The criminal mind is both a fascinating and terrifying place to explore. Serial killers are a different breed, owing to the complexity of their psyche. It's difficult to pinpoint where and when exactly a serial killer is born. We can only speculate the purpose behind why murderers like Jack the Ripper and John Wayne Gacy did unspeakable acts of evil.
How does the average person become these horrific figures that haunt the real world with their notoriety? The Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime has been hot on its heels to understand why and how normal people transform into the world’s most brutal murderers.
It found out that these criminals were driven by several factors, each having a profound and unique effect on every killer. Here's what we know so far about the reasons behind serial killer motives:
- Early childhood abuse
The most common factor in the development of violent tendencies is a person's history as a victim of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. Following Jeffrey Dahmer's arrest after his string of murders and bouts of cannibalism, public interest highlighted his alleged experience as a victim of sexual abuse.
This was not proven, but psychologists assert that exposure to abusive environments could cause children to develop aggressive and nihilistic behaviors. Much like the Toy Box Killer's childhood.
A 2020 study published in Psychiatry, Psychology, and Law found a close link between exposure to childhood abuse and aggressive behavior. Since abuse became commonplace in their immediate environment, children would treat sexual violence as an accepted social convention that they attempt to exert on others. This would explain how serial killers with traumatic childhoods like Albert Fish and Pedro Lopez developed an erotic fascination towards murder.
- Mental illness
While some serial killers attribute their thirst for bloodshed to their traumatic pasts, others were simply the victims of mental illnesses that were not triggered by abuse or neglect. While this is a valid form of criminal defense, an insanity plea was not always a ticket to avoid jail time or execution, especially if a serial killer is deemed too dangerous to let go.
One example is Ted Bundy, who is believed to have raped and killed dozens of people from the 1970s to the 1980s. While there were claims that Bundy himself was physically abused by his grandfather, these were unsubstantiated and Bundy grew up as normally as any child did. It was only later that psychologists agreed that Bundy had antisocial personality disorder, a condition defined by a lack of empathy, impulsiveness, and an inability to forge intimate social connections.
Other notable examples include Jared Lee Loughner, who attempted to shoot Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Loughner was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and had undergone medication, but he was still given a life sentence without parole at a facility in Minnesota.
- Substance abuse
Drug dependence and alcoholism lead to a wide variety of mental health conditions, ranging from depression to asocial behavior. However, studies are showing how serial killers were driven primarily by their addictions to substances such as cocaine and marijuana.
In another study published in the Bulletin of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, substance abuse patterns are found to be a significant driver of homicidal behavior. They are not the only factors, but they could amplify a person’s murderous desires.
There 's no better example of this than Stephen Peter Morin who, throughout the 1970s, had a kill count of at least 40 people. Before his spree, Morin had developed an addiction to narcotics during his childhood, which may have been a contributing factor to the murders he committed. His history of substance abuse was so deeply rooted that his executors spent 45 minutes trying to find a usable vein to administer a lethal injection.
Every serial killer case file is unique in that certain factors may not have worked for some. But what’s important here is that the lust for blood doesn’t appear out of the blue. It points to an age-old question of nature or nurture that could help law enforcers and psychologists uncover the point where a normal citizen becomes public enemy number one.
