What Is Jeffrey Dahmer's Crimes
Human fascination with the dark and twisted minds of criminals is not a new concept. For years, humans have tried to understand what draws people to commit terrible acts. When looking at crime as a whole, each case is vastly different in motivation, execution, and the effects they have on the culprit. The one unifying factor that does exist between crimes ranging from shoplifting to murder is the overwhelming presence of personality disorders that can motivate criminal behavior or justify it for those responsible.While personality disorders impact the behaviors and mindsets of all victims, those with paranoid, narcissistic, and antisocial personality disorders share the closest connection to delinquency. The mental toll each disorder takes
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on those suffering them can push a person to take drastic action. However, if a paranoid personality disorder presents itself the likelihood of irrational or violent actions increases. Paranoid personality disorder is among the least understood of all personality disorders. According to the medical definition, a paranoid personality disorder is described as “A mental condition in which a person has a long-term pattern of distrust and suspicion of others. The person does not have a full-blown psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia.” (Berger & Zieve, 2014) The symptoms of the disorder make the individual extremely susceptible to engage in violent behavior when they encounter a perceived threat. As a result, a person suffering from P.P.D. as a child, has a significantly higher chance of committing a crime than a healthy individual. (Stone 2007) Personality disorders can be broken up into three different clusters, P.P.D. belongs to Cluster A alongside schizoid and schizotypal personality disorders. Generally, disorders in the cluster are less violent in day-to-day issues, however, if presented with a threat the likelihood of violence increase drastically. As previously mentioned, minor infractions are uncommon among people with P.P.D, especially driving offences which have a negative association to the disorder. The crimes most associated with this specific personality disorder are robbery and blackmail, but can also be seen in much more serious crimes. The most common motivation for P.P.D crimes was compliance. Frequently, substance abuse plays a major role in a majority of crimes involved with any personality disorder, but especially P.P.D. (Davison & Janca, 2012) Not only are they a predictor for the development of the disorder, but can also greatly affect the motivations to commit a crime. (Abram, 1990) Other mental disorders can also increase violent or illegal behavior in a person with, P.P.D. Schizophrenia and other disorders with delusion can lead the individual to act in irrational ways to non-threatening stimuli. (Stone 2007) Many of the ties between P.P.D. and criminal behavior was accumulated through the case studies of some of the most malicious leaders in history. Since Joseph Stalin and Saddam Hussein’s time in power, various psychologists have analyzed their behavior in hopes of understanding why they committed their large-scale and violent crimes against humanity. Both were diagnosed with various personality or mental disorders, all of which increased their paranoid beliefs. Stalin, so obsessed that other party officials were out to get him, was driven to start “The Doctors' Plot”. This conspiracy was said to be designed by Stalin to maintain power, and it consisted of Soviet medical personnel murdering politicians who opposed or threatened Stalin’s regime. It is believed he suffered from paranoid personality disorder, and the immense fear drove Stalin to begin eliminating any threats. “ As Stalin's fear magnified, so too did the extent of his actions to eliminate threats to his power, witness the extent of the purges, variously estimated to be upwards of twelve million victims.” (Robins & Post, 1987) Likewise, Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq with constant paranoid thoughts that outside forces were coming to attack. His paranoia made him extremely dangerous and his belief that the United States, Israel and Iran were all conspiring against him led to excessive violence and threats to those nations. Just in his first days of taking office, Hussein had twenty officials executed because they were potential threats. When he was removed from power, it was discovered he had wiretapped even some of his closest relatives and officials because he did not trust them. (Post, 2000) All these actions also indicate a paranoid personality disorder. Just like in Stalin’s case, he used various methods of execution and torture to remain in power which lead to a thousands of deaths during his time in power. These studies suggest the strong correlation that paranoid personality disorder has with crimes, for Stalin and Hussein these were especially violent methods to maintain power and cope with their distrust of those around them. Similar violent behavior has been reported with those who suffer narcissistic personality disorder, thus both personality disorders have an affect on criminal behavior. When comparing paranoid and narcissistic personality disorders, the latter comes up more frequently among prisoners during psychiatric evaluations. One reason may be that N.P.D. belongs to the B Cluster of Personality Disorders. The disorder is characterized by strong sense of self worth and entitlement, their belief that they are special in comparison to everyone else