Macdonald Triad Theory Essay
CJ416 Assignment 2: The Macdonald Triad, a Predictor?
Robert Bricker - G00013999
Grantham University
The Macdonald Triad theory has been around for several years and has been studied and re-studied several over the years. J. M. Macdonald, in his 1963 paper, “The Threat to Kill”, noted that certain behaviors were more prevalent in the violent offenders he was studying (Ramsland, 2012). He found that among the 100 psychotic and non-psychotic patients he interviewed that there was a pattern in their behaviors. One thing to keep in mind is that while Macdonald noted these behaviors he did not see much value in them as a predictor.
Shorty after Macdonald’s …show more content…
Their studies had even fewer participants than Macdonald’s original study; the FBI only used 36 murderers, 25 of which were serial killers, and no non-violent criminals as controls. Even with this small amount of data theories were developed and articles published. They did, however, add some subject background data that may provide further clues to predictors. They found most, three quarts, had single and/or indifferent parents growing up, three quarters had atypical sexual desires, and that three quarters had been abused (Brice, …show more content…
99). This was found to occur in violent offenders more often than the non-violent. Studies have show that animal cruelty is part of a circle of violence at times. The child is abused and passes abuse on to an animal and without proper intervention this could lead to adult behavior that moves past animals. Hickey (2010) referenced a study done by Singer and Hensley (2004) that stated fire-setting is not a lone act, but part of a process. This is another act that seems to stem from ineffective upbringings; broken homes, abuse, neglect, etc. Most children with this behavior find ways to resolve their issues and grow out of this pattern. The others, once again, do not and fire-setting should be viewed as a warning
Robert Bricker - G00013999
Grantham University
The Macdonald Triad theory has been around for several years and has been studied and re-studied several over the years. J. M. Macdonald, in his 1963 paper, “The Threat to Kill”, noted that certain behaviors were more prevalent in the violent offenders he was studying (Ramsland, 2012). He found that among the 100 psychotic and non-psychotic patients he interviewed that there was a pattern in their behaviors. One thing to keep in mind is that while Macdonald noted these behaviors he did not see much value in them as a predictor.
Shorty after Macdonald’s …show more content…
Their studies had even fewer participants than Macdonald’s original study; the FBI only used 36 murderers, 25 of which were serial killers, and no non-violent criminals as controls. Even with this small amount of data theories were developed and articles published. They did, however, add some subject background data that may provide further clues to predictors. They found most, three quarts, had single and/or indifferent parents growing up, three quarters had atypical sexual desires, and that three quarters had been abused (Brice, …show more content…
99). This was found to occur in violent offenders more often than the non-violent. Studies have show that animal cruelty is part of a circle of violence at times. The child is abused and passes abuse on to an animal and without proper intervention this could lead to adult behavior that moves past animals. Hickey (2010) referenced a study done by Singer and Hensley (2004) that stated fire-setting is not a lone act, but part of a process. This is another act that seems to stem from ineffective upbringings; broken homes, abuse, neglect, etc. Most children with this behavior find ways to resolve their issues and grow out of this pattern. The others, once again, do not and fire-setting should be viewed as a warning