What makes a serial killer kill??

reply to post by ronishia


I had no idea who Jeremy Beadle was, so I looked him up. What a career! I can't believe he was the first television presenter to have a physical disability. It never ceases to amaze me how TV usually hides people like him. I'm glad his talents didn't go unnoticed. Thanks for noting that he was also a writer for the magazine! I'll be sure to check out his work.

It fulfills a need for them, they also sleep like babies too.

In some cases, it could be genetic...Jeffrey Dahmers father said he had "thoughts" of a violent nature all his life, but was able to control it. Speaking of control, that's the number one reason they do it. They get off on the fact that they have complete control over his/her victim. The killer decides how and when his victim will die. It's a sick power trip. Others have deep rooted psychological damage.....severe abuse can be the cause of some, yet many people were abused and don't become a serial killer. There is also the issue of the "switch"....in the case of a serial killer the switch which controls impulse is not there. Some people may THINK of killing someone, but they don't do it, because they are able to stop and realize the consequences. In serial killers, it seems that they cannot control their impulses. Last but not least is a warped mind when it comes to sex. Many of them have meshed sex and violence into one, and so sexual release is a factor. Many serial killers say that they are fascinated by figures of authority....wanting to be a cop etc (Dennis Rader). Since they never seem to get anywhere in life, and never accomplish this goal, the act of killing is in itself, the replacement. By doing this, he is in control, he is the authority, and controls everything, while he/she gets sexual gratification from this. No doubt, some are mentally ill, but the majority are intelligent and cunning. They have the ability to compartmentalize things. At home he/she is a great dad/mom, husband/wife etc......but when they are not around the people he/she cares about, the other side comes out. Take for example Dennis Rader (BTK)....he was the president of his church, a boyscout leader, and well known person in the area where he lived .He even murdered a woman just a couple of houses from his, as well as in the church that he was president of. Right in plain site. It's a very complicated subject...bottom line is that in some, it may be genetic, and other factors such as a brain injury and severe child abuse, and what the child's life experience is....they all contribute.But all share one thing....the need to control and dominate another human being....total domination.

why make it complicater,

I think they do it because of all the colors on the box.

Sometimes the toys that are supposed to be at the bottom aren't at the bottom. OR SOMETIMES IT'S THE WRONG TOY...

and the mazes on the back.. how are those solvable, I mean you ever try to write on a box ...so frustrating.... it's enough to make anyone want to kill

Every single one of us is violent in nature, self control is what separates us.
Our history is more than enough proof, not just in civilization, but also through human evolution.

There are a few more parts to this video if anyone wants to see them.

Peace to all.

reply to post by MrGrimm


id have to some what agree with this, i think its more survival instinct - the stronger survive sort of thing

reply to post by Buford2


thanks for the videos hadnt seen them before

reply to post by KingAtlas


intresting take you have therre thats one way to simplify things

social conditioning has a lot to do with it...

how often will you ever see a child with a happy childhood grow up to be a killer?

A whole slew of reason, variations and variables.

The number one reason though self-help seminars.

reply to post by MrGrimm


Exactly right. All humans have the POTENTIAL to be violent....that's the difference. That's what I meant when I said the SK's are lacking that mental switch that gives us self control over violent urges.

This is the interview I mentioned where Stone Phillips talks to Jeffrey Dahmer, his father and mother. The one where his dad says he had strange thoughts and thinks it is genetic in part (combined with other issues)....it is very revealing....when you see the juxtaposition of a sick sadistic killer whose crimes are some of the most gory imaginable, and a son who is mild mannered, intelligent and polite saying "I love you Dad"....like 2 people in the same body....Here's part 1....there are 6 parts, you'll see them if you follow this to youtube.

There was a program about this.

A low percentage of people have a certain gene that can make them a psychopath, however a good upbringing can overcome this, the researcher was amazed to find out he had it and people told him thats why he flies off the handle.

If a person has that gene and gets a bad upbringing with physical or emotional abuse then they are going to be a criminal of some sort or other.

Johann "Jack" Unterweger (16 August 1950 – 29 June 1994) was an Austrian serial killer who murdered prostitutes in several countries. First convicted of a 1974 murder, he was released in 1990 due in part to a campaign by intellectuals and politicians, who regarded Unterweger as an example of rehabilitation. He became a journalist and minor celebrity, but within months of his release started killing again. He committed suicide following a conviction for several murders

I don't want to sound weirder than I already am, but I'm kind of interested in the topic of serial killers as well. Being from Austria, I should "introduce" you to Jack Unterweger. His speciality was strangling prostitutes with their pantyhoses. I found a really well made docu about him, which also goes deep into his mind and way of thinking. Quite worth watching:

Just as a general FYI, dont compare Female Serials vs Male Serials, its best to compartmentalize them completely.

Serial Killers

To the person that said "How many happy kids become psychopaths/serial killers". Some murders (not always SKs) are committed without reason or clear motive. There has been several cases where kids who had happy childhoods become murderers and serial killers.

Each and every one of us is capable of becoming a monser, it all depends on circumstance or circumstances leading upto the proverbial psychological break.

if you are interested have a read of Anatomy of a serial killer its a pretty decent read.

Well for one, I would say EGO, EGO is the driving force behind just about anything. Not to say these people have control and they just want to fulfil a fantasy to feel better, but that is why they do it.

Whatever it was that happened to them that turned them into the killer that they are. The continued feeling of what the after affects are is what drives them to do these things. Not the actions themselves. Now if it is repeated actions over and over you just further risk the chance of becoming "permanently" damaged.

I wouldn't say these people are hopeless and can't be taught where to draw the line, but I feel that they never had that ability. Imagine you're a child being abused(as many are), what are you thinking when you're being hit? "Stop" yet as hard as you wish for that to happen, it won't until the person doing it decides to stop. Now wheter or not this person hurting you is happy after they stop isn't important, but some very well may be(People with Bipolar Disorder for example) that person who was just a before hurting you and was angry/sad/etc is now acting different, arguably good in comparison.

If you're a child and that is how you come up in the world, you're not going to look at things as having a line you shouldn't cross, you are going to look at those things as a solution.

Now I'm aware this only applies to some cases, but I still feel EGO is the key behind them all in the end. Even the ones driven by greed, ultimately greed is driven by your EGO. The rare cases of people at a young age, I'm not sure on those. I think they probably witnessed something as well as experienced abuse.

Remember to, some people are just unstable, we may all have the same brain but they don't all work the same way due to all sorts of reasons. I saw someone mention they had a neighbor who killed a homeless man, Thats a perfect example of this. Some people may be able to get over those feelings, or at least to the point of having more control.

This is why I feel people shouldn't be surprised, when someone goes "Oh I never thought they would kill" we don't really know anything about each other. How many people that you know in real life know some of your darkest secrets? If you snapped one day because of them would anyone be there to say "You guys should know..." to explain things? I doubt that to be the case for a lot of people. You know why? EGO, we don't want to disclose that type of information.

For all you know the kid you went to school with who killed someone down the line, could have been raped way back in the day, perhaps even after leaving your home one night. You would never know, a lot of people would probably never tell you.

So what do I think drives people to kill? Life does. Which is quite a shame.