In the textbook Applied Social Psychology, Andres and Bonta established the General personality and social psychological model of criminal behavior in 2016 to indicate the risk factors contributing to one’s criminal behaviors. (Gruman, 2017 p.292) The list factors are arranged in the impact from early childhood to the transitional adolescents and eventually to adulthood. For instance, Individuals in the teenager’s period will likely follow their peers’ behaviors and adopt their values and beliefs. It reminds me of the concept that I have learned from the abnormal psychology courses about serial killers, which also fits the idea of antisocial. The risk factors contribute from multiple perspectives as a combination of biological, social, and psychological factors could be associated with serial killer’s findings from the FBI.
The FBI used to conclude the serial killers in a 2008 report. depict the characteristics of a serial killer. (FBI, 2008 as cited in Sue et al., 2016) All the descriptions are pretty distinguished from what we would usually perceive as a serial killer. FBI identified that most serial killers are not social misfits or noticeably strange. As the General personality and social psychological model of criminal behavior claimed, one of the risk factors for conducting crime is the association with pro-criminal peers and isolation from noncriminal associates. A serial killer might be involved in an antisocial group that promotes them to engage in criminal behavior. The social learning theory, which Badndura in1977 established, could interpret the process of how the individuals might commit a crime by observing to imitate the behavior to receive positive feedbacks and external rewards as consequences. During the interaction with the antisocial group to perform a particular task, the serial killer learns to hide their real identity and communicate like an average person who breaks the stereotype that social media has presented.
Another conclusion from the FBI about a serial killer is that the motivations are wide-ranging and may include sexual fantasies, anger, thrill, financial gain, or attention. According to Andrew and Bonta, hostile parenting and family experience increase individuals’ possibility to be an offender. Hostile parenting incorporates the child’s insufficient care and concerns, which leads the individuals to seek attention inappropriately when they are adults. The family’s economic status was low will also show the individuals to gain wealth by illegal means. Another risk factor that Andrew and Bonta mentioned is abusing drugs and alcohol; this will explain serial killer’s motivation of anger or thrill because the overusing of toxic substances will trigger unstable emotions.
FBI also discovered that serial killers are rarely insane, although they typically have personality disorders (including antisocial personality disorder). Their intelligence ranges from below to above average. The General personality and social psychological model of criminal behavior pointed out that the risk factor of low school levels or vocational achievement fits partly of the description for those whose intelligence level might not be as high. In general, the formation of risk factors could gradually aggrandize the possibility of conducting the crime. In contrast, appropriate inhibition at the early onset of antisocial behavior will be helpful to prevent further actions. The individuals will be able to go back on the right track of their life with positive changes in attitudes, values, and beliefs and carry out the change actions both in their leisure and work or study time. Along with a healthier lifestyle and proper norms, individuals will be less likely to commit a crime, which will benefit our society with more peace and happiness.
Reference:
FBI. (2008, July 31). Serial murder – july 2008. FBI. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/stats-services-publications-serial-murder-serial-murder-july-2008-pdf/view.
Gruman, J. A., Schneider, F. W., & Coutts, L. M. (2017). Applied Social Psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems. SAGE.
I really grabbed to where you said that most serial killers are actually not antisocial and awkward as they are made out to seem– but instead, charismatic and socially elite (FBI). In fact, it made me check your reference out where I grabbed another fact that stated they can in fact be antisocial and not usually the ‘it’ person in the crowd– so they do something outraging to make the news and be that ‘it’ person that way. Sociological factors can also play major roles in serial killers and influencing their decisions such as social class and poverty in surrounding areas (Gruman et. al, 2017). It makes me think about those in high social classes that are in fact socially elite and still become serial killers. There are so many different combinations of factors that can produce such a malignant outcome, and it makes me wonder how those presented with the same factors decide a different route than those who serial murder. Thank you for sharing.
References
FBI. (2008, July 31). Serial murder – july 2008. FBI. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/stats-services-publications-serial-murder-serial-murder-july-2008-pdf/view.
Gruman, J. A., Schneider, F. W., & Coutts, L. M. (2017). Applied social psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems. SAGE.
Hi, I agree that biological, social, and psychological factors influence one’s criminal behaviors. Serial killers, as your example, are most likely people who have been isolated from others and are not getting the attention they want. To receive the attention in return, the killing would make him or her popular in the news. Through interactions with other antisocial people, the real identity is easy to hide. Hostile parenting might cause a serial killer to become overwhelmed with emotions and anger causing them to want to release this anger through killing. As their anger increases, their motives to kill also increase. Drugs and alcohol also play a huge role in a person in which the frustrations that are given from having that addiction causes a person to do things that they don’t want to. Inhibition at a young age can help a person from proceeding with their intentions of danger.
To expand on your idea, the biological, social, and psychological factors influence a person’s developmental stages. For example, biological factors have a great influence on the way that a person is developing from childhood. If the nutrition during prenatal development is not provided that might result in a deficit in cognitions and cause disabilities. Some serial killers might have disabilities and might not realize what they are doing is dangerous. Another biological factor that influences serial killer’s behaviors is the physical aggression. According to the textbook, “males have a greater propensity for physical aggression than do females has been attributed to higher levels of testosterone (Dabbs, Carr, Frady, & Riad, 1995) and the presence of an extra Y chromosome (XYY)” (Gruman 291). Sociological factors also influence a serial killer’s actions. These factors are like social class, poverty, income, and many more. According to the textbook, “lower socioeconomic status is associated with a higher rate of crime” (Gruman 291). Some psychological factors that influence a serial killer’s motivation are like frustrations and deindividuation. All these factors lead up to a serial killer deciding to kill people. To try to stop serial killers from taking actions, therapy is a great way to solve this problem. For example, the Multisystemic therapy program in which this helps decrease the youth’s intention of taking an action towards killing.
References: Gruman, J. A., Schneider, F. W., & Coutts, L. M. (2017). Applied social psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems. SAGE.