can result in behavior that disregard the feelings and rights of others. (Hoermann, Zupanick & Domeck, 2013) Overall, criminals with N.P.D. consider themselves to be above the law or believe they are too intelligent to ever be caught. This disorder is associated with fraud and forgery, which both take a fair amount of confidence to execute. These people may also disagree with what is considered to be conventional morality, and have their own skewed interpretation of what is moral and what is not. Lastly, they show little remorse for the crimes they have committed regardless of the scale of the crime. N.P.D. has been tied to provocational and financial motivations. (Davison & Janca, 2012) The case of Steven Benson clearly illustrates the result of a person with N.P.D. that was financially motivated to commit a crime. Benson planted a bomb in his family’s car in hopes of killing everyone inside to receive the family’s inheritance. In court, he showed both arrogance and a lack of emotion, which is not uncommon for N.P.D. (Stauffer, 2015) Another aspect of this disorder is ‘Malignant Narcissism’ or the presence of both antisocial and narcissistic personality disorder traits. Individuals who fit under this category are often the most violent of any single personality disorder, and are described as sadistic, hostile, and aggressive. (Vaknin, 2007) Thomas Gilbert Jr. shot his wealthy father over an argument regarding finances, which again ties into both provocational and financial motivations. In court, it was discovered that he had various mental problems which had first began as small conduct issues. However, it was believed that his combination of antisocial and narcissistic personality disorder are what drove him to commit the crime. (McKinley, 2015) While both Gilbert and Benson’s cases were somewhat low profile, there are much more well-known individuals that also suffer from N.P.D. and were charged with horrible crimes. Adolf Hitler, one of the most infamous and ruthless leaders in history, has in recent times been diagnosed as having narcissistic personality disorder. Many of those who evaluated Hitler’s behavior concluded that it was most likely cause by his childhood, specifically the way his authoritarian father treated him. It was also noted that “ Hitler would have had little insight into his condition and that he often blamed teachers, his father, and society for causing his early failures.” This corresponds to the observation of Hitler’s sense of importance and entitlement. Many of the actions taken by Hitler, especially during wartime, support the diagnosis of N.P.D. Notably, his idea of the “Master Race” which he was the face of. His manipulative and greedy personality along with a disregard for human life were indicators of some sort of disorder. He also was believed to have multiple disorders along with N.P.D., including antisocial personality disorder. (Coolidge, 2007) This disorder is the most well known and most reported when it comes to diagnosing criminals.
A large portion of the most violent crimes committed showed that the perpetrator exhibited the personality traits of an antisocial personality order. (Stone, 2007) Comparably, in a psychiatric study conducted by Roberts and Coid in England, A.P.D. was the most prevalent disorder reported in a study of 300 prisoners. ( Davison & Janica, 2012) This disorder, like N.P.D., is apart of the violent and erratic Cluster B disorders. N.P.D. specifically can be paired to the disregard of human rights or emotions, manipulation, hostility, violence, impulsive behavior, and most of all a lack of remorse. Many of these traits coincide with those of N.P.D., thus leading to the previously mentioned ‘Malignant Narcissism’. Like many disorders, it typically begins manifesting itself during childhood, specifically with conduct disorders. (Hoermann, Zupanick & Domeck, 2013) A.P.D. was associated to the most violent crimes, including firearms, robbery, and homicides. Motivations for criminals with the disorder were also considered to be for provocational and financial reasons. (Stone, 2007) When outside influences like drugs or alcohol are introduced, said motivations can be distorted or enhanced leading to violent behavior. A majority of serial killers are diagnosed with having A.P.D. due to the severity of their crimes, probably one of the most well known being Jeffrey Dahmer.
Despite his crimes being committed over two decades ago, researchers still continue to observe Jeffrey Dahmer’s crimes and behavior.
Dahmer, a notorious serial killer and sex offender, was charged with murder of seventeen men. Clearly, his capability of committing such heinous crimes pointed towards several mental and personality disorders. His lack of empathy, compulsive behavior, and sadistic tendencies were all tied to antisocial personality disorder. He was also known to be quite persuasive and manipulative, often luring the victims to his home. He showed no remorse while on trial for his crimes, and was eventually sentenced to complete fifteen consecutive life terms. While in custody, he also presented with a confrontational attitude and violent outbursts in jail. All of Dahmer’s behavior, both before and after being caught, exhibited an extreme case of A.P.D. (Strubel) As a result, it is possible to conclude that there is a significant relationship between personality disorders and …show more content…
crime.
While it is often impossible to pinpoint exactly what causes bad people to commit terrible crimes, the mental health of the individual plays a large role in criminal behavior.
