Classifications Of Serial Killers

Serial killers have been around since ancient times. “Serial murder is the killing of three or more people over a period of 30 days, with a significant cooling-off period” (Knight 1190). People have many assumptions as to what could have caused these individuals to commit these crimes. Serial killers come in all different forms: male and female, young and old, rich and poor, mentally ill and mentally healthy. “The average serial killer profile is white, male, low-middle socioeconomic status, in his 20s or 30s, has a history of childhood abuse or neglect, is sociopathic/psychopathic, is a chameleon to his environment, and appears normal to others” (LaBrode 154). They are obsessed with power and dominance, usually killing or injuring animals

There are several characteristics that are generally assigned to serial killers: typically, serial killers are male; they are mentally ill; and they have often been abused mentally, physically, emotionally and/or sexually. One of the main classifications for serial killers is that they are predominantly male. Miller explains, “The typical serial murderer is a white male . . . The individual is often a loner, although many are married or live in relatively stable relationships” (4). It is uncertain as to why such a large number of serial killers are male; however, many people believe it is because women tend to have more caring, sympathetic personalities. It is rare to see female serial killers; although they do exist. Miller classifies females to be the main victims of murder; the women and children are typically “white, and young

Mitchell and Aamodt state, “100 percent of serial killers had been abused as children, either with violence, neglect, or humiliation” (De Becker 55). Although this number seems quite high, percentages vary among articles from 100 percent to 40 percent (Mitchell and Aamodt 40). Famous serial killers: John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and many others, had very unstable childhoods (LaBrode 155). They have typically been abused as children, suffered trauma, and have been abandoned at a young age (LaBrode 155). Childhood trauma is a common factor when studying serial killers as all of them have endured abuse in some form as they were growing up. “As children, fledging serial killers often set fires, torture animals, and wet their beds,” (LaBrode 154) even at a young age, they lack empathy and perform cruel acts on animals who are essentially defenseless, relishing in the dominance this allows. LaBrode suggests that many serial killers, at one point, “had inappropriate relationships with their mothers,” (155) either engaging in sexual acts with each other or witnessing their mothers in a sexual situation. It was common for the serial killer to target women who reminded them of their mother. “The relationship between maternal characteristics and victimology are too similarly close to disregard; there is no question that these killers’ relationships with their