Serial Killers Vs Serial Killers

This essay aims to examine weather serial killers are born a certain way and their genetics define their psychotic tendencies or whether they're a product of a bad environment that they grew up. This essay looks at recent killings in the late 20th century as there is more information on the killers from this period and it's easier to gain details about their childhoods. Whilst I will look at various different killers to reach more rounded conclusions (see appendix for comparison table), this essay will focus on four in detail to examine the debate; Ted Bundy (1946-89), Jeffery Dahmer (1960-1994), John Wayne Gacy (1942-1994) and Gary Ridgway (1949-present).

Statistically, the average serial killer is a white male from a lower-to-middle-class background, usually in his twenties or thirties. Many were physically or emotionally abused by parents. Some were adopted. As children, fledgling serial killers often set fires, torture animals, and wet their beds (these red-flag behaviors are known as the “triad” of symptoms.) Brain injuries are common. Some are very intelligent and have shown great promise as successful professionals. They are also fascinated with the police and authority in general (Scott).

An event that happened in America in the decade of the 1920s there was a large creative movement that affected or encouraged change in the United States history. According to the online Openstax textbook called U.S. History published by P. Scott Corbett, Volker Janssen, John M. Lund, Todd Pfannenstiel and Paul Vickery states “This mixture of social, political, economic, and cultural change and conflict gave the decade the nickname the “Roaring Twenties” or the “Jazz Age”.” A widespread of economic prosperity, social change and a form of expression made a way for society to begin to walk down the path of the modern age. Especially for women, African Americans, and the youth generation. Thereby, redefining the nation for the youth to forget about the post-world war one era and embrace the new morality, for African American to showcase their intellectual contributions and link their struggle to the world, for women to expand their human rights and be liberated from society standards, and for American to begin their new lives because of invention in medicine and technology. So, how did the Roaring Twenties and or the Jazz Age affect the decade of the 1920s in the United States history?

Throughout time many have had a fascination with serial killers and with help from the media they have become celebrities within our culture. There are many books, movies, television shows, and news coverage to introduce viewers to their lives. With all the interest behind serial killers, many wonder how they come to be this violent. The question is often asked, are serial killers born or made?

During the 2010 super bowl snickers aired a commercial featuring Betty White. In the commercial Betty White is playing football with what seems to be some friends. After a bad play they group up in a huddle with one of the friends asking him what is wrong and telling him that he is playing like Betty White. By using the stereotype that older people aren’t fit, or in great shape snickers implies the notion that while you’re hungry you don’t act like your normal self.

The question of whether or not man is predetermined at birth to lead a life of crime is a question that has been debated for decades. Are serial killers born with the lust for murder, or are their desires developed through years of abuse and torment? Many believe it is impossible for an innocent child to be born with the capability to commit a horrible act such as murder. But at the same time, how could we have corrupted society so much as to turn an innocent child into a homicidal maniac? Forensic psychologists have picked apart the minds of serial killers to find an answer as to what forces them to commit such perverse acts. Their ultimate goal is to learn how to catch a serial killer before

What causes an individual to become a serial killer? Bio-psychologists believe that starting from birth the human mind is a “tabula rasa” or blank slate, and the individual learns behaviors and socio-cultural norms from individuals around them. This concept of nature versus nurture was based upon the idea that it is how you are brought up (nurture) that governs the psychologically significant aspects of child development and the concept of maturation applies only to the biological. The theory that explains the nature aspect of the nature versus nurture principle is called the attachment theory, which views the bond between mother and child as being an innate process that ensures survival. It is a biological need that has ensured the survival of many species including the human race; because of the need to protect and be protected humans as a species has been able to endure. It is also a psychological need to want to be cared for as well as care for others a study done by Harry Harlow (1950s). The concept of nurture focuses mainly on the effect that the environment has on the development of human beings and whether it is more important than nature. Several studies have been generated to try and settle the ongoing debate of nature versus nurture.

