What creates a serial murderer? A big question in the world of criminology and forensic profiling is this; are serial killers born or made? Since we have been trying to answer this question, people have considered demon possession, poor diet or even organic brain dysfunction as a reason for this terrible behavior. Child abuse is definitely a strong factor in the creation of monsters. However, not every child that is abused turns out to be a murderer, and not every murderer was abused as a child. It is undeniable that many serial killers have similar experiences: one being childhood abuse, and the second, which usually ties in with the first, is neglectful and damaged parental relationships. These factors have been investigated for a long time …show more content…
If parents are abusive or do not use effective emotional communication, it can quickly lead to underdeveloped cognitive and emotional skills. The emotional response we receive from our parents illustrates how we, as people, behave. Having a healthy relationship with the people that are there to give care and safety is instrumental to forming positive relationships and thinking skills. A child who is torn away from their mother at a young age could develop abandonment issues or have trouble building relationships with women for the rest of their lives. This dynamic is partially responsible for the high number of women targeted by serial killers. Some killers seek sexual pleasure from killing women, while others simply hate …show more content…
According to DR. Jasmine Shaikh, “The frontal lobe plays a role in regulating emotions in interpersonal relationships and social situations. These include positive (happiness, gratitude, satisfaction) as well as negative (anger, jealousy, pain, sadness) emotions.” If an injury to this specific part of the brain occurs in childhood horrible outcomes could occur. In the case of the grisly murderer Richard Ramirez, AKA the night stalker, he suffered a brain injury at age two, and again at age six. Not only was his brain severley injured at an influential age, he also witnessed his older cousin shoot his wife, and was forced to watch brutal rapes and beatings that his cousin filmed in Vitenam. This combination of multiple brain injuries, a negative home condition, and early exposure to things no one should ever see, formed Ramirez into one of the country's worst serial murderers. Another neurological study about low expression of the Monoamine Oxidase A (MAOA) gene is a common denominator to some killers. The responsibility of Monoamine Oxidase A (MAOA) is to break down neurotransmitters for serotonin and dopamine, which in turn keeps normal emotional function in the brain. In cases of certain killers, there is a low amount of this in their brains causing increased aggressive behavior and the inability to gain happiness easily. The decrease in this chemical could be due to
We can all come to an agreement that serial killers are both horrendous and unpredictable human beings. Most acts of violence we hear about are committed by serial killers. Unsatisfied with their previous actions, serials killers look to execute more victims. In most cases, the upbringing of the individual plays a huge role on the killer. Because of their twisted techniques and motives, some of these killers are infamously known to be the most frightening criminals in history.
Have you ever thought about how many murderers you have encountered just living your daily life? The people of the Eastern Shore may understand how this feels. The Eastern Shore experiences hundreds of murders a year, however, just three shocking murders affected the way the local community continues to view the life around them. Murders are a commonly committed crime throughout the world, yet, very few people realize that they have more than likely experienced an encounter with a murderer just carrying on with their daily life. One may wonder, what causes someone to become a murderer, serial killer, or any other kind of criminal.
“The killers typically come from unstable families, shown signs of voyeurism and sadomasochism from an early age.” (DailymailUK). This statement defends my aim, what we do in front of our newborns they will reflect it on themselves. Making them grasp a lonely and undesirable life of taking on traits of serial killers. There is suffered physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect.
There are different types of serial killers; some are worse than others. People often wonder why these people do certain things, for example, why they target specific people, or what has influenced their behavior. Taking a deeper look into serial killers a lot can be learned about their childhood and what may have led to them turning out the way they did. Most of the time they do not just wake up one day and decide to kill someone; rather, they are influenced by something or someone. It all starts with looking at their childhood, what their addiction turns into, and what happens to them in the end.
