, why is this happening? Help Me!'; Robert Violante screamed as the Son of Sam's .44 caliber bullet tore through his temple (Mitchell p.15). At this moment Robert Violante must have asking himself why this was happening, what could cause someone to do something so atrocious? This paper examines issues related to the definition and study of serial murder. It probes the minds of some of the world's most infamous killers all the while asking the question WHY. It examines methodological issues such as problems with the FBI's so called serial murder profiling system: the fact that the serial killer stereotypes does not necessarily stand true. This paper argues that the killer is not the only one to blame for his/her actions. Together we will probe the minds of killers such as Charles Manson and John Wayne Gacy. I ask you, 'Are they Murderers or Victims?'; I personally have come to the conclusion that they are both murderers and victims.
The captivation with serial murder is neither a novel event, nor is it exclusively American. Murder in its simplest form is horrifying, not only to the victim but the public as well. Both families lose a loved one leaving behind mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers and friends. The reality is, a serial killer like Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Gary Ridgway (the “Green River Killer”), or John Wayne Gacy (the “Killer Clown”), can be anyone. They are your neighbors, co-workers, lovers and homeless people on the streets.
Introduction: On the spectrum of criminal activity, serial killers are rather rare. Rarer still is a serial killer like Ted Bundy. Bundy confessed to killing 28 women in the 1970s in ghastly fashion and some believe he may have killed far more. It is hard to imagine what could cause any person to cross the mental boundary into such macabre behavior as Bundy perpetrated. Nevertheless, it is important to try to understand that behavior because only though such an understanding would society be able to identify and deter mass murderers in order to save lives.
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
Serial murder is one of the most baffling crimes that occur in the U.S. and all over the world. Knight (2006) defines serial murder as the killing of three or more people over a period of more than 30 days, with a significant cooling-off period. The cooling off period may be weeks, months or even years. Researchers have proposed various psychological, biological and sociological theories that offer a partial understanding of the nature of serial murder. Some propose that the basis for criminal behavior is a predisposition to violence, as well as a mix between environment, personality traits and biological factors.
Envision a mental picture of a serial killer, what image comes to mind? Presumably one of a relatively young, fairly attractive, and intelligent middle-class white man. Why is this? It is not plausible that every serial killer fits this category, so why do a majority of American citizens immediately picture serial killers as all displaying these characteristics? By the conclusion of this paper, I wish to identify some key disparities between differing groups of serial killers. Is there a certain quality that drastically separates ethnic serial killers from the rest, or a specific trait that differentiates female serial killers from the males? I believe there is an entire spectrum of these murderers who are both alike and unique from one another
The term serial killing is hard to define, not because of the killing itself but rather the killer. Samuel Adjorlolo touches on the idea that there is no true definition of a serial killer. “Over the years, researchers and law enforcement professionals have tried to achieve uniformity in the use of the term “serial murder,” but such efforts have rather proven futile” (Adjorlolo 1). Adjorlolo goes into great detail on how the definition has changed over the years and even provides a table of the definitions. While similar, each definition has a slight variation of its predecessor. In his report, he settles with the general definition, “The murders are committed as discrete event(s) by the same person(s) over a period of time” (9). While agreeing with Adjorlolo, Laurence Miller takes a different approach to define the term. Miller looks at the different types of serial killers and attempts to define the killer rather than the killing. Miller’s article covers almost every topic of serial killers. In the article he identifies patterns, motives, and even the typical everyday attitude of serial killers. He states that serial killers are not limited by gender, IQ, or even their skill.. Miller defines three different skill levels, amateur, semi-professional, and professional. With this he breaks down how efficient each of the serial killers are