The Spark of Curiosity

Have you every wondered what makes a serial killer tick? What pushes their buttons? What makes them different from your run-of-the-mill murderers? Well I have too, which is why I have created this blog to research the intriguing mind of a serial killer. This curiosity all began when I watched a crime investigation show with my mother. The plot involved an arsenal serial killer who burned peoples' house down (WHILE THEY WERE INSIDE) and enjoyed watching them burn.

The first question I had was why?! Why or how could someone be so sadistic to just stand there and watch innocent people as they burn alive? Watching that episode made me interested in this topic because I do not understand how a serial killer could do something so extreme as to murder other human beings. Hopefully all this research will be able to answer my main question: What is it like inside the mind of a serial killer?

As I began my research the first website I found, titled "10 Chilling Glimpses Into The Minds And Lives Of Serial Killers", (http://listverse.com/2015/07/23/10-chilling-glimpses-into-the-minds-and-lives-of-serial-killers/) had a quote that really caught my eye. It stated, "Not all psychopaths are serial killers, but all serial killers are psychopaths." This quote made me think, if all serial killers are psychopaths does that mean none of them are sane and conscious? It also mentioned the common confusion between a psychotic serial killer and a psychopathic serial killer. In the crazy cuckoo sense, psychotic serial killers have lost all touch with reality while psychopathic serial killers are aware of what they are doing, but continue to kill anyway.

After further reading the article, it proposed multiple theories and facts about what makes a serial killer, a serial killer. From underdeveloped brains to killing in genes to bad childhoods. The reasons were fascinating and explained a lot about the difference between the way we think and the way a serial killer thinks.

After countless experiments and data collection, Adrian Raine, a professor of criminology at the University of Pennsylvania, concluded that most serial killers have underdeveloped brains. The parts of the brain that they lack are their ventromedical cortex, which is linked to decision making, and their dorsolateral cortex, which is linked to ones ability to learn from their mistakes.

That explains why serial killers kill over and over again. If they do not realize that what they are doing is wrong then they continue to do what they do, killing whoever they please. They commit crimes based more on impulse than premeditation. The fact that almost all serial killers lack remorse and empathy creates a common theme among them.

Citation: Nixon, Eli. "10 Chilling Glimpses Into The Minds And Lives Of Serial Killers - Listverse." Listverse. N.p., 23 July 2015. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.