Identifying and Preventing Potential Rampage Killers

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Recommended: Research proposals on parental involvement

Identifying adolescents and young adults with serious emotional and mental issues and giving them access to the appropriate services is crucial to stopping rampage killers. The majority of troubled youth will never commit horrific crimes. However, all rampage killers showed some signs of needing intervention. More focus needs to be placed on the emotional and mental needs of our youth to prevent tragedies such as rampage killings. Parents need to take an active role in their children’s lives including during adolescence. Parental monitoring by knowing where and with whom the child is with is crucial during the impressionable adolescent years. This is a difficult time for the majority of children because it involves rapid changes both physically and emotionally. There are many influences both genetically and environmentally that can contribute to the makeup of rampage killers.
Parental involvement is vital in children’s lives at all stages. Even if adolescents act like they do not want parents around, they still crave adult attention, love, and approval. Lack of parental involvement and affection can lead to low self-esteem in children. In an interview for the documentary, Mind of a Rampage Killer, Jeff Williams, the father of Andy Williams, said “Yes, I love my son very much. Ironically, first time I told him I loved him, that I can remember, was when I saw him for the first time at Juvenile Hall, on March 8th (Brien, 2013).” Even though Jeff said he loved his son, he never expressed his love until it was too late. Children often feel rejected by their families and their peers.
The majority of the rampage killers experienced being bullied in middle school. Most of them did not retaliate against the bullies or confide in adults...

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...ole in their adolescent’s lives. Parental involvement can be the most effective way to prevent horrific crimes such as rampage killers.

Works Cited

Brien, M. (Director). (2013). Mind of a rampage killer [Documentary]. United States: PBS :.Retrieved May 1, 2014, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/mind-rampage-killer.html
Frontline. (2013, February 19). Raising Adam Lanza [Documentary]. United States: PBS: Retrieved May 4, 2014, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/raising-adam-lanza/
Goode, E. (2013, February 14). “Focusing on Violence Before It Happens” . New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/15/us/in-los-angeles-focusing-on-violence-before-it-occurs.html?_r=0
Morgan, W. (Director). (2013). The path to violence: [Documentary]. United States: PBS :. Retrieved May 5, 2014, http://video.pbs.org/video/2336803730/

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