Psychopathic Serial Killer example essay topic

The Twisted Mind of a Serial Killer As police walk into an abandoned house, a foul stench overtakes them. The room is dim and looks as though no one has been here for months. They walk further into the house and begin to see spots of blood on the floor. They follow this trail down the stairs into the basement where the smell becomes overwhelming, causing some of the officers to gasp and run back up the stairs. In the basement, they find the remains of several young boys who have been molested and badly mutilated.

What could cause someone to participate in such horrendous deeds? What sort of person is able to perform such wicked acts? Serial killers always have aroused the curiosity and concern of the public. People seem to be both fascinated and repulsed by their horrendous crimes.

The stories make newspaper headlines, and their gruesome murders are the subject of popular movies and best-selling books. In this paper, I will discuss what causes a human being to become a serial killer. Although social scientists have developed many theories to explain the mind of a serial killer, the scientific evidence supports the theories of sociopathy, psychopathy, sadistic fulfillment, childhood abuse, and genetics. The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines a serial murder as the killing of several victims in ten or more separate incidents over an extended period of time (Dietz 483).

Serial murderers are often classified into specific categories. One category is motive; motive killers are sexually sadistic killers or spree killers. The psychology of the killer is another category used to characterize these criminals. These types of killers are classified as sociopaths and psychopaths. This paper will focus mainly on killers of the psychotic and sexually sadistic kind, for these are the ones on which the public and media tend to focus.

According to James Fox and Jack Levin (19), serial killers are most always Caucasian males who are in their twenties or thirties. Although there are reported cases of female serial killers, the field is predominantly composed of males. There are two key characteristics of a serial killer, one being the presence of sociopathy or aggressive antisocial behavior. It has been estimated that nearly three percent of males in our society may be sociopaths. Most socio-paths are not violent: they may lie, cheat, or steal, but rape and murder are not necessarily appealing to them. This mental illness can lead to violent outbursts, which are difficult to control without therapy; and without therapy, rape and murder can be attractive to those with this condition.

The second key characteristic of most serial killers is an overwhelming need for control. Women and children are often targeted because they are seen as weak and easily dominated figures. Killers will tie their victims up with ropes or chains and watch them helplessly struggle to free themselves. They may also torture them and watch as their pleas for freedom fall upon deaf ears. Many killers are demented and exhibit signs of future violence at a very early age.

Society often turns to the upbringing of the killer for answers. Many killers speak of their childhoods being full of sexual abuse, torture, and mayhem (Scott). In his book Serial Killers, Joel Norris speaks of violence as something that cycles from generation to generation: 'Parents who abuse their children, physically as well as psychologically, instill in them an almost instinctive reliance upon violence as a first resort to any challenge. Childhood abuse not only spawns violent reactions, but also affects the child's health, including brain injuries, malnutrition, and other developmental disorders" (49 - 50). Violence early in life may lead to these undesirable tendencies to abuse and kill. Parents often believe that strict discipline will help the individual grow up to be strong, but it, in turn, creates a gap between the child and the parents.

The child does not feel loved or wanted. This may lead to isolation and possibly violent tendencies as a source of gratification. Robert Ressler said, 'Instead of developing positive traits of trust, security, and autonomy, child development becomes dependent on fantasy life and its dominant themes, rather than on social interaction' (84). Hazelwood and Douglas, former FBI agents, also attribute childhood abuse as a cause for a person becoming a serial killer.

They state in one of their papers that most killers do not come from an environment of love and understanding. Instead they come from an environment full of abuse, where they were neglected and experienced a great deal of conflict early in life. As a result of this, these children are unable to develop and use proper coping devices in situations that arise in their lives (4). One of the most prolific serial killers of all time, Luis Gavarito, confessed to killing 140 children in Colombia. As a child he was continuously beaten by his father and sexually molested by two male neighbors (Mendoza). This is an obvious precursor to his inhuman actions later in life.

Some serial killers are considered psychopaths. A psychopath is a person with an antisocial personality disorder, especially one manifested in perverted, aggressive, or criminal behavior (Psychopathy 1104). Many killers often try to rationalize their actions. The Associated Press quotes Ted Bundy saying, "I just liked to kill, I wanted to kill". Ted's childhood was very troubled; he grew up thinking that his mother was his sister and that his grandparents were his parents. When he found out the truth about his parents, he became disturbed.

He met a girl named Stephanie Brooks that he fell in love with, but she didn't love him as much. When she broke up with him, he became very distraught. Friends and co-workers noticed a change in Ted. He seemed to lose all feelings of sympathy and understanding; he became cold hearted. 'I'm the most cold blooded sonofabitch you " ll ever meet,' said Ted Bundy (Ming Ho).

The hallmark of a psychopath is his inability to recognize others as worthy of compassion. The victims are dehumanized and made into worthless objects in the mind of the killer. He relates the actions of an aggressive role model, often an abusive parent, to his own actions. The psychopathic serial killer is only capable of sadomasochistic relationships based on power, not attachment (Me loy 37).

Soon the killer is incapable of empathy for anyone. He claims to hear voices in his head that command him to act out against society. Professor Lund e, associate professor of law and psychiatry at Stanford University, believes that all serial killers are insane. Two types of insanity exist: sexual sadists, characterized by torturing and killing, and paranoid schizophrenics, characterized by visual and auditory hallucinations full of violent content (56). David Berkowitz, the famous "Son of Sam" killer, preyed on innocent people sitting in their cars. He admitted to killing six people and severely wounding seven more.

