The Psychology of Extreme Violence: A Case Study Approach to Serial Homicide, Mass Shooting, School Shooting and Lone-actor Terrorism

Description

Featuring a unique overview of the different forms of extreme violence, this book considers the psychology of extreme violence alongside a variety of contributing factors, such as brain abnormalities in homicide offenders. Featuring several contemporary real-world case studies, this book offers insight into the psychology of serial homicide offenders, mass shooters, school shooters and lone-actor terrorists. The main purpose of this book is not to glorify or condemn the actions of these individuals, but to attempt to explain the motivations and circumstances that inspire such acts of extreme violence. By adopting a detailed case study approach, it aims to increase our understanding of the specific motivations and psychological factors underlying extreme violence. Using nontechnical language, this book is the ideal companion for students, researchers, and forensic practitioners interested in the multidisciplinary nature of extreme violence. This book will also be of interest to students taking courses on homicide, mass shooting, school shooting, terrorism, forensic psychology and criminology and criminal justice. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: The anatomy of extreme violence The role of neurochemistry in violence Monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) Hormones of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis Brain abnormalities and neuroanatomy of mass murderers Cavum septum pellucidum Serial homicide offenders and neurological assessment Studies investigating brain abnormalities in murderers Studies investigating structural abnormalities in psychopaths Neurocognition of mass murderers Traumatic brain injury Heart rate Homicidality, homicide and Lyme disease Social factors interact with biological factors to increase the propensity for violence Conclusion Key points Essay/discussion questions Recommended reading References Chapter 3: Serial homicide Definition Compulsive criminal homicide: a new nosology for serial murder Prevalence of serial homicide The role of psychosocial mediators or stressors Criminal history in serial homicide offenders Origins and processes of behavioral profiling Organized–disorganized dichotomy Organized serial killer Disorganized serial killer The organized–disorganized system should be thought of more as a continuum than as a rigid dichotomy Other typologies Signatures Multiple homicide in autism and Asperger’s Disorder Sexual deviancy and fantasies in serial homicide offenders: the mechanism from imagination to the murder phases Paraphilias Necrophilia Autoerotic asphyxiation and its co-with sexual deviant interests Case study – Jeffrey Dahmer Dahmer’s apartment at the time of his arrest The temple and film scenes of psychological significance to Dahmer Similarities in the external phenotype of his victims Offending history Psychosocial stressors Loneliness Clinical presentation Personality Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PD-NOS) Necrophilia Depressive affect Evidence indicative of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) The dangerous point where awakening sexuality occurs at the same time as unhealthy thoughts about viscera Neurological assessments Deep ambivalence about his own homosexual behavior Cannibalistic behavior Sentencing and prison Dennis Nilsen: brief case study Case study – Dennis Rader Escalation of fantasies Escalation of fantasies and bondage during childhood Escalation of fantasies and bondage during adolescence Hanging “Slick ads” and modified photographs Self-imposed suffocation in the office Motel parties Becoming the victim: re-creating a torturer–victim fusion Rader victim A Rader victim B Psychological significance of the vehicle to Rader Killings as project-based leisure Court Summary Key points Essay/discussion questions Recommended key reading References Chapter 4: Mass shooters Mass shootings: definition Are mass shootings on the increase? Phenomenon of increased fame-seeking in the United States Does the internet and social media give these young men who become mass shooters the platform for the fame and notoriety that they seek? The pathway to intended violence: opportunity for threat assessment Misogyny Narcissistic rage A case study of Dylann Storm Roof Arrest history Forensic psychological evaluations Loftin’s psychological evaluation: Autism Spectrum Disorder Social communication in adolescence and young adulthood Deficits in reading and using nonverbal communication Difficulty understanding, developing and maintaining appropriate social relationships Restricted-repetitive behaviors and interests in adolescence and adulthood (preoccupation with racism) Increasing isolation and lack of relationships Psychiatric comorbidities Disordered thought: delusions, paranoia, and other unusual thinking Unusual thinking Grandiose beliefs Paranoia: a sense that the world is unsafe, threatening and rejecting Diagnostic