Paranoid personality disorder was linked to less violent crimes and was strongly related to other types of mental disorders. It was responsible for the actions of Joseph Stalin and Saddam Hussein. Narcissistic personality disorder was related to crimes relating to finance or provocation and was extremely dangerous due to the individual's belief that they are above the law. Adolf Hitler presented traits of this disorder in his crimes as a dictator. Antisocial personality disorder is the most widely reported and violent of all three personality disorders. Along with other factors, it drove Jeffrey Dahmer to commit appalling crimes against men. In conclusion, while personality disorders will not always predict violent or criminal behavior, there is still an undeniable relationship between personality disorders and all types of
crimes.
on those suffering them can push a person to take drastic action. However, if a paranoid personality disorder presents itself the likelihood of irrational or violent actions increases. Paranoid personality disorder is among the least understood of all personality disorders. According to the medical definition, a paranoid personality disorder is described as “A mental condition in which a person has a long-term pattern of distrust and suspicion of others. The person does not have a full-blown psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia.” (Berger & Zieve, 2014) The symptoms of the disorder make the individual extremely susceptible to engage in violent behavior when they encounter a perceived threat. As a result, a person suffering from P.P.D. as a child, has a significantly higher chance of committing a crime than a healthy individual. (Stone 2007) Personality disorders can be broken up into three different clusters, P.P.D. belongs to Cluster A alongside schizoid and schizotypal personality disorders. Generally, disorders in the cluster are less violent in day-to-day issues, however, if presented with a threat the likelihood of violence increase drastically. As previously mentioned, minor infractions are uncommon among people with P.P.D, especially driving offences which have a negative association to the disorder. The crimes most associated with this specific personality disorder are robbery and blackmail, but can also be seen in much more serious crimes. The most common motivation for P.P.D crimes was compliance. Frequently, substance abuse plays a major role in a majority of crimes involved with any personality disorder, but especially P.P.D. (Davison & Janca, 2012) Not only are they a predictor for the development of the disorder, but can also greatly affect the motivations to commit a crime. (Abram, 1990) Other mental disorders can also increase violent or illegal behavior in a person with, P.P.D. Schizophrenia and other disorders with delusion can lead the individual to act in irrational ways to non-threatening stimuli. (Stone 2007) Many of the ties between P.P.D. and criminal behavior was accumulated through the case studies of some of the most malicious leaders in history. Since Joseph Stalin and Saddam Hussein’s time in power, various psychologists have analyzed their behavior in hopes of understanding why they committed their large-scale and violent crimes against humanity. Both were diagnosed with various personality or mental disorders, all of which increased their paranoid beliefs. Stalin, so obsessed that other party officials were out to get him, was driven to start “The Doctors' Plot”. This conspiracy was said to be designed by Stalin to maintain power, and it consisted of Soviet medical personnel murdering politicians who opposed or threatened Stalin’s regime. It is believed he suffered from paranoid personality disorder, and the immense fear drove Stalin to begin eliminating any threats. “ As Stalin's fear magnified, so too did the extent of his actions to eliminate threats to his power, witness the extent of the purges, variously estimated to be upwards of twelve million victims.” (Robins & Post, 1987) Likewise, Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq with constant paranoid thoughts that outside forces were coming to attack. His paranoia made him extremely dangerous and his belief that the United States, Israel and Iran were all conspiring against him led to excessive violence and threats to those nations. Just in his first days of taking office, Hussein had twenty officials executed because they were potential threats. When he was removed from power, it was discovered he had wiretapped even some of his closest relatives and officials because he did not trust them. (Post, 2000) All these actions also indicate a paranoid personality disorder. Just like in Stalin’s case, he used various methods of execution and torture to remain in power which lead to a thousands of deaths during his time in power. These studies suggest the strong correlation that paranoid personality disorder has with crimes, for Stalin and Hussein these were especially violent methods to maintain power and cope with their distrust of those around them. Similar violent behavior has been reported with those who suffer narcissistic personality disorder, thus both personality disorders have an affect on criminal behavior. When comparing paranoid and narcissistic personality disorders, the latter comes up more frequently among prisoners during psychiatric evaluations. One reason may be that N.P.D. belongs to the B Cluster of Personality Disorders. The disorder is characterized by strong sense of self worth and entitlement, their belief that they are special in comparison to everyone else can result in behavior that disregard the feelings and rights of others. (Hoermann, Zupanick & Domeck, 2013) Overall, criminals with N.P.D. consider themselves to be above the law or believe they are too intelligent to ever be caught. This disorder is associated with fraud and forgery, which both take a fair amount of confidence to execute. These people may also disagree with what is considered to be conventional