Ever heard of the zodiac killer? He was a serial killer who operated in northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The killer's identity remains unknown. The Zodiac murdered victims in 5 states between December 1968 and October 1969. The general profile for a serial killer is a person who commits a series of murders, often with no apparent motive and typically following a characteristic, predictable behavior pattern. There are many types of serial killers. There are natural born killers who are born willing to kill someone, insane killers which have mental and physical disorders and criminaloids who do not exhibit specific traits. The childhood of a serial killer would typically be someone who is neglected by their family mainly their mothers. They tend to be antisocial and have anger issues. Poor families often cannot provide what the child always wants so they might commit crimes to get want they want. Abused children have a higher chance of being killers also because they have a lot of built up aggression and anger. All can lead to substance abuse which is never a good thing to mix in with a potential serial killer in the making. General behavioral progression from pre-crime to post-crime are that they use killing as a source of relief. Before committing a serious crime they could have built up anger and hatred. They is a high possibility that they are suffering from depression and anxiety too. After killing someone the killer feels relieved. They also feel

There are many theories as to why people become serial killers. Almost all of these concepts are associated with the Nature vs. Nurture theory. Are serial killers born with the need to kill, or is it something that they learn to long for as they grew up? Many believe that the nurture theory is the likely concept to believe; that serial killers are created from bad childhood experiences including being abused by their parents, or molested at an early age. Psychologist and sociologist have interviewed serial killers and picked apart their minds, to find out what it is that makes them feel the need to perform these heinous crimes. It is the nature theory that they are looking for when

In current times, the matters of anti-semitism seems to be regarded as an important factor for social condemnation. In fact, any sort of this concept seems to propose the premise of offensiveness and disregard for the historical recognition of the repetitive ostracization of Jews. However, Geoffrey Chaucer, living in fourteenth century England, during a time when Catholic rule was prevalent for their indoctrination for Christian bigotry against Judaism, seems to convey the existing social atmosphere of his times by means of satirizing the portrayal of Christian faith and the religious decorum in The Prioress’s Tale. In other words, while there is a strong indication of a resonating anti-semitism in this particular tale, the depiction of the

The nurture part of the debate is how the person was raised. The national center for crisis posted article “Serial killers: nature vs. nurture. How serial killer are born” going into detail about the crimes that have happened and if it was connected to their past and if they were abused at a young age. The serial killer may have been beat when they were young and they learned from their parents.

Studies show that traits of a serial killer can be seen in a person at a very young age. Most warning signs go unnoticed which is why the growth of the killer continues. A thing such as animal cruelty is one of many clues inside the growth of a serial killers mind “They often start out their careers by maiming, harming, and torturing small animals.” “In extreme cases, they have been known to spend hours inflicting a slow death on animals...this is a form of control that allows them the power to crave” (Kocsis,2008) . Many future serial killers also show a major interest in setting fires. Even though it is common for most young children to show a slight interest in fire, those with serial killing in their future are somewhat pyromaniacs.

What makes a murderer? The mind of someone who commits such heinous crimes has never really been diagnosed. The chromosomal patterns have yet to be determined. So what causes someone to kill? Are serial killers and mass murderers more of a product of their own upbringing and environment or of delusional thoughts from a chemical imbalance? Someone who kills is an obsessed individual who lacks a conscience and who has no remorse. All the known characteristics of someone who kills point to something beyond our comprehension. Ted Bundy and Charles Manson are both infamous in the world of criminal history. Not all killers are the same: they may have grown up differently, used certain killing methods, and had a unique pool of victims.

Many people wonder it takes to make a serial killer. Is there something inherently defective in that person that means that they have the ability to commit murder without remorse or somehow enjoy the suffering or others, or doses childhood abuse and other mistreatment mean that someone will grow up to commit these atrocities? Unfortunately, the conflicting information about Bundy's childhood does little to help answer these questions. On the surface, Bundy's childhood does not appear to feature the level of child abuse or neglect that one normally associates with a serial killer. He was born to a single mother in 1946, a time in which there was a tremendous social stigma attached to being born out of wedlock. However, Bundy did not experience that stigma, as his grandparents raised him as their son. Bundy's own accounts of his childhood vary tremendously. At times, he seems to indicate that he was raised in a stable and loving home, but at other times he

Serial killers are the byproduct of many different things: trauma, death of loved ones, abuse, neglect, adoption, and even witnessing abuse (Are Serial). Serial killers have had to endure a massive amount of something such as trauma or abuse to an unimaginable extent to become what they are; the extent of the abuse, the trauma, the psychological damage they endure is incomprehensible to many. The destruction of one’s innocence can occur at any given time in his or her life, but he or she is more impressionable in his or her youth by the negativism of someone else’s actions (Scott, Shirley L. What Makes Serial Killers Tick ~ Childhood Event). People are susceptible to what they endure in their adolescence, and cruel upbringings, such as