conclusion: summary Case study – Elliot Rodger The autobiographical manifesto – “My Twisted World” The online video posted by Rodger: “Day of Retribution” Early history Prior interactions with the criminal justice system Clinical presentation Narcissistic rage Increasing isolation “Injustice collectors” Psychotic features: from avoidant to schizotypal Psychopathic traits Embodied, damaged and compensatory masculinity Rodger’s “Path to Intended Violence” Psychiatric comorbidities in individuals with ASD Clinical implications and recommendations Future directions Summary Key points Essay/discussion questions Recommended key reading References Chapter 5: Rampage school shootings What is the definition of a rampage school shooting? Seung Hui Cho – mini case study Empirical studies investigating school shooters: offense and offender characteristics Prong 1: personality traits and behavior Prong 2: family dynamics Prong 3: school dynamics Prong 4: social dynamics Some warning behaviors discriminate between school shooters and other students of concern Differences and similarities of attacks in schools and in institutes of higher education Three-part typology of school shooters: traumatized, psychotic and psychopathic The traumatized shooter The psychotic shooter The psychopathic shooter Three types of shooters Biological, or body-related, issues in school shooters Education and military failure Narcissism as a risk factor in school shootings Animal abuse as a warning sign of school shooters Case study – Adam Lanza Early medical background History of psychiatric conditions and neurodevelopmental disorders Possible psychotic symptoms Military failure Early indications of Adam Lanza’s preoccupation with violence Significant interest in firearms and weapon proficiency Preoccupation with mass shooters Other areas of interest to Lanza as identified by searches on recoverable hard disk drives and computers, etc. Increasing isolation Adolescent mass shootings: developmental considerations in light of the Sandy Hook shooting Mapping the trajectory of school shooters Pathway to intended mass violence in the case of Lanza Crime script analysis School shooting and cumulative strain: five-stage sequential model Summary Summary points Essay/research questions Recommended reading Resources References Chapter 6: The psychology of terrorism and lone-actor terrorists The psychology of terrorism Recruitment and selection Lone-actor terrorism Rates of mental disorders in lone actors to matched samples of group actors No mental health disorder appears to be a predictor of terrorist involvement Presence of mental disorders also may be a by-product of terrorist activity Two types of lone-actor terrorist: the disconnected–disordered and the caring-compelled Violence as a means to significance The role of social networks Case study –Theodore (‘Ted’) John Kaczynski Early years and Ted’s career Experiment at Harvard: multiform assessments of personality development among gifted college men, 1941–65 Manifesto: “industrial society and its future” Comprehensive psychiatric evaluation carried out by Dr Sally Johnson Some difficulties with sexual adjustment Provisional diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia Arguments against the provisional diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia The role of autism spectrum psychopathology in the behavior of Kaczynski Sentencing Case study – Anders Behring Breivik Background Possible developmental trajectory 2083: A European Declaration of Independence Breivik’s use of the internet and social media: the road to militancy The significant role that music played for Breivik Leakage Forensic evaluations First psychiatric evaluation Second psychiatric assessment Evidence of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) Drugs Evidence of Asperger’s Syndrome Courtroom controversies and conclusions Narcissistic decompensation Risk assessment Future research directions Summary Key points Essay questions Recommended key reading References Chapter 7: Conclusion: threat assessment and prevention of extreme violence Strategies for preventing school shootings and mass shootings Identification of risk factors or warning signs/red flags Increase the availability of walk-in counseling treatment services as well as mobile counseling treatment Need to improve education about warning signs and challenges to people communicating their knowledge about leakage The need for more training of law enforcement Current criteria for legal purchase of firearms may be insufficient Reducing the number of fatalities: traditional lockdown approaches versus multi-option responses with barricading, evacuating and active resisting The importance of responsible coverage of shooting attacks The importance of intervening as early as possible The need for more resources to support school-based mental health services Similarities in the genesis and performance of terrorist attacks and school shootings Risk assessment in the prevention of violent radicalization into terrorism References Index