morality, and have their own skewed interpretation of what is moral and what is not. Lastly, they show little remorse for the crimes they have committed regardless of the scale of the crime. N.P.D. has been tied to provocational and financial motivations. (Davison & Janca, 2012) The case of Steven Benson clearly illustrates the result of a person with N.P.D. that was financially motivated to commit a crime. Benson planted a bomb in his family’s car in hopes of killing everyone inside to receive the family’s inheritance. In court, he showed both arrogance and a lack of emotion, which is not uncommon for N.P.D. (Stauffer, 2015) Another aspect of this disorder is ‘Malignant Narcissism’ or the presence of both antisocial and narcissistic personality disorder traits. Individuals who fit under this category are often the most violent of any single personality disorder, and are described as sadistic, hostile, and aggressive. (Vaknin, 2007) Thomas Gilbert Jr. shot his wealthy father over an argument regarding finances, which again ties into both provocational and financial motivations. In court, it was discovered that he had various mental problems which had first began as small conduct issues. However, it was believed that his combination of antisocial and narcissistic personality disorder are what drove him to commit the crime. (McKinley, 2015) While both Gilbert and Benson’s cases were somewhat low profile, there are much more well-known individuals that also suffer from N.P.D. and were charged with horrible crimes. Adolf Hitler, one of the most infamous and ruthless leaders in history, has in recent times been diagnosed as having narcissistic personality disorder. Many of those who evaluated Hitler’s behavior concluded that it was most likely cause by his childhood, specifically the way his authoritarian father treated him. It was also noted that “ Hitler would have had little insight into his condition and that he often blamed teachers, his father, and society for causing his early failures.” This corresponds to the observation of Hitler’s sense of importance and entitlement. Many of the actions taken by Hitler, especially during wartime, support the diagnosis of N.P.D. Notably, his idea of the “Master Race” which he was the face of. His manipulative and greedy personality along with a disregard for human life were indicators of some sort of disorder. He also was believed to have multiple disorders along with N.P.D., including antisocial personality disorder. (Coolidge, 2007) This disorder is the most well known and most reported when it comes to diagnosing criminals.
A large portion of the most violent crimes committed showed that the perpetrator exhibited the personality traits of an antisocial personality order. (Stone, 2007) Comparably, in a psychiatric study conducted by Roberts and Coid in England, A.P.D. was the most prevalent disorder reported in a study of 300 prisoners. ( Davison & Janica, 2012) This disorder, like N.P.D., is apart of the violent and erratic Cluster B disorders. N.P.D. specifically can be paired to the disregard of human rights or emotions, manipulation, hostility, violence, impulsive behavior, and most of all a lack of remorse. Many of these traits coincide with those of N.P.D., thus leading to the previously mentioned ‘Malignant Narcissism’. Like many disorders, it typically begins manifesting itself during childhood, specifically with conduct disorders. (Hoermann, Zupanick & Domeck, 2013) A.P.D. was associated to the most violent crimes, including firearms, robbery, and homicides. Motivations for criminals with the disorder were also considered to be for provocational and financial reasons. (Stone, 2007) When outside influences like drugs or alcohol are introduced, said motivations can be distorted or enhanced leading to violent behavior. A majority of serial killers are diagnosed with having A.P.D. due to the severity of their crimes, probably one of the most well known being Jeffrey Dahmer.
Despite his crimes being committed over two decades ago, researchers still continue to observe Jeffrey Dahmer’s crimes and behavior.
Dahmer, a notorious serial killer and sex offender, was charged with murder of seventeen men. Clearly, his capability of committing such heinous crimes pointed towards several mental and personality disorders. His lack of empathy, compulsive behavior, and sadistic tendencies were all tied to antisocial personality disorder. He was also known to be quite persuasive and manipulative, often luring the victims to his home. He showed no remorse while on trial for his crimes, and was eventually sentenced to complete fifteen consecutive life terms. While in custody, he also presented with a confrontational attitude and violent outbursts in jail. All of Dahmer’s behavior, both before and after being caught, exhibited an extreme case of A.P.D. (Strubel) As a result, it is possible to conclude that there is a significant relationship between personality disorders and …show more content…
crime.
While it is often impossible to pinpoint exactly what causes bad people to commit terrible crimes, the mental health of the individual plays a large role in criminal behavior.
Paranoid personality disorder was linked to less violent crimes and was strongly related to other types of mental disorders. It was responsible for the actions of Joseph Stalin and Saddam Hussein. Narcissistic personality disorder was related to crimes relating to finance or provocation and was extremely dangerous due to the individual's belief that they are above the law. Adolf Hitler presented traits of this disorder in his crimes as a dictator. Antisocial personality disorder is the most widely reported and violent of all three personality disorders. Along with other factors, it drove Jeffrey Dahmer to commit appalling crimes against men. In conclusion, while personality disorders will not always predict violent or criminal behavior, there is still an undeniable relationship between personality disorders and all types of
crimes.