The Macdonald Triad

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Of the many problems this world faces, one prominent issue is that of serial killers. According to the FBI, what separates serial killers from average murderers is that they usually commit three or more murders within a specific period of time. This period can last from days to years depending on the serial killer and what triggers his/her killing. Another perspective of serial killers was proposed by Steve Egger. He states that serial killings all have six characteristics in common.
There are a minimum of two murders
The killer and their victims are usually unrelated
The victims of these murders have to connection whatsoever and occur at different times
The victims are killed in separate locations
The victims may or may not have common characteristics …show more content…

The MacDonald Triad consists of a collection of three varying symptoms and behavioral attributes that may appear in a serial killer’s early life, which are: Cruelty to animals, which might involve torture, skinning, and killing, an obsession with fire and arson, and bed wetting past the age of 5. According to statistics produced by multiple studies, if all of these characteristics are present in a person’s childhood history it is most likely that he/she is a serial killer or psychopath. These symptoms stem from both mental and sexual abuse and neglect as a child, usually from their own parents, and can lead to increasingly shy kids who grow up to become violent and homicidal adults who have their own peculiar views on life. The most common cause that affects that mentality of serial killers is rejection. All serial killers suffer at least one psychological disorder. These disorders can be schizophrenia, multiple personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, anxiety and bipolar disorder, depression, delusional disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), pedophilia, sexual sadism and multiple …show more content…

An example is of the infamous Son of Sam who believed that his neighbor’s dog was compelling him to kill people.
Mission-oriented serial killers aren’t always considered psychotic. They create or have their own logic and morals on life that are abnormal to normal human beings. They usually target people whom they think are damaging and corrupting the society they live in such as prostitutes and homeless people.
Hedonistic serial killers branches into three subcategories: Lust, thrill, and comfort killers. They all feel great pleasure in killing no matter what the purpose. Lust killers kill based on fulfilling a fantasy that they have conjured in their minds and enjoy dismembering and torturing their victims. Thrill killers thrive from the thought of being caught and try to create the perfect murder. They live for the adrenaline that courses through them when they kill and when they know that they are being chased by police authorities. Comfort killers kill to benefit from something. They are usually hired my mobsters or gangs. A known example of a comfort killer would be a

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