Causes of Mass Murder
Causes of Mass Murder Crime
Alvenia Gregory
Argosy University
Abstract
This paper examines the act of mass murder. If society can find a valid answer as to what causes a person to commit mass murders, then the possibility of preventing the act would be great because it would be probable to recognize the psychotic behavior that is associated with mass murder. Occurrences of mass murder for instance the shootings at Sandy Hook, Aurora Colorado theatre; Columbine and Virginia Tech over and over again dominate much of society's attention not only for weeks but often for months following the incident. The research question I have selected is: ‘What are the sociological and psychological causes for unforeseen criminal actions of Mass Murderers?’ The recent rises in mass murders have become a concern for much of society. These events, which we identify as mass murder or mass homicide, have increased in the last half century. Although neither criminologists nor psychologists have found a specific psychological profile unique to mass murderers despite the fact, several theorist have made presumptions on their motivations. What factors would motivate a person to conceive in their mind, plan and then execute the murders of a group of strangers is something I cannot comprehend.
Defining the term Mass Murder The term mass murder is defined as the brutal and unwarranted killing of a group of people, a massacre, and slaughter or butchery murder. The perpetrator who commits mass murder is usually described as a person who kills several or numerous victims in a single incident. Mass murder, is often misjudged as a spree killing. For example, spree killing involves two or more murders that occur within a brief period in multiple locations. According to Dr. Park Dietz (1986) mass murder is defined as an "offenses in which multiple victims are intentionally killed by a single offender in a single incident" (p. 479). Recently, Levin and Madfis (2009) described mass murder as "the
Alvenia Gregory
Argosy University
Abstract
This paper examines the act of mass murder. If society can find a valid answer as to what causes a person to commit mass murders, then the possibility of preventing the act would be great because it would be probable to recognize the psychotic behavior that is associated with mass murder. Occurrences of mass murder for instance the shootings at Sandy Hook, Aurora Colorado theatre; Columbine and Virginia Tech over and over again dominate much of society's attention not only for weeks but often for months following the incident. The research question I have selected is: ‘What are the sociological and psychological causes for unforeseen criminal actions of Mass Murderers?’ The recent rises in mass murders have become a concern for much of society. These events, which we identify as mass murder or mass homicide, have increased in the last half century. Although neither criminologists nor psychologists have found a specific psychological profile unique to mass murderers despite the fact, several theorist have made presumptions on their motivations. What factors would motivate a person to conceive in their mind, plan and then execute the murders of a group of strangers is something I cannot comprehend.
Defining the term Mass Murder The term mass murder is defined as the brutal and unwarranted killing of a group of people, a massacre, and slaughter or butchery murder. The perpetrator who commits mass murder is usually described as a person who kills several or numerous victims in a single incident. Mass murder, is often misjudged as a spree killing. For example, spree killing involves two or more murders that occur within a brief period in multiple locations. According to Dr. Park Dietz (1986) mass murder is defined as an "offenses in which multiple victims are intentionally killed by a single offender in a single incident" (p. 479). Recently, Levin and Madfis (2009) described mass murder as "the