If the characteristics display themselves the odds are overwhelming to the fact that the person most likely will become a serial criminal. This is referred to as the MacDonald Triad, or Homicidal Triad. As summarized from John Macdonald, associate professor of Psychiatry at the University Of Colorado School Of Medicine, in The Threat to Kill, if the stages of the triad are complete the tendency for a child to become a criminal is almost definite. The first stage in the triad is bed wetting (also called enuresis). The cause of this is unclear but it is thought to humiliate the child especially if the child is belittled by a parent. Many times serial killers as children will torture animals, usually birds at first and continuing this pattern of violence with other animals before killing a pet; be it their own or a neighbor’s. The final part of the triad is the tendency to set fires (125-130). As the child grows the release of rage and hostility will present itself in a variety of ways, and in most cases the release of rage will…
To understand why a serial killer commits their violent acts we must understand if their motive was developed by nurture or nature. Research has provided evidence leading to believe that a parental figure or childhood environment can have a large influence of a child’s development into a murder. Sociologists believe that socialization factors play a key role in a serial killers life. One’s environment as a child and adult as well as…
Many of the most watched television shows have a basis of crime, and murderers are almost always involved in these shows. What is rarely explored in these shows however is how the psychopathic killers become this way. Neuroscientist and Professor Jim Fallon has been studying the brains of psychopathic killers. He has developed three factors based on analyzing a plethora of brains to determine how psychopathic killers come to be. What this lecture helps open for exploration is why places with a small amount of violence stay that way, and violent places continue to produce killers.…
Think of serial killer. Does he kill because it is in his genes? No matter what his parents did to raise him; he would have been a violent, serial killer no matter what. On the other hand, did his environment shape him to be a serial killer? Such as, his parent’s did not pay him enough attention, or he was abused as a child. Nature and nurture are factors that have come to be recognized as playing or interacting roles in development.…
Many serial killers have faced similar problems in their childhood development. Hickey's Trauma Control Model explains how early childhood trauma can set the child up for deviant behavior in adulthood.[31] The child's environment (either their parents or society) is the dominant factor in whether or not the child's behavior escalates into homicidal activity.…
Surely there must be something wrong with someone who is extremely violent, or hurts individuals in ways our society will not allow. There are few things more repellent to 'human nature' and morality than the concept of a serial killer. What is different about the brains of these individuals whom our society finds unforgivable and unredeemable predators? Society might find a biological reason for such atrocities more comfortable than the prospects of 'good and evil' or a mistake. This paper will catalogue and attempt to organize the current biological differences between our minds and that of a serial killer.…
Before I selected serial killer as my theme, I was fascinated on human’s potential strength. The ability to go beyond the limit of one's body and evolve our capability. Compare to animals, our body sets a limit on what we could do and cannot do. Even though I was fascinated, it never worked out after the first attempt. I felt that theme was more like a one time thing than a theme where I would contribute more in depth artwork.…
We have been looking at the Nature vs Nurture debate in psychology and how it can be applied to Serial Killers. In class we also looked at the ways nature and nurture effected how Colin Jackson and found that it was a combination of the two arguments. I believe that it may be similarly a combination of both sides of the argument that lead a person to becoming a serial killer.…
In researching about serial killers the topic of nature vs. nurture is the question of debate. It is still to be determined whether or not they are born with the urge already…
There are two schools of thought, one that serial killers are born with certain genes that create homicidal tendencies in them and second that they commit a series of murders because of a particular environment (abusive family, abandonment, etc.) they are exposed to as children. Both arguments have been proved and explained through research and have been supported by statistics. However, it is seen that neither of the two are individually able to answer why serial killers behave in the manner they do. A thorough review of the research, statistics and what experts have to say in this matter will show that it is a mix of genetic and environmental factors that influence a serial killer. It is true that children who are victims of violence and abuse may become violent as they grow up to become adults but this does not mean they will become serial killers. It is necessary here that one is born with a genetic disorder and is also brought up in an environment that triggers the person with a genetic disorder to commit mass murders. Serial killers do not usually develop from a healthy mind after being subjected to a series of environmental factors, but are rather born with a set of bio-psychological characteristics that make them vulnerable to engage in extreme violence and sadism only after…
It is too often where we see serial killers receive the crazy declaration after they commit their crimes. Some people might place mass murderers and serial killers in the same category. Nevertheless, that would be incorrect due to the fact that they are two totally different types of killers. While both of these individuals may fit in the category of killing many people, the difference lies in the reason they kill and the period over which individuals kill their victims. Serial killers are totally different and are a more dangerous threat to society. They may not kill too many people at one time, but some kill for many years without being caught. These types of killers are able to kill over and over again without being detected because they are very careful in their choice of victims. While people have heard many stories about serial…
A 16 year old boy named Kip Kinkel, brutally killed both his mom and dad. The next day he brought a gun to school and killed two of his classmates without even thinking. No one would’ve ever thought a young man like him would ever think about killing. All serial killers are often labeled by mental health professionals with various mental health issues; they often become another statistics but they are more than a statistic. Many assume there is a specific profile for serial killers, that they all have the same MO, they target the same victims, however they are more clever than ordinary people, and some go undetected by ‘normal’ people.…
I watched the video about the Biology of Crime and Violence. In the video Adrian Raine talks about the biological factors affecting whether or not someone will become a violent criminal. He states that there isn’t exactly a killer gene but there are genes that predisposed or raise the odds that someone will become a violent criminal. After doing studies on twins it was found that 50% of the cause of crime antisocial behavior can be related to genes. Some of the risk factors are prenatal smoking, prenatal drinking, malnutrition and a low resting heart rate. A statistic that stood out to me from the video was that 90% of homicides are committed by men. They have also found the prefrontal cortex to be reduced in men which is what controls anger,…
Serial killers have shown many different motives, methods, and psychological issues that have been studied tirelessly by researchers. Studies have shown a long history between serial killers and child abuse. The traumatic events experienced by a child have shown to be a leading cause of them committing these heinous murders. The abuse came in different forms such as physical harm, mental anguish, and sexual deviant behavior. There has been direct links between these childhood events and their serial killing crime sprees.…
Serial killers have terrorized societies and families for decades. Some of most infamous serial killers are Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy, and Albert Desalvo better known as "The Boston Strangler." All these men had used different techniques in their killings, and rapes, but they all had one thing in common; their unstable childhoods. Each one of them suffered from some type of confusion or physical and mental abuse. Instability at home can negatively influence and alter the psychological make up of a child. This explains why societies are victimized by serial killers, murderers, and sexual predators.…