Forensic Psychology

What is it?  Examines the relationship between human behavior and legal proceedings  For criminal cases they evaluate behavioral disorders and determine whether people are competent to stand trial  Examine behavioral patterns of criminals as an aid in developing the suspect’s behavioral profile

Serial Killers  Description of Serial Killer A minimum of 3 to four victims with time in between Killer is a stranger to the victim the murders are unconnected or random Murders reflect a need to sadistically dominate the victim The murder is not for profit. Its psychological not material Victim may have symbolic value for the killer. The method used to kill may reveal this meaning Killers chose victims who are vulnerable like prostitutes or runaways

Statistically Serial Killers Are:  White males  Lower to middle class background  In their twenties or thirties  Many were physically or emotionally abused by the parents  Some were adopted  Brain injuries are common  Some are very intelligent  Fascinated with police and authority They have usually attempted to become police, worked as security guards, or served in the military

Fourteen Characteristics of a Serial Killer 1. Over 90 percent of serial killers are male. 2. They tend to be intelligent, with IQ's in the "bright normal" range. 3. They do poorly in school, have trouble holding down jobs, and often work as unskilled laborers. 4. They tend to come from markedly unstable families. 5. As children, they are abandoned by their fathers and raised by domineering mothers. 6. Their families often have criminal, psychiatric and alcoholic histories. 7. They hate their fathers and mothers. 8. They are commonly abused as children — psychologically, physically and sexually. Often the abuse is by a family member.

Continued Many serial killers spend time in institutions as children and have records of early psychiatric problems. 10. They have high rates of suicide attempts. 11. From an early age, many are intensely interested in voyeurism, fetishism, and sado-masochistic pornography. 12. More than 60 percent of serial killers wet their beds beyond the age of Many serial killers are fascinated with fire starting. 14. They are involved with sadistic activity or tormenting small creatures.

Some Explanations for Serial Killers:  Childhood abuse  Genetics  Chemical imbalances  Brain injuries  Exposure to traumatic events  Perceived societal injustices

Recipe for a Serial Killer  Three ingredients: Childhood abuse Brain damage Mental illness

Childhood Abuse  Sexual abuse  Torture  Not all abused children grow up to be serial killers it is just one of the symptoms many of them have in common  Causes children to become violent at a young age  Affects their health: brain injuries, malnutrition and developmental disorders

Childhood Abuse Continued...  Abuse can cause the child not to bond with their primary caretaker  Causes them not to trust others later in life  Leads to isolation where intense violent fantasies become the primary source of gratification  They develop no compassion for others  Mothers: too domineering, too distant, too sexually active, or too repressed  Fathers: Usually absent but if they are present: Sadistic disciplinarian tactics, alcoholic rants, and overt anger toward women

Childhood Events  Adoption: Keeps them from having a sense of identity Sense of rejection  Witnessing Violence: Some claim exposure to violent events ignited their thirst for blood

Childhood Events Continued...  Juvenile Detention: Reform school in the early 20 th century was filled with sadistic guards and medieval punishments  Peer Rejection: Many multiple murders are isolated as children As isolation increases so does the reliance on fantasies especially destructive ones

Brain Damage  When the hypothalamus, the temporal lobe, and/or the limbic brain show damage it may account for uncontrollable aggression  Hypothalamus regulates the hormonal system and emotions Close to the sexual and aggressive centers of the brain Can be damaged through malnutrition or injury

Brain Damage Continued...  Temporal Lobe: Highly susceptible to injury because it is located where the skull bone is the thinnest Injury can cause amnesia or epileptic seizures Injury can cause hair-trigger violent reactions and increased aggressive responses

Brain Damage Continued...  Limbic Brain: Associated with emotion and motivation Injury can cause loss of control over primary emotions like fear and rage Reptiles are missing this part of their brain which is why serial killers are often refered to as cold blooded

Mental Illness  Often have delusions or hear voices  Schizophrenia is a common mental illness among murders

Triad of Symptoms Shown at a Young age  Setting fires Sexually stimulating activity Dramatic destruction of property feeds the same perverse need to destroy another human Since people are seen as objects the leap between setting fires and killing people is easy to make  Wetting the bed 60% of multiple murders wet their beds past adolescence  Torturing animals Seen as practice for killing humans

Hard to Spot  Serial killers are usually: Charming Well dressed Polite Don’t feel sympathy for other or know how to have a normal relationship so they simulate normal behavior by observing others Usually pick positions of authority  Military or police

Psychopaths  A person whose behavior is amoral and asocial  Characterized by Irresponsibility Lack of remorse or shame Perverse or impulsive behavior Purposeless and irrational antisocial behavior Thrill seekers, fearless  Punishment rarely works because they are fearless of consequences

Moral Insanity  Known today as antisocial personality disorder or sociopathology  Fusion of interpersonal, biological, and sociocultural disasters

16 Characteristics of a Psychopath  Superficial charm and good intelligence  Absence of dilusions and other signs of irrational thinking  Absence of nervousness or neuroticism  Unreliability  Untruthfulness and insincerity  Lack of remorse or shame  Inadequately motivated antisocial behavior  Poor judgement and failure to learn by experience  Pathological egocentricity and incapacity for love

Continued...  General poverty in major affective emotions  Specific loss of insight  Unresponsiveness in general interpersonal relations  Fantastic or uninviting behavior with alcoholic drinks  Suicide rarely carried out  Sex life impersonal, trivial or poorly integrated  Failure to follow any lifeplan

In the Population  3-5% of men are psychopaths  1% of women are psychopaths  Make successful business people and world leaders  Not all psychopaths are murders It is easy for them to devalue others combine that with a lifetime with perceived injustices and rejection and you have a murderer

Environmental Factors  60% have lost a parent  Child is deprived of love or nurturing; parents are detached or absent  Inconsistent discipline; father is stern while mother is soft; child learns to hate authority and manipulate mother  Hypocritical parents who privately belittle the child while publicly presenting the image of a happy family

Genetics  Nervous systems of psychopaths are different Feel less anxiety or fear  Have a need for higher stimulation Makes them seek out dangerous situations  Genetics show a predisposition to antisocial behavior  30-38% show abnormal brain waves Brain activity does not increase with age Abnormal brain wave activity in temporal lobes and limbic brain which controls memories and emotions  When this part of the brain is genetically impaired and the parents are abusive the stage is set for disaster.

Treatment  There is no treatment  Shock treatment doesn’t work  Drugs have not been successful  Psychotherapy does not work because psychopaths are incapable of opening up to others and they don’t want to change