Every serial killer chooses to murder for different reasons, but one thing they all have in common is that they don’t feel any remorse. Serial killers can blend in as normal person because although many people believe they are gruesome looking characters, they could be an average person with families. Sadistic killers want others to fear them and feel submissive compared to them. Although there are ways to prevent people who have psychopathic tendencies from becoming serial killers early on through psychological help, some people who have surpassed the stages of being helped can no longer be
Serial killers have always been a mystery to the population and even an obsession for some. Due to the mystery around their origins, there always is a recurring question about those people about whether there are reasons to explain their violent behaviour. The interview with Peter Vronsky, "What Makes A Serial Killer" written by J Oliver Conroy and the article "Jeffrey Dahmer's Brain: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer" by Carlyn Beccia answer this question by introducing the idea of nature known as the scientific cause, and nurture referred to as the environment cause. The two pieces contribute to the debunking of the mystery of the origins of serial killers, with Beccia's article focusing more on the nature cause for serial killers while
Then, this can help figure out what is causing them to make the decisions they are choosing to make and why they are showing those traits. Relojo states, “Studies have shown that a malfunctioning amygdala, the region of the brain responsible for regulating emotions and aggression, may be involved in the development of violent behaviour.” By scanning the brain, it can help people find things like a malfunctioning amygdala and can reveal low levels of serotonin. Both of these things can cause the type of behavior that serial killers act on. The traits that a serial killer may display may come from
In a research thesis Tamara Higgs did for University of Regis she mentioned, “ For those unfortunate children who grow up with abuse and neglect, oftentimes their cries for help are overlooked or ignored… Children whose cries for help are ignored or overlooked will become involved in deviant behavior, and from there they will gradually turn toward more illegal and even deadly activities. This Behavior was particularly evident with Jeffery Dhamer. At the age four, Jeffery Dahmer's father had noticed Jeffery Dahmer had a particularly odd fascination with a pile of bones that had been raked out from under his childhood home. While this odd behavior was noticed, Lionel Dahmner did nothing to deter his son's interest with death, and as a result, his son's interest grew.”
A serial killer’s violent rage may reflect the abuse and neglect endured in childhood. Their intense hatred cultivated in the early stages of childhood now will be directed at their unsuspecting victims. In The Killers Among Us, Stephen Egger claims that many case studies of mass and serial murderers discovered a reoccurring background of ”neglect and early years spent in extreme social and psychological deprivation” (Egger 29). Continually, Egger states that the most common aspect of the serial killer’s histories was the physical abuse and violent punishments inflicted on them as a child. As a result, their subconscious stores these traumatic memories and emotions, which later has a powerful result on their behaviors and emotional life
Serial killers commit horrible crimes, and that is why people think they are interesting. It has a lot to do with their childhood that affects them in many different ways. They develop traits that aren’t normally seen in the average population. They also have many motivations that will only help their personalities. A disturbed childhood can influence would-be serial killers to develop traits of serious crime.
The childhood experiences of Aileen Wuornos contributed greatly to the development of her becoming a serial killer, however she may have had a genetic predisposition to kill and this alone may have been enough to drive her. But this predisposition is often triggered by ‘stressful’ events. The debate of nature vs nuture when it comes to crime is quite an extensive one. There is a lot of research to suggest a killer is born a killer, but there is equally enough evidence to suggest a killer is made.
Inadequate Relationships When a man or woman commits a crime, the world is disgusted by his or her inhumanity. Humanity is quick to denounce the criminals from the human race, claiming that no true human is capable of such atrocities. While humanity’s statement may not be true in a genetic standpoint, the majority of the world considers it true from a moral perspective. To many, humans are born with compassion and love blooming in their hearts. However, they fail to form these coherent statements of disgust and denouncement when they learn about a different group of perpetrators— children.
The MacDonald Triad is an important piece of information that can possibly identify deviant behavior in juveniles that lead to serial killings in the future. The triad includes three ominous parts to it including; fire setting, enuresis, and cruelty to animals. A key element to the triad is large number of serial killers have admitted to experiencing and committing at least one aspect of the triad. Neglect and child abuse have all been concurrent with serial killers that have characteristics relating to the triad.
“Female serial killers comprise less than 20% of all serial killers… and they are very different than their male counterparts” (Tron). This comes shows that female serial killers are not rare and are beginning to hold names for themselves in America. Women are seen to be the nurturing type of species in human society however, certain events can change a person to break that sense of ideology. One of the most infamous female serial killers, Aileen Wurnos was a killer that prompted the public to notice women do indeed kill in horrendous ways that men do. She murdered seven men during her time alive and blamed her actions on self-dense over trying to be raped by her clients.
young murderers are sexually abused either by a family member or family friend in nearly every case known. It has been discovered that this is actually one of the most important factors