This man was a classic psychopath. He believed that he was told to kill by the howling of his neighbors' dogs (Fox 116). According to Doctor Edward Mitchell, psychopaths show a "lack of remorse, shallow affect, impulsivity, grandiose sense of self worth, and a lack of long - term goals" (FBI). They become unable to control the crimes that they are committing, as though it is an addiction. Edmund Kemper was quoted as saying, "It was an urge [... ] A strong urge, and the longer I let it go the stronger it got, to where I was taking risks to go out and kill people -- risks that normally, according to my little rules of operation, I wouldn't take because they could lead to arrest' (Mendoza).

Edmund Kemper, like many others serial killers, had an unfortunate childhood. He was ridiculed by his parents and made to live in the basement as a teenager. He killed and tortured small animals and began having violent fantasies. Once he became an adult, he killed six hitchhiking girls and his mother in her own home. Knowing that he was going to be caught, he turned himself into the police. There he sat and gave a vivid description to the police about each murder: he actually bragged about his crimes and, of course, he showed absolutely no remorse.

In Dr. Mitchell's study, he says that even if a killer is deemed a psychopath, this gives no indication of the causality or motive for the murders. He continues to say that the psychopath feels an overwhelming amount of boredom. 'I wished I could stop, but I could not. I had no other thrill or happiness,' said Dennis Nilsen (Ming Ho). The serial killer uses the act of murder and torture as an escape from this boredom. Internal justification is also a result of psychosis.

This role of psychopathy helps to distinguish the homicidal murderer from the serial murderer. A serial murderer does not feel any remorse for what he has done. Therefore, he is much more likely to commit the crime again. The dehumanization of the victim helps to protect the killer's fragile mind from the harsh reality of his actions (FBI). Many killers are classified as lust killers. They have an extremely warped sense of sexual satisfaction.

Again the need for power and dominance is seen here, and it is accompanied by their perverted sexual desires. "What I did was not for sexual pleasure. Rather it brought me some peace of mind' - Andrei Chikatilo (Ming Ho). According to former FBI criminologist Robert Ressler, "Rapists who kill rarely find any sexual satisfaction from the murder nor do they perform postmortem sexual acts. In contrast, the sadistic murderer kills as part of a ritualized sadistic fantasy" (57).

This fantasy can be brought upon by a number of occurrences including abuse, pornography, and psychosis. Ressler also says, "Strange and bizarre fantasies thrive in isolation and anger. For the fledgling serial killer, fantasies of violence prompt further isolation, which in turn creates a greater reliance on fantasy for pleasure", (55). The strong need for power is the overwhelming factor in the killings of most. Ressler writes of Bundy, "Sex is only an instrument used by the killer to obtain power and domination over his victim.

He wanted to master life and death" (63). According to Joel Norris, there are 6 phases of the serial killer's cycle: 1) The Aura Phase, where the killer begins losing grip on reality; 2) The Trolling Phase, when the killer searches for a victim; 3) The Wooing Phase, where the killer lures his victim in; 4) The Capture Phase, where the victim is entrapped; 5) The Murder or Totem Phase, which is the actual murder and causes an emotional high for killers; and finally, 6) The Depression Phase, which occurs after the killing. Depression will set in again and the cycle will start over (24). The killer is unable to cope with the world and therefore becomes very introverted. This leads to excessive fantasizing and ultimately the acting out of his twisted fantasies. In the past few years scientists have discovered that both body chemistry and genetic makeup may play a role in causing a person to become a serial killer.

Chemical analysis has revealed that many serial killers have a chemical imbalance in their bodies. Some killers have extremely high levels of testosterone, and some have extremely low levels of serotonin. High levels of testosterone can lead to overwhelming feelings of dominance, and the absence of serotonin often leads to aggressive and violent behavior (Dorfman 46). Dorfman also says that a predisposition to fearlessness is inherited. Crime Times reports in a study that psychopaths have a greater fear threshold and are less likely to respond to fear-inducing stimuli, such as sudden, loud noises. In other words, psychopaths may be immune to fear.

The psychopaths' heart rate and skin temperature are low, and their 'startle reaction' was substantially less than the average person. The autonomic nervous system of intensely violent people is intensely sluggish. "They need a higher level of thrill or stimulation in order to have an intense experience,' says forensic psychologist Shawn Johnston (Scott). This inheritance can be expressed as either heroism or criminal activity. There is obviously no "kill gene", but a predisposition to aggressive and violent behavior can be identified through genetics (199).

Richard Speck's legal defense said he had an XYZ genetic makeup, but further tests proved this wrong. Richard Speck was convicted for the murdered of several school nurses. While an extra male chromosome seems like a logical explanation for mutant-aggressive behavior, there is not much evidence that links the X or Y chromosome to serial killers. As scientists continue to study genetics, they undoubtedly will provide more information about the genetic makeup of a serial killer.

The public is disgusted by the bloody deeds that serial killers have committed, but they will forever intrigue us. The fascination stems from the fact that in most cases the killers are so similar to the common person. On the outside they seem as normal as the next. Fortunately for humanity, the next person is not capable of such ghastly deeds.

These serial killers are often psychopathic or sociopathic persons who were abused as children. Others may be trying to fulfill their own sadistic fantasies that were brought on by their childhood experiences. The most recent reason identified is a link to a genetic predisposition to violence. The inherent goodness of humans can sometimes go awry and lead to a person who is as evil as a serial killer.

No matter how one analyzes the killers, they are not normal in any sense. Edmund Kemper when asked what he thought when he saw a pretty woman walking down the street replied, "One side of me says, 'I'd like to talk to her, date her. ' The other side of me says, 'I wonder how her head would look on a stick?' " (Ming Ho)..